Have you ever decided to stop doing a fair due to low profit?

The Narrative (Left Column)

The Empathy

It stings to pack up after a slow fair, especially when you paid a big booth fee and hauled inventory across town. You might feel torn because the organizers were kind, the crowd was friendly, and you hoped the next one would be better. But you also know the reality: if the event leaves you exhausted and underpaid, it can drain the rest of your season. Vendors often reach this moment and wonder if they should cut the cord or give it one more shot.

The Education

Deciding to drop an event works best when you use clear criteria instead of a gut feeling. Start with a simple scorecard that compares net profit and time spent to your minimum targets. A fair is a candidate to drop when it meets two or more of these triggers:

• Net profit per hour falls below your target rate for two consecutive events.
• Total profit does not cover the booth fee plus the cost to restock core inventory.
• Foot traffic or average order value stays flat even after you adjust your display or product mix.
• Travel time and setup hours consume more than 25-30% of the day without higher sales to compensate.

These benchmarks turn the decision into math. If a fair repeatedly fails the scorecard, it signals that the opportunity cost is too high and your effort is better spent elsewhere.

The Solution

Build a repeatable review process after every event. Log sales, costs, hours, and notes on traffic or buyer behavior, then compare the results to your baseline goals. When a fair misses your criteria, reallocate the time toward alternatives that lift profit: higher-performing markets, online drops, wholesale outreach, or a prep day that lets you launch a new product. Review the decision quarterly so you can confirm whether the change improved your average profit per event and freed up energy for the opportunities that actually grow the business.