1st time firework tent owner in Illinois

[chitowne]

Good Evening everyone!

I am about to embark on starting up a firework tent about 40 miles away from Chicago. While I have been into fireworks over the years, this is my first time throwing my hat into business as a distributor at a tent. I am looking for any help from previous or current owners of a tent. I presently secured a location across the street from a major firework company who operates around 10 tents throughout Illinois.

I am looking at a few things to get feedback on.

For someone starting up and with strong competition across the street, what would be a good amount of items purchase per firework type(cakes 200-500 gram), fountains, shells, novelty, assortments, and other items. What would be a good $$ amount to invest in these items? Should I have more assortments over Shells or fountains? What works best with you business owners?

Also, I am looking at what is the typical $ price on fireworks sold at a tent. Is there an average on what owners mostly charge for their products. Is it based on a certain percentage? I have took into consideration the price of the products I have already purchased(approximately $4000 worth), the cost of the permits, land, and insurance I have obtained, and the approximate cost of the tent, tables, chairs, supplies, and helpers I will need. Presently, I am around $7,500 invested with the items I have mentioned. I can invest a little more in my items, if I feel I would need them.

I have seen prices at various tents and I just cannot believe the prices that things can be sold for versus going to Indiana which is a hour drive and getting these single pieces cheaper. Example $25-$30 for a 300 shot Saturn. I see them in Indy half that price. I think I can understand why things are cheaper in the storefront versus a tent but I cant grasp people paying large bucks for items at a tent. And people do pay more.

Finally, how competitive are you with the local competition? This question can probably generate a lot of response.

As I mentioned earlier, I invested some money and probably wont make much, if any the first time around. However, I am confident by learning from experience and feedback, I believe, I can make this work. I am a business owner who is flexible with his schedule. I am fully willing to invest time into something I love to see an outcome.
Thanks

[Pyro Nation]

Really can't help much, but what I can offer and what I have seen like you touched on is the prices are RIDICULOUS at these tents.. There were selling a singular meaning 1 killer bee fountain..which is tiny as hell for $5 and people were buying it. You can buy a pack of 6 at normal retail for like $3.50.. THAT KILLED me to watch.

I know it has to do with what individual must pay to lets say TNT fireworks if represented that way...

IF any way possible..Make sure prices are reasonable

[jknepp1954]

We run 6 stands in PA - although they are of the S&S type. The competition without knowing who they are uses GIMMICKS and their well known name (TNT, PHANTOM, etc) to draw the crowds to them. And also their huge fancy tents very well decked out with banners etc.
Like pyroliffic says - TNT uses BOGO on the small items like killer bees, cuckoos, etc. - with that big BOGO banner up there - sucks it in. Most of the consumers out there do not check out pricing before they buy - they just spread out the wallet and buy. Sorry Liffic - my bees are $5.99 for the 4 pk. And I do our stands across the street or across town from TNT and Phantom, and Keystone (Big Name in PA). For the few who actually does compare pricing - "gosh - i just got ripped by the clown across the street" - but by that time they already spent $200 there and only have maybe $40 for your stand. SO hopefully the next year they will remember and shop your stand instead.

Have different types products that separates you from them. even though the BIG guy is there - you will want folks to come to you as you are the only one who has say like EXCALS and the other guy don't even have can shells. and not just one item - but several if possible. Be careful of buying alot of 500 gr items. For here - 500 gr ftns don't sell too well. But i sell a ton a 500 gr cakes. They don't mind spending that $50 on a 500 gr cake that rips the sky - but pay same price or even $40 for a ftn that only goes 10' high - NOT! BUT for those who do buy - i throw a deal of "buy a 500 gr ftn - get $10 free" - and it works.
So be ready to "sacrifice" somewhere to make that BIG sale.
So good luck to you - and hope you do well this year.
TNT and Phantom as far as i know of do not advertise in the local papers and free papers but we do. Works for us - don't know if it works for other small companies or not. I always also try to make sure my stand is the first one up in the area. That way the locals know ahead of time you are in business. So maybe the early shoppers will check you out FIRST before they go to the usual stand.

[jknepp1954]

Funny side story - we actually have had the employees of competitors tents come over to our stand to buy their pyro - Gosh your prices are so much cheaper!!! Like i said - also get product that are totally diff from compt. WE use to carry the adult snaps (RIP) in the S&S stands - no one else carried them.

[PyroManiacs]

Well said, Joyce!

[PuroJon]

Good for you.

Excuse my ignorance, but I thought that Illinois was a 'safe-n-sane' state? No cakes, shells, etc. Are you running the tent in Indiana? We do great business here with all the folks coming over from Illinois every year. One friend has 3 stores just over the border and does very well each year. If you've already paid for the permits, insurance, etc. you have a list of what's permitted and sizes? In Indiana - where we can sell almost anything 1.4g - tents can sell only safe-n-sane, no aerial stuff, cakes, rockets, hand-helds, etc. and I think they are still limited to 500 lbs. and no one here really takes the tents seriously. In Indiana the largest number of tent permits (and no new tent permits are to be issued - you have to grandfathered through to be permitted) are TNT tents art Walmart; over priced and under featured.

You asked about saturns and according to their FM's guidelines they are not permitted? Did Illinois change their laws of something?

http://www.sfm.illinois.gov/documents/APPROVED%20AND%20PROHIBITED%20FIREWORKS%20-%20Revised%2005-22-2013.pdf

Why not spend one year operating a tent for that competitor across the street and learn the ropes on someone elses' dime?



Good Evening everyone!

I am about to embark on starting up a firework tent about 40 miles away from Chicago. While I have been into fireworks over the years, this is my first time throwing my hat into business as a distributor at a tent. I am looking for any help from previous or current owners of a tent. I presently secured a location across the street from a major firework company who operates around 10 tents throughout Illinois.

[chitowne]

Yes, we are going to have the tent in Illinois. I did consider Indiana last year but after researching the rules, I did come across the same things you mentioned above. S&S and fountains are allowed at the tent without a permit. 200-500 grams cakes, shells, and other items mentioned in the link above are ALL allowed with a permit from the local town. The area I will be at have several towns that issue permits. I guess they smarted up and realized they can make some money issuing them. Firecrackers, Roman candles, saturn missles, and rockets are the items not allowed at ALL. They based this on a report that these items cause the most visits to the ER in IL a few years back.

Regarding weight limit. There is a 499lb limit to one customer in IL.

There are several tents from a major supplier throughout the state that sell those items(crackers, missiles, candles) and never had an issue. I guess the State Fire Marshal never paid them a visit. However, those townships and counties stated they don't really care. Well again, it really is on the state fire marshal to address this I guess if local authority won't.

I plan on having a few of the required permit items visible for Illinois permit holders to buy. The area has numerous people out of state who visit for the holiday and I figure these individuals would buy those items. I figure I will get many others wanting to buy these as well. I feel this would be an opportunity to tell them to apply for the permit and come back. Hopefully, I will get some additional business.

[PuroJon]

Understand what you are saying, just a different style than us is all. We just can't bring ourselves to risk a 'no one seems to care' when it comes to permits & laws. The liability issues are just too large and scary for us to consider. If anything was to happen - anything at all - the insurer will drop the policy and run for the hills. Just not a level of avoidable risk we are willing to take is all. Guess we're spoiled and enjoy having luxury items like a car, a place to live, food, freedom, etc. (laughing). We had a fire marshal visit our store 2 days before the 4th and directly tell us that we would get a 'stop sale' order on the store if we did not move about 50 lbs of items "over the 500 lb limit" back into our magazine by that afternoon. We moved about 1/2 skid of products back into the magazine immediately - and then explained our "First Responder Discount Program" (cough...). He came back on the 4th, gave us a clean bill of health, and spent a couple of hundred dollars. Others in our area were not as fortunate and were closed down in the week preceding the holiday. An easy 5-digit loss they won't forget anytime soon. An Achilles heel that we would rather avoid is all.

Regardless we wish you nothing but luck and clear weather! You will not be the first nor the last and odds are with you for success.

[chitowne]

Thanks for the feedback! There were a couple fire marshals visiting some area tents and threatened to close them down for a slight infraction and there are some that seem like they never got visited. Those are the ones selling items not allowed in IL even with a permit as I mentioned above. Wish you the best as well as the season approaches.

[Jman]

When my wife and I started Jman's Fireworks 5 years ago, we started off with about $6,500 worth at wholesale pricing. We bought a little of everything from firecrackers, snaps, sparkles, bottle rockets all the way up thru fountains, artillery shells, 200 and 500 gram cakes. Of course here in Ark everything 1.4g is legal (believe me, I am very thankful for that). Its important to have a little of everything that is legal in your area because if you don't have it, the customer will just head across the street to get it from someone else. My rule of thumb has always been when they enter the store make sure they leave with something. You have to wheel and deal with some customers and if you already own the product you will have full bargaining power with your product.

Another very important thing to consider is storage because you may not sell all your stuff and you need somewhere to store it in the off season so don't throw away those boxes, you'll need them later. Our store happens to be on our property so we just close the doors and leave ours on the shelf from season to season. However with a tent setup that will not be possible so you certainly need to make sure you have storage for your product.

As for paying attention to competition, it is important but you cannot lose money over it either. If I pay $60 for a case of Blond Joke 500 gram packed 4/1 then I'm going to sell off the 300% scale. 60 divided by 4 is 15 x 3 = $45 for 1 Blond Joke. The guy down the road might be selling it for $39 or $59. These price differences do not always reflect a greedy retailer but rather represents the difference each paid for the item wholesale. You want to be competitive for sure, but you have to base your price points off of what you have invested personally into each product. Most Customers won't notice the difference in $39 at once place vs $45 at the next. In fact, in my experience most customers have so little knowledge about pyro that they often do not realize they are even looking at the same cake from store to store and trying to recall pricing is even more of a challenge for them because most of the time they are in a hurry and that usually leads to them making uneducated decisions. I am a fair person so I try to help the customer all I can, but believe me, there are some who are going to do what they want and don't care what you think. For those type just get out of the way and let them spend away. In the end, carrying a quality product at a fair price with eventually earn you a reputation with customers in the area. That is truly what you should be after if you intend of being in it long term. Don't be frustrated if you don't do as well as you had wished the first year or two. It takes a few years to gain a good customer base and to earn their trust. But once you've done both, they'll knock your doors down and you'll be able to sleep at night knowing that you're customers are happy with you and like you for treating them right and giving them a product that is worth their hard earned dollar.

If they are legal in your area, Sky Lanterns are a very hot item these days along with the adult snaps. Everyone wants sparklers and the kids often bypass firecrackers for Water Dynamite and M-60 type crackers (imitation m-80's) Parachutes are a huge hit with people of all ages, smoke balls are still a good thing to have plenty of. If Bottle Rockets are legal you'd better stock up on those. If you carry very many firecrackers people go more for the small 100 strips and 50 count strips more than any other firecrackers I sell, might be different in your area though. Some folks don't like the hassle and just want a quick grab, for those type you'll need some family assortment packs. I would suggest at least 3 to 4 price levels these because peoples budgets vary so much. If you go for any huge assortments like World Class the Bigen, Red Rhino's Warehouse or Black Cats The Godfather, be careful. Maybe one or two of these at the most. They'll cost you a lot of money, $250-$350 and you'll have to get a big spender in the house to take it off your hands for $500-$700.

The last thing I'll tell you is this, have fun! I've had almost as much fun selling great quality products to my customers and forming relationships with them as I have shooting fireworks with my family thru the years. There is something satisfying about knowing you are giving the fine folks in your area the best products they can buy. Brought to them by you who has knowledge that most of them will never have but you gladly share just so they can have a great time with their families too. Good luck my man, I certainly wish you all the success in the world!

As for the Fire Marshall, try to get along with them, they have the power to let you sell or shut you down, make them your friends. Do what they ask. Buy a couple of fire extinguishers and when they come by ask them to test it for you to make sure its working properly. Display to them your desire to be safe and they will work with you and not give you any trouble. Be interested in doing things safely and go out of your way to ask them for any suggestions, make them feel important and needed....don't make them feel unwelcome or you might spawn trouble.

[chitowne]

Thanks for the wealth of info Jman. I appreciate it!!

[Jman]

Thanks for the wealth of info Jman. I appreciate it!!

Your welcome.