Post-summer tweaks!
The idea of having a blog was exactly for these sorts of things. A bit of rational behind a Facebook caption.
I’ve taken the decision to put the prices of events up, only by a few pounds but I’ve also removed the super-early discounted entry too. To soften the blow I have improved the offering in the Big Bear Brigade to give 10% off entries and started the Big Bear Honey Pot – a loyalty scheme to earn points towards merchandise. This will all be taking effect for events slated for after August 2021.
It doesn’t take a business mastermind to work out why the prices have gone up, my costs have and what you get is greater than 2 years ago when the prices of our events was set last. Big Bear Events prices are still one of the lowest in our comparable market. Is £30 a good value 5K? Probably not. Is £30 a good value marathon or ultra marathon. Very much so. The nature of the 6 hour event format means the more and longer you run for the better value you’re getting (and not just because of the extra Jaffa Cakes!). There will be examples of much cheaper events but I could find you many more of much more costly ones!
The problem UK running events have is our benchmark. To many people it is set by the London Marathon. If you can do THE marathon, with the closed roads, Big Ben and all the hullabaloo of one of the biggest sporting events in the world for less than £45 then every event must be cheaper, right? Wrong! The reason it costs so little to enter the London Marathon is because so few of the 50 000 or so runners pay £45. Most people on the screen are charity runners, the charities having paid around £1000 for that place. Let alone the money Virgin and the rest must pay for sponsorship. All of that money is used to subsidise the few thousand spots taken up in the ballot. If you look at comparable marathons abroad you get a better idea. Paris Marathon and Berlin Marathon are both around £100, New York is around £200 and closer to £300 if you’re not a US resident!
If we aren’t being compared on the longer distance the shorter stuff is even worse! Pre-covid I could run a 5k for free every Saturday morning! Who is going to PAY to run 5k!! It’s a very odd market for entrants to be able to work out what is good value. Are you paying a premium and getting a premium product or are you just paying a lot for nothing? It can be hard.
I firmly believe that the cost of £30 (£35 in the last month) is incredibly good value for the experience we try to deliver at our 6 hour events. If you have done events by others in the UK who put on 6 hour lapped events I think we more than hold our own in many regards and are often better and cheaper. That isn’t a dig at anyone at all, all the organisers have their own niches and I’m no expert to tell anyone what they should and shouldn’t do or what they should charge. I know many people love running elsewhere for many reasons.
With the improved offering of the Big Bear Brigade with 10% off entries – for life – it actually means that the prices for those in the Brigade will go down a little! The idea here is to reward our regular runners. I love seeing lots of familiar faces at our events and I want to say thank you for the support. Regulars are the absolute backbone of Big Bear Events and our biggest advocates. Our secret army of recruiters for the next set of regulars! The Brigade does have limited numbers though, 98, of which 33 are already taken, so it’s not an unlimited supply of discounted places but there are lots still to be picked up. You can read about the full Brigade offering here.
Our Big Bear Honey Pot is another little way to say thank you to our regular runners. It’s the sort of scheme you maybe don’t realise you’re racking points up for until you have enough to get some merch. And as you know I love some merch!
So, I’m hoping that there is understanding of why I’ve had to make this change. It is only a couple of pounds extra but I know many of you run in many of our events (and others) and money isn’t always simple to come by for everyone, a few pounds here and there adds up! I have to make this work though. The day of the event is the culmination of many, many days work. This isn’t a “side hustle” this is my full-time job. Ultimately, if I can’t make this work as a business then there will be no events. I’ll have to get a normal job and I’ll be very sad. I’ve got lots of plans for future events though and for ideas at those events so I’m hoping I’ll keep these events interesting and different that you’ll want to come back again and again! The future of Big Bear Events is very bright with lot of very amazing ideas bubbling away all the time. Your support, through your entries, glowing reviews, recommendations, merch purchases and just kind words and comments is hugely appreciated and is always humbling.