Posted by Norm
on 10/11/2009, 12:49 pm
I hear a lot of guys talk about "what's killing the business."
I'm here to say that you can't kill what's already dead.
I was talking with a fan recently about a show's turnout. About 80 people were in attendance. He said something to the effect of, "I don't know if 80 is a good number or not."
It doesn't take a mathematician to figure out just how terrible this number is. It just takes a calculator. 80 x $10 = $800. Pay the 20 guys on your card $40 apiece and the "profits" are already gone. And this is before building rent, ring rent, and event insurance are figured in.
On another board a few days ago I posted a picture of an indy wrestling match and asked, "How many things can you find wrong in this photo?" I found it telling that no one mentioned the fact that the ring mat had been "repaired" with duct tape.
The fact is, the "business" of indie pro wrestling is hardly a business at all. It's more like a hobby where the lead hobbyist asks for donations at the door to help defray the cost.
Back in the territory days, promoters like Ole Anderson drew crowds of anywhere between 5,000 - 15,000 every week, depending on the venue, without the benefits of a national TV network or massive advertising budgets.
Compare that to a paltry 80 people in some obscure storefront, VFW, or community center. It's in this environment that we have people lamenting about, "What's killing the business."
Killing? It's already dead.
Let's explore the facts:
- Indie pro wrestling, by and large, does not generate its own fan base. Instead it relies on WWE to do the converting and then just rides its coattails.
- Indie pro wrestling events are, by and large, extremely low rent productions, immediately pointing up their lack of profitability.
- The purveyors of indie wrestling fail to see how low production values -- rings repaired with duct tape, "wrestlers" wrestling in their dirty sneakers, cards of "athletes" of which maybe one out of 20 has ever seen the inside of a gym -- prevent their shows from ever becoming profitable and scare away potential converts (customers).
- Any call from a former worker or just a fan (i.e., again, the customer) for an improved production is met with disdain, scorn, obscene language, and a "Who are you to talk?" attitude by the very people who purvey the stuff and then wonder, "Why don't more people come to our shows?"
If a restaurant patron suggests to the owner or manager or waiter ways that the dining experience could be better, thus ensuring return business, would it make sense for the owner, manager, or waiter to spurn those suggestions and belittle the customer?
Just some food for thought...
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