Opening day thoughts and suggestions....

[robert of armstrong]

Good day to everyone, and hope this finds you all well.  'Tis Monday, and back to reality.  This weekend, I lead a small but potent invasion force (only three of us this time!) from Toronto for Opening Day.  A small force, but we made a splash yet again, being stopped almost constantly for photos (which we love by the way, don't be shy).  I'll add a photo of us to this thread as soon as I can - if have one of us, throw it up if you will!

This was our 6th year visiting  -  Sterling has traditionally opened our RenFest season since 2004, when we left the confines of Southern Ontario in search of greater adventure.  Warwick, and it's inhabitants, have never disappointed.  The feel to the Shire is like coming home, if only in a dream.

We left Toronto Saturday morning at around 5:30 in the morn to begin our trek.  After stops for coffee, a short delay at the border, then later a bite, another coffee and a biobreak, we arrived at the parking lot just after 10:00 am.  As you can imagine, getting garbed up is a bit of a process for some of us, but we were making our way to the gates by 10:30.  WE WERE LATE!

1st  suggestion:  buy your tickets ahead of time, online.  The line-ups at the ticket wickets were very long.  Although all of the wickets were open, we didn't actually get through the gates until almost 11:30.  And man, it was hot.  Imagine standing in line in the sun, in 85+ degree weather, wearing what I wear for almost an hour.  Not a spot of shade to hide myself in.  A tough start to the day, but a situation we could have avoided if we had been a little more proactive.

As per usual, entering the shire of Warwick is like stepping into the time I was meant to live in.  All other problems seem to shake themselves away a few steps past the gate.  Well, we were hungry, so we made for the Turkey Leg, of course!  Naked or Saucy, the ladies are right – they do have some of the best legs I have ever tasted.

2nd suggestion, this one for Lord Douglas of Waterbury:  $8 for a turkey leg seems kind of steep.  I am accustomed to finding a line up anywhere near noon to get a turkey leg, but not on this occasion.  People (mostly mundanes) were grumbling and turning away from turkey legs and going to try to find something less costly!  You already have us Playtrons hooked, we will keep coming back.  Although some will start to be more coy with their money, there is usually money set aside just for Faire.  However, you need the casual visitor to want to come back next year to grow your customer base.  At those prices, they may decide to make their Saturday or Sunday outing to another venue, taking their revenue with them.  If you drop the price to something more reasonable for staples like turkey legs, you might not make as much per leg, but in the long run you will bring in more patrons, selling more turkey legs, and therefore producing more revenue.  I saw a lot more 'Cooler Lunches' being eaten in the parking lot than I ever have.  Could those people been swayed to buying the food if the price was even just a little lower?

The rest of the day went as I had hoped, in fact exceeding my expectations.  The big new stage in the upper clearing looks complete, and is beautiful, although Johnny Fox had some trouble sticking his swords into the stage after having had swallowed them.  He is awesome, and hilarious.  You need to see him, as well as Hey Nunny Nunny – the Mud Stage is always a favorite, but don't get too close if you don't want to get a little on you.

Some of the best moments were the interactions, though, away from the stages.  First, many of the vendors will keep in character, especially if their visitors are in garb.  As well, stopping to talk, or even just saying "Good day, my Lord" or "Well met, my Lady" to other Playtrons, and having the sentiment returned helped make the town feel like it had more of a population and fill in the corners, as my Grandma used to say. But it was the wandering cast members that are like the icing on the cake.  They pull you in, make the place more real.  They finish it off.  

All of the levels of involvement, from the stage acts, the cast, the vendors and the Playtrons make sure that it wasn't like a bunch of old buildings with people working in them, but somewhere really special.  Thank you again, for keeping the magic going.

[Aaroncois]

Glad you enjoyed yourself, Robert! Thanks for adding to my home state's tax revenue! 

1st  suggestion:  buy your tickets ahead of time, online.  The line-ups at the ticket wickets were very long.  Although all of the wickets were open, we didn't actually get through the gates until almost 11:30.  And man, it was hot.  Imagine standing in line in the sun, in 85+ degree weather, wearing what I wear for almost an hour.  Not a spot of shade to hide myself in.  A tough start to the day, but a situation we could have avoided if we had been a little more proactive.

I totally agree with this suggestion. The problem on opening weekend is that they have a Buy One, Get One Half-Off deal that you can only get at the gates. But they could have alleviated some of the issue with the lines if they'd opened the ticket windows earlier. I was in line for tickets by 9:25, expecting to be waiting at the gate, tickets in hand, when the Faire opened. Little did I know that the windows would remain stubbornly closed - the line unmoving - until the crack of 10:00. That's crazy - we missed most of the Opening Ceremony.

Sir Douglas, you've got hundreds of customers standing in line wanting to hand you money - please consider having your ticket staff begin to take that money beginning at 9:00 or 9:30 AM, and speed the whole rest of the day along.

2nd suggestion, this one for Lord Douglas of Waterbury:  $8 for a turkey leg seems kind of steep.  I am accustomed to finding a line up anywhere near noon to get a turkey leg, but not on this occasion.  People (mostly mundanes) were grumbling and turning away from turkey legs and going to try to find something less costly!  You already have us Playtrons hooked, we will keep coming back.  Although some will start to be more coy with their money, there is usually money set aside just for Faire.  However, you need the casual visitor to want to come back next year to grow your customer base.  At those prices, they may decide to make their Saturday or Sunday outing to another venue, taking their revenue with them.  If you drop the price to something more reasonable for staples like turkey legs, you might not make as much per leg, but in the long run you will bring in more patrons, selling more turkey legs, and therefore producing more revenue.  I saw a lot more 'Cooler Lunches' being eaten in the parking lot than I ever have.  Could those people been swayed to buying the food if the price was even just a little lower?

I haven't bought a turkey leg in years. When I first went in 1991, they were $3, and for that price they were totally worth it. Now that they've nearly tripled in price, I find I just don't like them enough to bother. Nobody else in my family will eat them, so we just skip them completely. We bought a lot of food Saturday (two steaks, two or three salted potatoes, fried cheese curds, a waffle sundae and several pretzels), but we definitely made a trip out to the cooler both to keep the budget in balance and because my kids are fussy and won't eat anything served at the faire except the junk food.

All of the levels of involvement, from the stage acts, the cast, the vendors like it wasn't a bunch of old buildings with people working in them, but somewhere really special.  Thank you again, for keeping the magic going.

Agreed and huzzah! Sterling is truly a magical place.

[IndeanaSunday]

I know we've had the "Food Prices" convo with Sir Douglas in the past but I think it bears (emphatic) repeating. Sterling has a great menu: apple dumplings, turkey legs, smoothies, spanikopitas, shishkebobs... so much good food! And the patrons want it, there's no doubt about that.

But to put those prices in perspective: I can get the turkey minis with unlimited fries and unlimited salad bar (and wait service!) for $8.99 at Ruby Tuesday. Or, if I'm feeling a little more indulgent: I can get a Whopper value meal for $6-7.

If an attendant is doing a sort of cost-benefit analysis and has the choice between $8 being a full meal at a fast food joint, 3/4 of a meal at a restaurant, the whole meal if you pack sandwiches, or a single turkey leg; the choice is pretty clear.

I know that food and drink sales are an integral part of festival revenue, but I think the pricing model might need to be reevaluated for the benefit of the Faire.

[robert of armstrong]

But to put those prices in perspective: I can get the turkey minis with unlimited fries and unlimited salad bar (and wait service!) for $8.99 at Ruby Tuesday. Or, if I'm feeling a little more indulgent: I can get a Whopper value meal for $6-7.

If an attendant is doing a sort of cost-benefit analysis and has the choice between $8 being a full meal at a fast food joint, 3/4 of a meal at a restaurant, the whole meal if you pack sandwiches, or a single turkey leg; the choice is pretty clear.

I know that food and drink sales are an integral part of festival revenue, but I think the pricing model might need to be reevaluated for the benefit of the Faire.

To add to that point, you will only be going into a restaurant or fast food place for a short period (hopefully), in the area of 30 min for a burger to 1 hour if you sit in a restaurant.  You are at the Faire for up to nine hours, if you are lucky  .  You will be spending money on more than one mean is what I am saying, and nobody wants people leaving the Faire grumbling about spending way too much on food to enjoy themselves.  I want them happy for the experience, and therefore coming back, and in that way they are garanteeing a place I love will continue in its glory.

[Sir Douglas of Waterbury]

Hello, good people I wanted to address your concerns directly 1st, the wait on opening day was not acceptable unfortunately we were short staffed leading up to opening day and this required a super human effort by our dedicated team and necessitated a sprint to the finish line as some important details ie; double checking the cash register programing and other technical difficulty arose at the last minute. 2nd, almost all food and beverage prices are the same as they have been since I came on to the scene 3 seasons ago. Before last year we lost our traditional supplier of turkey legs and went to the same supplier that many of the other fairs use unfortunately these legs were smoked and as a result look and taste like ham and our customer base is not use to this method of cooking. We had to search high and low nation wide to find a company who was willing to prepare them the traditional way (oven roasted) this is a custom order and has added significantly to our cost per leg. A few other food and beverage items went up in price (most only 50 cents) and with last years minimum wage increase and NY States new water bottle return deposit and the collection containers and the lack of compliance in returning bottles or throwing garbage in the water bottle collection containers as well as throwing water bottles in the garbage containers these extra efforts and lack of compliance by some of our guests added to our cost of operating. We are very sensitive to our customer's budget and work very hard to control costs on your behalf. One thing to remember is we only operate 14 days per year vs (Burger King/Ruby Tuesdays 364 days) and even so this requires us to maintain a year round staff and millions of dollars in advance to put this show on. As you are also aware many repairs and significant improvements have been made every year at great expense. Now add the risk of weather, economy and other potential negative impacts, my banker, lawyer, accountant and insurance man think I'm nuts to take this risk every year. I guess I'm hooked its an awesome responsibility and I'm loving it!

[irish]

**Sir Douglas**
Thank you for all your efforts and keeping the faire as true as can be!
Costs keep going up, because NY needs to tax us all to death!  
I hope you have a great season!
Please tell your banker, lawyer, insurance man and accountant.......we love you being nuts!!  

[Aaroncois]

Hello, good people I wanted to address your concerns directly 1st, the wait on opening day was not acceptable

Thanks for the response, Sir Douglas! Just knowing you feel that way takes some of the sting out of the experience. I'm glad I managed to resist the nearly-uncontrollable urge to cling to your leg and beg you to sell us tickets when you walked past on Saturday morning. That wouldn't have been good for anybody.

As to the rest, I don't know how you manage the operational costs, but I'm sure glad that you do manage them somehow.

[IndeanaSunday]

One thing to remember is we only operate 14 days per year vs (Burger King/Ruby Tuesdays 364 days) and even so this requires us to maintain a year round staff and millions of dollars in advance to put this show on.

An excellent point that is very easy to overlook. Thanks for the reply!