Ever wonder what it costs to rent a booth and sell antiques and art at a major show? A list recently posted on Blouin Artinfo’s website reports that a booth at Art Basel costs $58,000. Then the dealers must spend money for lighting the booth and decorating it, shipping the art, their airfare, hotel and food bills, local car rental or taxis, and other minor expenses while at the show. It comes to well over $100,000. No wonder the art is so expensive at large, major shows, but dealers keep returning. That means they earned expenses-plus from sales.
Photo: Yourplaceinvermont.com
In this economy most of the shows the promoter is the only one profiting.
I stopped doing shows because of the cost.
You try and price things fairly, guarantee the item and the buyers beat you up for a lower price, so I stopped. You would spend 2500 – 3000 for a medium to upper range show, with gas, lodging , booth, lighting,porters, insurance. Not worth it.
Obviously,the cost for organizers is not free but dealers, after considering how much of their “good stuff” goes to cover their overhead, must determine for themselves if it makes sense to even set up. In addition to high booth rental, they have to consider the cost of their goods,food and lodgings while at the show, time and labor spent to load and setup, transport, unload at the show, reload, and unload unsold items….. Count me as a no vote to this whole endeavour.
That is absolutely absurd — especially in this economy!!!
I think I’ll pass on the “major shows” and settle for the sandlot at the end of the block! I do know that, were I paying that kind of money for a booth, I’d find a way to get more merchandise into it. Yes, I know, you don’t want it cluttered…but that picture seems to indicate over $1000 per item for booth space alone (assuming that’s 1/3 of the booth). Not in *my* future.