By paying an application fee an artist is buying a chance at being invited to a fair, and by accepting that application fee, that "chance" is a contractual guarantee. They are advertising and selling that "chance". So my question is this: If the directors know beforehand that they will not be letting certain artists in, to avoid the appearance of recidivism for example, then is it not fraudulent to not only accept application fees from these artists but also to doggedly patronize those artists for their application fees? That's a rhetorical question. Of course it's fraud. The product, "chance" is non existant. Textbook fraud.
Let the artists know up front if they've been benched, otherwise it is fraud and you, directors, are victimizing a sector with its back already against the wall which is really low.
Replies
I do shows with professionals who left their professions to do this. I know a number of MBAs, a PhD, a dentist, and some attorneys. Yes, they decided to do this instead of the rat race.
So I asked an attorney friend about this a a recent show.
Here's what she said.
Yes, indeed small calims court is where you go for redress. What are you out? Your "non refundable" jury fee. That's it. You weren't "damaged" in any way because you didn't do the show. Shows are private events. The promoters can decide who they want and who they don't want for any reason they wish. An artist may have a reputation for causing trouble for instance. There's no "right" to be in a show. And they can keep the non refundable money as long as it's spelled out in the application that it is "non refundable".
Now on to the fees. If you can prove the promoter took your money even they knew you weren't going to be accepted, or they were already full, you have the right to get your money back. And that's all. All you have the right to is your money back. To become "whole". You cannot make money on the issue.
Now you claim there is "fraud". It is up to you, the accuser to prove it. And the courts will decide if you get any punitive damages. Yes, Small Claims Court can decide that, up to a state maximum. In many states it's $5,000.
But the most effective "punitive" damages are the word getting out about the promoter's practices. You tell the world about them. You name names. You let other exhibitors know about their shady dealings.
But before you do any of this, make sure your accusations are true! Otherwise the promoter can sue you for slander. It rarely happens, but it's legally possible.
She said the best advice she could give you was "buyer beware."
Anecdotal evidence and networking are the only way to help determine if a show may or may not be worth your time. Even then, there are no guarantees.
I agree 100%.
A network of fellow exhibitors who become friends can give more honest information than any other method.
We all have the same expectations of a show and promoter. In our group a woodworker can talk to a jeweler and get straight answers.
And seeing friends at a show you're doing for the first time always makes the weekend better.
The data they collect is flawed and unreliable.
Garbage in, garbage out.
Anecdotal evidence and networking are the only way to help determine if a show may or may not be worth your time. Even then, there are no guarantees.
Although, it would be fun to collect the data if done correctly. Remember Bill Murray testing the college kids in the beginning of the first "Ghostbusters"? I always have my marine battery and electrodes with me at every show anyway. . .
Alison Thomas said:
Munks said:
I suspect that jury fees aren't collected to make money off the artists but rather to support the market. Promotion is spendy and fleeting. Where you advertise has completely changed. We get no mileage out of newspapers and tons of visitors by posting on Craigslist as an example.
Jim, what redress are you looking for then? You say fraud has been committed. You feel you have been ripped off by someone.
If you really believe a crime (fraud) has been committed, call the police. Or contact your attorney, and let him/her follow up.
But what are your responsibilities in this? Did you take the promoter at their word? Never do that!!
It's our job to do proper research. It's our job to find out as much as you can about the show and promoter before we plunk down our hard earned money. Promoters bombard us with glossy brochures with pretty pictures of crowded aisles and top rate exhibitors. But they don't tell you those brochures were first printed in 1998! It's our job to find this out.
Yes, my friend, it's our job to "jury" the promoters just as they jury us.
We are much more than just exhibitors today. We must be astute business people too. And like every successful business, we must do our homework. And part of that homework is finding out how to save our hard earned money. Buying materials at lower costs without lowering the quality of our products. Spending more money for a good canopy instead of a little money for a cheap one, because a good canopy will last 20 years. And yes, choosing our sales outlets wisely.
In these economic times, some promoters will do anything to lure us in. Because they need money just as much as we do. Everyone's job just got a little bit harder. Both promoters and exhibitors. And those who do their job well, will survive.
Linnea Lahlum said:
Most artists know about the promoter in the midwest who wait-lists what seems to be hundreds of people for the most popular show they do and then hints that it might help if you do some of their B shows. It doesn't. The same person put me in a spot with a tree dead in the middle of it and told me there was nowhere else to put me, they told me I was an artist...be creative about it. They then sold a half a dozen spots to people the next morning who handed over cash. Extra cash above and beyond the original fee.
I don't apply to their shows any more, and they have badly damaged a number of them I used to do. Can you see what I'm not doing though...I'm not naming names. I'll do it with the artist next door to me at a show, I'll do it in a private e-mail if I know you. But I'm unwilling to burn that bridge completely by calling them the greedy person they are on a public forum.
I know we are all tired after shows and want to stay on target during the events, but we need to talk to each other in person. I'm amazed by how many artists won't share show information with fellow artists. It's really the only defense we have. Now I need to stop before I start dwelling on the good old days where patrons carried cash and artists helped each other load the heavy stuff at the end of the show before heading out for drinks to celebrate.
Karen
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