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As promised, I have more information on the festival in August of 2003.
Here are the details so far:
The last three weekends of August (16-17, 23-24, and 30-31) 2003 I will be hosting a renaissance fair in Oak Ridge, Tennessee to benefit the March of Dimes. The fair will run Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The location will be a park called Bissell Park in the Oak Ridge city limits, near the library, civic center and American Museum of Science and Energy. I have done some demographical research to determine what sort of vendors and how many etc. for an adequate profit for each vendor. There is not another renfair within 98 miles of here, and the closest one (Smoky Mountain Renaissance Festival) doesn't run until the first weekend in September. We won't have any conflicting renfaires leading to scant patron populations. In fact, some of you might plan to migrate straight from here to SMRF after this fair ends. Oak Ridge is very close to Knoxville, and most of those in attendance will be from Knoxville. Oak Ridge has three government laboratories, one federal agriculture building, and a two thousand person think tank for nuclear physicists. This translates into a lot of well paid people in this town that really want to take a break from the white coat labs and enjoy themselves. To further enhance patron spending for vendors and food sales, I have set the admission price at five dollars. This will leave the average patron with a hefty chuck of change to spend on your goods.
Here are my terms for vendors- To secure a vendor spot at this fair will require a one hundred dollar deposit in the form of check or money order. When you show up for a full weekend, your deposit will be exchanged for a donation of one item of twenty dollars minimum approximate value. These items will either be in a drawing to benefit March of Dimes or given to my staff or performers as a gratitude gift for their time. All but two of the performers at this fair will be working for free, so I wanted to show my appreciation to them somehow. A note about all items in the donation selection- No more than half of the items pledged by vendors will go for performer compensation. At least half will be in the drawing for the March of Dimes. Also, any vendor donating an item in this manner will be recognized at the time of the drawing, or by the performer/cast member to receive the item. I was able to get some donation receipts from the March of Dimes so you can write off the pledged item. You can always pledge a more expensive item than twenty dollar value. If you do so, I will make sure you get those donation receipts for tax write off purposes. If you send a deposit and do not show for at least one full weekend, I will cash the money order or check. If you are unwilling to pledge an item in exchange for your deposit, you will still have a vendor spot, but there again I will cash the deposit check. March of Dimes will have their own vendors, but there will be no more than five, and they will be mainly food and drink vendors selling or giving out donated Pepsi and other "mundane" items. Due to the water and electrical lines 14 inches below the ground, any tent cannot use stakes over 14 inches in length. If you have one of those tents which utilizes the long heavy stakes, I will try to accommodate you with some sort of alternate anchoring device like the sandbag, rock, dead cat or smaller stake. You will be responsible for your own tax, license or other business information. I have not yet contacted any food vendors so I don't know if there will be a meal policy in place. I have 50 hotel rooms in Oak Ridge blocked off on a non-attrition clause. These are discounted rooms. They range from 2 to 4 star accommodations. There is also a campground type facility approximately 8 miles from here. Because this is a public park, and I only have the use of it on the weekends, this means tearing down each weekend and setting up the next. If there is anything I have not covered here, please don't hesitate to ask.
Good fortune to you,
Jamie Franks
A few things have changed since I sent that letter to the vendors. First of all, the entry fee has been changed to free admission. Secondly, there is a place in the park where stakes can be driven. That area will be where the vendors are setting up. Third, camping is allowed over the weekend, but not during the week. If you would like to cut out the cost of a hotel room, even a discounted room, feel free to camp from Friday night to Monday morning.
