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Report: Walworth County Fair is 'valuable'

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Photo by Gazette file photo

Walworth County Fair

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Russ Kashian

ELKHORN — The Walworth County Fair pumps more than $6.3 million into the local economy between funds invested to put the fair together and revenue generated at the fair itself, according to an economic impact analysis.

The analysis, unveiled Tuesday evening, offers community leaders insight into what kind of people attend the fair, how much fairgoers spend at the event and why they come year after year.

“The county fair is a very, very valuable thing for the community,” said UW-Whitewater economics professor Russ Kashian, who leads UW-Whitewater’s Fiscal and Economic Research Center. “If you didn’t go to the Walworth County Fair, you would find something else to do.”

And when people find other things to do, the professor explained, the county misses out on the opportunity to have millions of dollars pumped into the local economy.

The economic impact analysis of the fair, developed by Kashian and a team of researchers, shows:

-- The combined direct impact of the Walworth County Fair by expenses of the fair and by attendees of the fair is more than $6.3 million.

-- The money led directly to the creation of about 77 jobs within the fair.

-- Although indirect spending is not as great as expected, researchers said the outcome is expected, because a large portion of the money invested at the fair leaks out of the county.

-- Walworth County businesses most positively affected by the fair are grocery stores, local restaurants and local organizations that set up food stands at the event.

More than half of the fair attendees have higher annual incomes than average for Walworth County, the report shows. And nearly half of the attendees have at least a bachelor’s degree.

“You’re attracting a wealthier part of the county,” Kashian said.

The study, which included more than 1,000 random fairgoers, can help fair leaders invest in marketing opportunities and promote the most popular attractions to increase revenue, the professor said.

That’s exactly what Fair Board President Ed Sokolowski wants to do. The main idea behind funding the $5,000 survey, he said, was having concrete data to attract sponsor to the fair.

“We wanted to have something to take to the sponsors and say, ‘Hey, we have this type of crowd that comes to our fairgrounds,’ ” he said. “ ‘This is what we can offer you.’ ”

Seeking sponsorships is one of the avenues that fair leaders are exploring to generate more revenue for the event. Last year, the fair board considered setting up a beer tent, an idea that was quickly struck down.

Another option will be charging for parking, which Sokolowski said will happen at this year’s fair. Parking admission will likely be $5 per day, with special early discounts for the season, running at about $15 to $20 per car.

Fred Burkhardt, executive vice president of the Walworth County Economic Development Alliance, said the study by Kashian and his team was “right on the money.”

“This is important for making informed decisions and validation,” he said after the study’s presentation Tuesday evening.

Burkhardt said the fairgrounds present opportunities to hold other events, which could follow a similar pattern to the Walworth County Fair. Knowing what people want means fair leadership can cater to more people more than once a year, he added.

“What if we did other things that were similar to the fair, how would that impact us?” Burkhardt added.

Kashian agreed with the idea.

“We have an understanding of what people are spending on,” the professor said. “With a similar event, there could be similar spending.”