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Thread: "Bollocks!"-Band denounces venue for taking 20% of merch sales

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    Member rickawakeman's Avatar
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    "Bollocks!"-Band denounces venue for taking 20% of merch sales

    Had a great time last night seeing Ireland's Pugwash at the Iron Horse here in Northampton (MA). Frontman Thomas Walsh began the show by angrily denouncing the venue's policy of taking 20% of the merch stand receipts. He stated that this was the only venue they have played in the States that insists on this "taxation". He was pretty angry about it, at one point in the show stating that the merch table should be removed. Is his statement accurate? It does seem unfair to the band to take such a chunk of their merch proceeds, especially given their low ticket prices ($15) and willingness to swing by for the second year in a row. BTW, attendance seemed good for a Tuesday night show.

  2. #2
    Yeah, sounds high to me for sure, but why did they book the gig there?

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    Member oilersfan's Avatar
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    Did the venue provide someone (required or otherwise) to man the merch table? If so I might be able to see taking that big a cut. Otherwise this way of making money has never made a lot of sense to me from the perspective of the venue. I mean, if as a venue owner/manager I need that money from merch sales in order to turn a profit that's a real uncertainty that I wouldn't be comfortable with at all. What if the band sucks and nobody buys merch...or what if they don't have any merch at all? Then my profit margin is screwed.

    Regardless...pretty classless move by the frontman calling out the venue on stage. There are better ways to deal with such matters.

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    Member Phlakaton's Avatar
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    If they're taking door percentages - and whatever else for fees --- they should just leave the merch alone. That is weak if a venue cant sustain and has to go after what is usually what makes a band some of their costs back. I might be wrong though... I'm not in the business of running a club or touring in a band.

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    I have heard that for the bigger acts, the that the band takes a cut from the hall for food,beverages and parking which is sold, but not the other way around.

    With that said, I did a little surfing and found a document for a hall called the The Strand In NJ. (I not familiar with this venue. I live hundred's of miles away) In is this document, they state that take 10% from the Merchandise table. http://www.strand.org/wp-content/upl...lbreakdown.pdf

    Interesting Article on the cost of setting a show (but it doesn’t address a split of merchandising fees): http://rockandrollguru.blogspot.com/...own-where.html

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by rickawakeman View Post
    It does seem unfair to the band to take such a chunk of their merch proceeds, especially given their low ticket prices ($15) and willingness to swing by for the second year in a row.
    Standard practice, pretty much. I've seen a few familiar names complaining about it.

    http://www.theguardian.com/music/mus.../costoftouring

  7. #7
    The big (ie Live Nation) venues regularly take a cut for merch sales-- Not sure if it's as high as 20% but that sounds about right. The Iron Horse is the first I've heard of a locally owned venue charging a fee that high though.

    Glad you saw Pugwash anyway Rick, I love that band.

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    ALL ACCESS Gruno's Avatar
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    I've dealt with merch from the smallest clubs to some of the biggest venues around the world. Of all my years, I'd say about 90% of them take a percentage of the gross. Sometimes it is a flat percentage and other times it is broken down into categories… clothing 20% -- paper goods 15% -- CDs 18% -- etc.

    BB King's in New York is near criminal with their rates.

    When I have been in a venue where, for example, the venue's take on hard media (CD/DVD/USB) was 30% -- I strongly advised the band to NOT sell those items that night.

    Sometimes the percentage rates fluctuate and are adjusted based on the guarantee for that show.

    Also keep in mind that some venues will not allow bands to sell their own merch. These venues require additional payment to staff the merch table/booth. Some venues do provide merch sellers/assistants at no additional cost.

    I applaud the venues, promoters, and festivals that allow merch to be sold with no fee required from the band.

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    ALL ACCESS Gruno's Avatar
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    Here are a couple of redacted examples from a few years ago with Tears For Fears in a U.S. venue. *I can grab some from other parts of the world if interested.


    Band gets 70% of shirt sales, 90% of other sales:



    ============

    Another venue with flat 20%



    ============

    As you can see, there are seller fees/percentages and also credit card fees, taxes, etc.

  10. #10
    Member Vic2012's Avatar
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    No wonder t-shirts are priced so ridiculously high at concerts. I remember Rush shirts going for $50.00 at the show I attended in 2002. That was back in 2002.

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    Pendulumswingingdoomsday Rune Blackwings's Avatar
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    I manned a table for a band once. I just gave the money directly to the band. I don't know if they needed to give any of it to the venue...
    "Alienated-so alien I go!"

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    Member rickawakeman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bRETT View Post
    The big (ie Live Nation) venues regularly take a cut for merch sales-- Not sure if it's as high as 20% but that sounds about right. The Iron Horse is the first I've heard of a locally owned venue charging a fee that high though.

    Glad you saw Pugwash anyway Rick, I love that band.
    They were great Brett and did not let their anger diminish their fun-filled performance.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Rune Blackwings View Post
    I manned a table for a band once. I just gave the money directly to the band. I don't know if they needed to give any of it to the venue...
    How can a woman "man a table"?

  14. #14
    Pendulumswingingdoomsday Rune Blackwings's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bob_32_116 View Post
    How can a woman "man a table"?
    testosterone issues
    "Alienated-so alien I go!"

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by bob_32_116 View Post
    How can a woman "man a table"?
    Strap-on.

  16. #16
    Seems pretty standard, most larger venues do that. The band just needs to raise their prices by 20% to account for the difference.

    I was at a Kansas show a couple weeks ago. The T shirt I wanted was $35, but I saw it was only $25 on their website.

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    Quote Originally Posted by zeprogmeister View Post
    Seems pretty standard, most larger venues do that. The band just needs to raise their prices by 20% to account for the difference.

    I was at a Kansas show a couple weeks ago. The T shirt I wanted was $35, but I saw it was only $25 on their website.
    Yup, as Gruno and others have mentioned the venue taking a percentage is not unusual and part of the reason T-shirts sometimes cost so much.

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    I can remember Marillion producing a particularly waspish piece about this kind of practice around the time of their 2007 UK tour. IIRC, the basic gist of the text was that 'if we're not playing in your town, we'd very much like to, but here's why we can't.' As they put it, venues seem remarkably keen to take 20% of the proceeds from merchandise sales, but are then surprisingly reluctant to put up 20% of the costs of producing it. Personally, I see it as yet another disgraceful manner by which venues, especially those owned by large corporate chains, exploit both artists and audiences.
    Last edited by kid_runningfox; 09-21-2015 at 01:22 AM.

  19. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by SteveSly View Post
    Yup, as Gruno and others have mentioned the venue taking a percentage is not unusual and part of the reason T-shirts sometimes cost so much.
    Also part of the reason I won't buy a T-shirt unless I know where the money is going.

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    Highly Evolved Orangutan JKL2000's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Gruno View Post
    I've dealt with merch from the smallest clubs to some of the biggest venues around the world. Of all my years, I'd say about 90% of them take a percentage of the gross. Sometimes it is a flat percentage and other times it is broken down into categories… clothing 20% -- paper goods 15% -- CDs 18% -- etc.
    Vermin.

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