The Street Fair

Summertime around here means street fairs pop up downtown and in neighboring communities. Our town has an annual art fair, a Friday farmer’s market, and a scarecrow festival. The town up the street has a wonderful French market on Saturdays all summer long. A carnival stops all over the area for months. I love going to these street fairs. There are usually yummy food trucks, shaved ice, cotton candy, lots of friends, and fun. I don’t believe I’ve ever had to coordinate one and was thinking about what it would take as I was walking through the French market recently.

The annual art fair and the weekly French market might be a little easier to plan as they are regular events. The same streets are closed, the same vendors participate, the same number of tables, chairs, porta potties, and tents are set up and I imagine the same supplier provides them. The market starts and ends at the same time each week.

When the carnival comes to town, I bet there is a little more planning required. A location needs to be scouted where the rides can be set up. Sometimes it is a parking lot, sometimes it is a large field. I hope that someone has to inspect the rides for safety once they are set up and permits need to be secured. Food trucks need to be engaged, picnic tables need to be delivered, and fliers need to be put up in local businesses. I’m certain that the carnival people have their own system for ticket sales since it feels kind of like an old-school arcade and they do it all the time; 10 tickets for $15 or 20 tickets for $25, or you can get the fancy wristband which allows you unlimited rides for $40. The pricing feels a bit like Vegas – the house wins every time.

For me one of the biggest issues is where to bring the carnival. How do they decide? Which cities have been financially successful in the past? Do any of the cities offer incentives like when larger events are considering a specific city for their event? Is it based on population, average income, demographics, or just where they happen to find free space to set up? These are questions I don’t have answers to but if I was asked to plan a carnival, would find very important. Especially if ROI or profit margin were in the goals and objectives.

The French or Farmer’s Markets serve different purposes than the carnivals. These are simply home-grown locals coming together to sell their wares. I can get pickles from the pickle guy, the most amazing long-stemmed roses from a local nursery, the bestest, softest pretzel bread from a nearby bakery, a hotdog, falafel, shaved lemonade, kettle corn, hand-made jewelry, and fruits or vegetables grown in the Northern Illinois area. I see people walking out with bags full of their favorites each week knowing that they had great conversations with dear friends whether they know each other’s last names or not.

Regardless of their purpose or how they pick their locations, these are community-builders. These events are opportunities to bring people together who may not otherwise interact but actually have something in common; a love of fun, food, summertime, and vegetables.

Have you planned a street fair? What is one detail you discovered that we should know? Leave it here or send me an email. Let’s share what we have learned with one another!

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