Are Arts Festival prices getting out of hand?
I have been getting many emails from people asking about the exorbitant prices at the Coconut Grove Arts Festival.
When one mom asked why they were charging so much for the kiddie rides, the vendor actually told her that Monty Trainer, president, told them to charge that price, which I don't believe. That vendor is a liar and a greedy one at that.
The kiddie area had one minute rides for $5.00 each. The gyros go for $8.00 each. A coke is $5.00. Lemonade for $5.00 and $6.00 for a cup full of ice, some water and dirty lemons? Art is at all time highs, I told you about this one wooden bowl that I saw for $1000.00.
I probably will forget next year, but I think we need to boycott all vendors for one whole day next year and let them see that people have had enough. How would it be if no one bought any food for one whole day of the event?
I still don't like the $5.00 entrance fee. I have received emails from angry people stating that this is to keep poor families and minorities out, I don't know if this is true or not, but I say let everyone in and if they want to make money for charity, how about each vendor donate something from each sale like other art shows do? Art should be free to the masses, especially when they take over the streets paid for by taxpayers.
I'll never forget that when I emailed them the first year, complaining about the $5.00 fee, a lady at their end emailed me back saying, "This is to keep the riff raff out like you." Her exact words. I wish I had saved that email. I didn't have the blog then or I would have blasted it all over the place, including her name.
When one mom asked why they were charging so much for the kiddie rides, the vendor actually told her that Monty Trainer, president, told them to charge that price, which I don't believe. That vendor is a liar and a greedy one at that.
The kiddie area had one minute rides for $5.00 each. The gyros go for $8.00 each. A coke is $5.00. Lemonade for $5.00 and $6.00 for a cup full of ice, some water and dirty lemons? Art is at all time highs, I told you about this one wooden bowl that I saw for $1000.00.
I probably will forget next year, but I think we need to boycott all vendors for one whole day next year and let them see that people have had enough. How would it be if no one bought any food for one whole day of the event?
I still don't like the $5.00 entrance fee. I have received emails from angry people stating that this is to keep poor families and minorities out, I don't know if this is true or not, but I say let everyone in and if they want to make money for charity, how about each vendor donate something from each sale like other art shows do? Art should be free to the masses, especially when they take over the streets paid for by taxpayers.
I'll never forget that when I emailed them the first year, complaining about the $5.00 fee, a lady at their end emailed me back saying, "This is to keep the riff raff out like you." Her exact words. I wish I had saved that email. I didn't have the blog then or I would have blasted it all over the place, including her name.
posted by Tom Falco at 7:30 AM
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19 Comments:
I agree with your suggestion boycott vendors say at the very beginning like the first day. With the way the economy is now you would think that making something reasonable and affordable to families is the way to go.
Funny thing about riff raffs, you cannot tell a book by its cover, many people I know who have much money to spend are conservative in their spending. Meaning if something is deemed too expensive guess what they won't go or buy it so by their definition they are excluding people who could potential purchase items.
Count me in if you wish to do this!
I am complete agreement with you about the prices. However, regardless of what the "kiddie ride" vendor told you, the prices ARE a direct reflection of what the vendors pay to be there in the first place.
It is the very same reason you do not see local purveyors of food and beverages. Many of those vendors pay thousands of dollars for each tent. Some pay as much as $20,000 for a tent in a premium location for the 3 days! Additionally, in many cases the Arts Festival ALSO takes a share of their revenue.
As a former business owner in the grove, several years ago I inquired about setting up a tent. Upon hearing the pricing structure, I didn't know if I should be angry or laugh hysterically.
I agree about the expensive vendor prices. I didn't mind the admission especially for 33 residents it's $5 for the whole weekend. However, I got a Rum Runner (small) with a shot and it was something like $15. I mean of course it's liquor but I was just surprised when I went up there to pay for it.
I have a different perspective. The reason the kiddie ride is $5.00is because I suspect that the operators have to carry liability insurance which is not cheap.
You can blame the lawyers & the Grove is populated by many.
Also, I agree with the former Grove business owner that places the blame on the event's organizers who charge confiscatory fees for a location. A food or drink vendor only has a small window to recuperate their investment. What happens if it rains (like it did) and attendance comes to a standstill?
You sound like the character Dr. Phillip Barbay in the movie Back to School when he tries to educate Rodney Dangerfield on how to run a business from an ivory tower.
After Rodney (Thorton Melon) schools him on the reality of running a business, Dr. Barbay replies "now, not withstanding Mr. Melon's input. The next question for us is where to build our factory?"
Rodney replies how 'bout fantasyland?
Sometimes, I read these things in awe that so many grown ups can act so much like children. And I won't mind signing my name to it.
1. I can't believe someone is "surprised" at a way overpriced rum runner at $15. Guy... don't you read? They have the prices up there, for everyone to see. I takes 2 seconds to read, 2 seconds to make a decision. What's so hard about it????
2. The same thing for the kiddie rides. You go there, you see $5 for one minute, you decide no... fine, tell your kid, listen honey, it is too expensive and they are ripping you off. We are going somewhere else, I'll buy you an ice cream.
In a true marketplace --like ours-- the consumer is the one with the final decision. If you see a price you don't like...
1. Negotiate
2. If not, walk away
I didn't buy anything at this year's show, I, too, found the prices outrageous.
MS
Grapevine, I'm surprised to read this. You have always been such a "rah-rah" promoter of the Arts Festival, making us detractors feel like turds in a punchbowl.
The whole thing should be offensive to anyone who lives in the neighborhood. I haven't even deigned to patronize the event since they started charging admission.
I always put down their non-stop commercialization. I blog the festival because it's the biggest thing in the Grove, how can I ignore it?
I couldn't make the art festival this year nor last year. I had always attended out of a sense of obligation - my dad, Gene Massin, Jack Amoroso, Bill Clark, Eddie Wehye, Hank Koch, and others were in the first art festival and a few more after that. They soon became a little annoyed because it was taken over by a committee and they had to "apply" and be "selected". The first five years or so, they just set up their art on the sidewalk of Main Highway and that was that. Obviously, that would be an impossible system today but there might be a happy medium between that, and the current Disney-like system.
It is enevitable that these things get more organized and more commercial as they grow. Do you think the first Super Bowl was as commercial as the last Super Bowl? Most people do not recognize this but our standard of living is the best in human history, the fact we can take these types of events and convert them into multi-million dollar industries is one of the reasons why we live so well.
I realize most people do not appreciate how well life is today in 2008 because their perspective begins the day they were born. But, this is the best time to be alive in the history of humanity. (Sorry you hippies it was not the 1960's)
As I commented earlier, I bought an 8 dollar corndog. I was foolish: There weren't any signs, I ordered it, I gave it to my son who immediately took a bit, she said "$8."
Eight dollars!!!
I was expecting $5, perhaps $6. But eight dollars means I tell everyone I know that the fair is crazy.
Amen! It is like legally scamming people. I don't buy food @ these places.
The first year that they charged, I liked it. Everyone was still able to attend the "festival" part for free, but you paid five bucks to see the art. Art lovers could view the art without some drunk spilling beer on you or without tripping over little kids. I heard that the artists did well that year. One vendor told me that many people weren't even looking at the art.
Okay, so we boycott the festival, but allow people to park all over our front yards? Sounds great. People that live in Miami are pigs, throwing trash everywhere. For the real experience of the art show, how about you have a homeowner collect the trash for that weekend and come deposit it in front of your house. Easy to sit in judgment of others, but wasn't it you that had to listen to music coming from Grove Isle one night? Why complain when you knew Grove Isle was there before you moved in?
We bought a 3-day Grove pass, attended the show early Saturday, had our hands stamped, dashed back down there to buy some of the pricey food to take home for dinner, arrived at 5:50pm, were denied re-entry even with the stamp, even saying all we wanted to do was to go buy food and leave. Wound up having to talk to a security supervisor for that "privilege". Never again!
To anonymous at February 25, 2008 9:03 PM:
The problem with your analogy is that the Super Bowl and other commercial events take place on private property. What offends me about the Arts Fest is not just that they get use of public streets (which I don't mind so much, although it is extremely aggravating to be blocked from the Sailing Club on one of the best sailing weekends of the year), but that they are permitted to charge us entry to a public street, and then essentially hold us hostage to an enclave of over-priced vendors, all while our streets are being overrun with traffic and garbage. Some of us have even suffered the indignity of being assaulted on our streets by rude or drunken attendees.
Perhaps the time has come to move the whole thing into the Expo Center and the surrounding parking lot.
You know, that is a good idea, Swlip. Leave the road open and have the event in the Expo parking lot and surrounding lots.
i arrived at the festival at 4pm on monday. they insisted on charging me the full $5.00 for 1 hour of festival. Fortunatly i found another "method". One guy tried to explain that "Disney doesn't lower their prices" I of course had to reply "this ain't Disney". Oh well...I am really upset that St. Stephans is also charging, although $1.00 is not too much to spend.
"Disney doesn't lower their prices?" Heh. They sure are full of themselves, now, aren't they?
I realize this is an old thread but still relevant today. We boycotted the Coconut Grove Arts Festival years ago because we refuse to pay to go to a Festival that was always free; it is so un-Coconut Grove like to charge for this. The CGAF gets crappier every year. I could not believe the poster for this year is done by Brito; that speaks volumes on how commercial the festival has become from it's early years when the village was a quaint peaceful place. An artist friend of mine told me the money goes directly to the promoter; what happened to the days when banks used to sponsor this festival? Now even St. Stephens charges. You have to wonder why huge festivals like the Art Deco Festival and the Delray Affair don't have to charge but for the CGAF it is necessary. Nonsense!
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