[dropcap]I[/dropcap] may be late to the debate on this topic, but I would like to comment on this issue. I am a part-time Buda resident.
I’ve been doing craft shows since 2002.
I have been a vendor at Budafest only four times (2016 would have been the 5th). I was a vendor for the “ice postponement” year. While it was nice to have a make-up day, there were negatives as well. One reason this is a two-day event is because of potential weather events. After all, what Texas is famous for? Wait a while and the weather will change. I’ve also been as a vendor at a previous Budafest that saw one rainy day (low turnout) and one sunny day (great turnout) during the same weekend.
In my experience, it’s rare to have a cancellation refund at these events. Sometimes one may not even make enough in sales to cover the fee. It has happened to me a time or two but fortunately, only in my early years of craft shows.
SEE STORY:
Budafest under fire for lack of accountability
And, think about this. Budafest is a fund-raising of the first order and finest production! What about the scout troops, club groups, church groups that all count this event as a major annual fund-raising. This was a tough one for sure, but I never once thought about the fee. It is clear in the vendor app that there is no rain delay.
I am happy to have my fee go to Project Graduation and to have paid for any advanced fees that were entailed during preproduction. This is the cost of doing business folks!
I hope others will step up in defense of this event and the folks who manage it. Even if it wasn’t the outcome we all hoped for, it is one of the many, many things that make Buda such a wonderful town!
Martha (Marty) Wallgren, part-time Buda resident
