Floriade vendors face pinch from fee changes and wet weather

Stallholders at Floriade are counting the cost of dismal weather. Subscribe now for unlimited access. or signup to continue reading Save $100 + Bonus Tote All articles from our website & app The digital version of Today's Paper Crosswords, Sudoku and Trivia All other in your area They're starting to do the sums and wonder if it's worth returning next year. The ones The Canberra Times talked to said it very much depended on whether this coming, final week brightens up and brings the people and the dollars back. It depended, too, on whether Floriade's organiser, Events Canberra, sets charges to stallholders so that stallholders can make what they would regard as a decent income. Their concerns followed a change in fee structure introduced in 2025 which saw the revenue from the stallholders to the organisers more than double - up from $197,780.91 in 2024 to $402,179.89, according to the ACT government. My Gia of the World's Best Nuts, and Adrienne Hmelnitsky of Sunlighters. Pictures by Karleen Minney Because entry is free to the public, there is no gate revenue to cover the costs. Last year, 519,413 people attended, the most in the nearly four decades of the flower festival. The long weekend a year ago drew 102,571 visitors, the highest ever attendance recorded over a single weekend. The faces of Floriade. Pictures by Karleen Minney But this year, some stallholders felt they were being squeezed. "The price in general has been increasing year after year," The Fudge People's Yahya Salah who has been setting up stall at Floriade for 20 years said. "We can't continue to increase our prices because our customers have limited budget and we can't simply pass that cost to the customers. We see a decline in our sales and in our take-home profits year after year." Will he be back? "It is a big question mark," he said. The jump in the government's take from stallholders came last year with the change from charging them a flat rate for their pitch to charging a percentage of their takings, whichever is greater. "The change aligns vendor arrangements with those used by other event operators in the ACT and surrounding region," the ACT government said of its "variable vendor fee model". "As with all event operations, fee structures may be reviewed from time to time to ensure they remain appropriate and aligned with industry conditions," the government said. The higher collection was attributed to the new commission structure and higher overall sales as the government fee revenue from stallholders increased by 103 per cent, while total vendor gross revenue grew 27.8 per cent to about $2.6 million in 2025. "Over the same period, attendance also increased by 10.41 per cent, providing greater sales opportunities for stallholders." Apart from wondering if they will break even this year, some stallholders were unhappy about the service they get from the festival management. "There has been miscommunication between the stallholders and the management of the place," Mr Salah said. "We send them feedback at the end of each event but we don't see any changes or any significant improvements." A few stalls down from his, Adrienne Hmelnitsky, owner of Sunlighters, echoed that disapproving view of management. "The only difference between Floriade and the other big major festivals is probably connection to management. The management at Floriade - we don't get to see a lot of them," she said as she promoted the bright, artistic designs she makes to go on glass doors to prevent people bashing into them. "Communication is a little thin compared to other festivals," she said. This year was her one-woman business's second at Floriade. She felt that last year was great for one week, so she booked two this year, at a charge of just under $3000 a week. "Last year, when I did Floriade, I was so pleased with my sales. I do Woodford Folk Festival (north of Brisbane) and I do the Canberra National Folk Festival, and doing the one week at Floriade was my best event yet. "So this year I came with great expectations, but I'm realising that things change. My numbers are down. It doesn't feel as busy as it was last year. Obviously the weather has affected that, so we'll just see if the weather clears and the people come." Will she be back next year? "We'll see what happens in the next week and see how my sales go." On the other side of the counter, though, people who defied the weather at the weekend seemed happy. Moshrura Yasmin drove through fierce rain to get to Canberra from Wangaratta. She was pleased she made the trip: "I thought I was going to have a crash but I still came and it's worth it." More from Arts & Entertainment As it happens Breaking news alert Be the first to know when news breaks.