BACC British American Chamber of Commerce

[Susie]

Hi Folks

Just to let you know that The British American Chamber of Commerce have recently become a site sponsor.

The good news is they do support all Brits no matter what there visa situation and for the benefit of better relationships and trading betrween our countries.

This thread is for their use to keep us updated with regards to any events or news in the future

[British American Chamber]

Thank you Sue, We are looking forward to more participation with the forum and invite all forum members to contact us if we can be of assistance. Next week, i will turn to more topical posts but this week, if you would all bear with us, we are in the mood for a Celebration!
Remember Remember, the 5th of November!
It's almost here and we are VERY excited!
there will be lots of English food, sausage rolls, scotch eggs, cornish pasties, pies, curry, etc, etc. plus beer, wine and soda
Bonfire, fireworks, music by DJ London UnderGround, Kids rides, sparklers, a "Guy"competition and much more.
If you are a Brit, we'll bring back great memories with better weather. Bring your American friends to come and join us for this Very English celebration!
No RSVP's necessary, we expect 800+ people. Please bring cash $5 adults, $2 under 16.
See you Thursday!!!!!!!
Osceola Heritage Park
1875 Silver Spurs Lane, Kissimmee FL 34744
6:30pm-9:30pm
Lets show Central Florida how to have a Bonfire night

[Sharon]

sounds as if this year will be a great success, see you there

[chris]

Quote...
There will be lots of english food- Scotch eggs????????:p:p:p:p:pl
At least the pasties will be from Cornwall:p:p:p:p:p:p:p

[Ed Tha Brit]

You might be wrong Chris, they could be from Sarasota:rofl::rofl:

Have a nice Day

Ed Tha Brit:fit:

[British American Chamber]

oops, my bad!

[Steve in clermont]

it was a good evening , came to a very abrupt end

[jay]

it was a good evening , came to a very abrupt end

Why did it come to a very abrupt end.............was there a punch up.

[Scottish Sharon]

Soon as the fireworks were done loads of people left.....it was a good evening!!

[British American Chamber]

Hi All, I think that everyone had fun last night and we will only get bigger and better each year. We are already making notes of what we need to change/add (such as more lighting at the kids rides) and working with the concessions to get more beer, etc but I think that all in all, it was a great evening and we really appreciate everyone coming out to support it. Thank you! As it was a Thursday evening and so many people had kids, they left quickly because it was a school night. Next year falls on a Friday so I would guess that it will go on much later.
We are open to any feedback so please let us know what you thought!

[Ed Tha Brit]

Soon as the fireworks were done loads of people left.....it was a good evening!!

Hey Sharon, did you get a Scotch Egg?:rofl:

Have a nice Day

Ed Tha Brit

[kirtida8]

Had a great time. Would have enjoyed having some good fish and chips - actually just the chips would have gone down well LOL. Looking forward to next year.

[grumps]

Had a great time. Would have enjoyed having some good fish and chips - actually just the chips would have gone down well LOL. Looking forward to next year.

well maybe next year i might do fish and chips, now i know what i need to do.
it was a good evening. did not see you Kay or Sharon.

[telco]

Congratulation BACC. I think it was a 100% improvement on last year.

I hope you can improve on the facilities next year, as already stated, lighting, liquid refreshment, and maybe more food? (lines were too long).

But overall a success I think.
I'm afarid that people will always leave afetr the fireworks unless there is a draw for them to stay, afterall the fire and fireworks is waht it's all about.....

There is of course no reason why you can't do it on a Friday / Sat every year is there?

Jim

[British American Chamber]

Thanks for the positive feedback everyone! We will keep working on all of the areas that need improvement as alot of this can only be figured out by trial and error. As long as everyone had fun, this is the most important part and we have already scheduled a post event meeting to go over improvements for next year. Kissimmee is very excited to host this event with us and are committed to helping grow it each year. I guess we could do it on a Fri or Sat but then it wouldn't always be on the 5th and that takes a bit of the fun out, what do you think?

[telco]

Our local town all ways had it on the 5th, but a town near to us always on a weekend nearest the 5th. Guess which town always had the biggest fair, fireworks and crowds? (weekend town)

Jim

[grumps]

Thanks for the positive feedback everyone! We will keep working on all of the areas that need improvement as alot of this can only be figured out by trial and error. As long as everyone had fun, this is the most important part and we have already scheduled a post event meeting to go over improvements for next year. Kissimmee is very excited to host this event with us and are committed to helping grow it each year. I guess we could do it on a Fri or Sat but then it wouldn't always be on the 5th and that takes a bit of the fun out, what do you think?

i think it should be on the 5th other wise you lose the meaning,

[chris]

I agree with Grumps, you are trying to sell an english event about 5th of November. It makes a nonsense to have it on another day. It's like the yanks celebrating 4th of July on the 5th???
OK, the evening itself. Far better than last year, so the organisers are listening and learning. Maybe have some live music to keep people longer? Both Kissimmee and Osceola County have mobile staging which can be provided if booked well in advance.
There was a general lack of lighting around the vendors and many don't do a good job of advertising their prices. However when you did see what they were charging it wasn't surprising. $2.75 for a sausage! If you wanted the bun, that took it to nearly $5.00. I appreciate that the vendors have to make a profit, especially when the organisers are charging $100 a pop for space. How many I wonder made over $100 and will be back next year. You need to review that vendor pricing, it seems too high a charge for just a couple of hours trading. The vendors themselves need to take a long hard look at their prices. We are not tourists on vacation, we live here and get paid in dollars and will certainly not pay 'rip off' prices which is what I saw last night from some vendors. If the organizers intend to expand the event and get the local yanks attending, they will view the prices even more negatively. They will not pay those prices. The vendors should go to some of the 'foodie' type events in Celebration and see what you pay for sample foods, etc. A lot less than was being charged last night. For about $5.00 which would I choose, a cremated sausage in a bun or a sample of food from the Columbia Restaurant. Hmmmmm that's a difficult one!!!!!
The safety aspect was very iffy last night and if that's taken care of the fire dept will simply say NO. The fencing around the bonfire was way too close as was witnessed by the crowd rapidily pulling away from the fencing as the heat increased. Frightened crowds moving rapidly to escape from possible injury are dangerous and quickly get out of hand. Always remember Hillsborough! The wind was blowing and the fire quickly engulfed some of the fencing itself and even started small grass fires outside the fence area. In the UK, the Fire brigade would have never allowed that fence to be where it was. Bear in mind the local fire dept have no idea about our bonfire celebrations and really don't have much clue as to what effective safety should be. I guess next year the bonfire will be even bigger and burn longer. That to me is an absolute priority.
Overall, thumbs up on last night compared to last year, but please continue to listen and learn.

[Mike Peach]

Well, we all had a great time and it was the sheer 'amateur' feeling of the event that made it for us. You really had a sense of everybody mucking in to make it a good event.

The overpriced food just made it seem more English. :) $2 for a candy floss, $2.75 for a sausage, so what.

My youngest loved all the inflatables and it was the lack of lighting that made it for him and his friend. It made it all the more adventurous.

As for the bonfire, it was great! Really feeling the heat and having to pull back was so much more fun than the processed entertainment the kids get every day. I know health and safety would have a field day but have we all forgotten how to deal with a small element of danger? There was plenty of space to move if necessary.

Of course this event is going to grow and become more professionally run which I think is a bit of a shame. It really did have the feeling of a village event.

All the 'problems' were the highlights as far as our crew were concerned. So thanks to everyone who organised it, we will be back next year! But please don't try too hard to make everything perfect.

[Joanie]

The fireworks were amazing!! I agree about the food. Very overpriced and long lines. A cone of chips would have been lovely!

Wonderful evening - even if it was cold!

[Susie]

Hi All, I think that everyone had fun last night and we will only get bigger and better each year. We are already making notes of what we need to change/add (such as more lighting at the kids rides) and working with the concessions to get more beer, etc but I think that all in all, it was a great evening and we really appreciate everyone coming out to support it. Thank you! As it was a Thursday evening and so many people had kids, they left quickly because it was a school night. Next year falls on a Friday so I would guess that it will go on much later.
We are open to any feedback so please let us know what you thought!

What a fantastic evening, :) well done to the BACC for all their hard work and to all those who either attended or were vendors.

So many people turned out and it was great that a few forum members came up to introduce themselves to me

Especially good to meet up with, (pardon the expression) old friends, Zoe, Steve, Wendy and co, Kay, John, Doreen, Lin etc.,

Except a certain gentleman who played a trick on me , lol

little clue to who this was, , a fruit !

Oh and next year I will be serving Tomato soup, Baked Potatoes, proper Chips and no ice creams, brrrrrrrrrrrrrr :) Home made Custard Slices topped with yummy icing will be back, we sold out :)

[Susie]

I would have liked a porta Potty, near to the vending area it was a long walk to them especially for the old or infirm

Overall a great success thanks to all that helped on the day or organizing

[Scottish Sharon]

:rofl:No Scotch eggs for us especially after being charged $2.50 for a bottle of Irn Bru. It was a good night and yes we would go next year.

Sharon

PS You didn't see me Grumps cos I was hiding from you.....just joking :D

[Sharon]

great night, the kids were so excited :) thank you to all of the people who worked so hard work in getting this event put on and making it such a huge success.

when is the next event planned for

[telco]

I agree with Grumps, you are trying to sell an english event about 5th of November. It makes a nonsense to have it on another day. It's like the yanks celebrating 4th of July on the 5th???
OK, the evening itself. Far better than last year, so the organisers are listening and learning. Maybe have some live music to keep people longer? Both Kissimmee and Osceola County have mobile staging which can be provided if booked well in advance.
There was a general lack of lighting around the vendors and many don't do a good job of advertising their prices. However when you did see what they were charging it wasn't surprising. $2.75 for a sausage! If you wanted the bun, that took it to nearly $5.00. I appreciate that the vendors have to make a profit, especially when the organisers are charging $100 a pop for space. How many I wonder made over $100 and will be back next year. You need to review that vendor pricing, it seems too high a charge for just a couple of hours trading. The vendors themselves need to take a long hard look at their prices. We are not tourists on vacation, we live here and get paid in dollars and will certainly not pay 'rip off' prices which is what I saw last night from some vendors. If the organizers intend to expand the event and get the local yanks attending, they will view the prices even more negatively. They will not pay those prices. The vendors should go to some of the 'foodie' type events in Celebration and see what you pay for sample foods, etc. A lot less than was being charged last night. For about $5.00 which would I choose, a cremated sausage in a bun or a sample of food from the Columbia Restaurant. Hmmmmm that's a difficult one!!!!!
The safety aspect was very iffy last night and if that's taken care of the fire dept will simply say NO. The fencing around the bonfire was way too close as was witnessed by the crowd rapidily pulling away from the fencing as the heat increased. Frightened crowds moving rapidly to escape from possible injury are dangerous and quickly get out of hand. Always remember Hillsborough! The wind was blowing and the fire quickly engulfed some of the fencing itself and even started small grass fires outside the fence area. In the UK, the Fire brigade would have never allowed that fence to be where it was. Bear in mind the local fire dept have no idea about our bonfire celebrations and really don't have much clue as to what effective safety should be. I guess next year the bonfire will be even bigger and burn longer. That to me is an absolute priority.
Overall, thumbs up on last night compared to last year, but please continue to listen and learn.

I hear what you are saying and agree. Howver, you have to expect the crowds to leave after the fireworks on school nights. Especially as some people travel 30 mins or more to get to Silver spurs.
The events in uk are regularly at weekends, and I see no less meaning to Nov 5th. In fact I bet if you asked most event goers what it was about they wouldn't know.
How many of you there really thought about the bonfire whilst you were there, rather tahn just try and find the food and beer?

[byjove]

I agree grumps! You need to go next year with ya' Chish n fips

[stevieboy1101]

My family and I were very impressed with the quality of the fireworks display. The bonfire was a bit of a concern as it got very hot very quickly. However, I chatted with the fire crew and they didn't seem overly concerned and helped move people back who were not forced back by the heat themselves. That element of 'danger' gave it an edge that made it feel like a local event and not Disneyfied.

Lighting does need to be improved. That poor chap doing the tattoos near the bouncy castle must have made a loss on the night as he couldn't be seen in the corner. Sound needs to be expanded if possible as we were down at the kids rides and you had no idea of any music playing, since the PA system can be used for announcements as well it should cover the whole area.

Fish and Chips would be great next time, or just some good chips. Maybe moving all the food vendors to one area (at the furthest end, so they have to pass all of the other vendors as well) this will give them all a fighting chance and maybe they will be a bit more competitive on price as well as $2.75 was a bit high for a half-hot/half cold sausage. More vendors able to sell alcohol and especially familiar ones from the UK would be good as Bud Lite just seemed a bit sad.

However, even with the comments above we had a fabulous night and I walked away with a smile on my face and was telling my American wife and son how we used to celebrate it 'back home'. Looking forward to next year! Thanks for organizing this.

[Steve in clermont]

well im gonna chip in my say.

I was tossing and turning on whether to set up a food vendor stall selling my home made indian food. Pleased to see a couple of Indian dishes were served. The guys down the end served up a reasonable chicken madras and rice for $5. Admittedley it wasnt a huge portion , but considering how much you pay for a full portion i didnt think it was that bad. I do some church events occassionally and pay $50 for my pitch for the whole day. The pitch price was maybe a little expensive if you were actually looking to make a profit in the 3 hour event time. Most of the time these events are about getting your name out there ( well at least from the vendors point of view)
I see julie set up her stall selling british chocolate and sweets etc, i know people think its all overpriced. In defence of that id like to point out how expensive it is to ship in, and how much is lost when US customs deem it nessasary to hold it up until its sell buy date expires,these things all have to be factored into pricing.
For those that want to point out that walmart sell british choccy , go take a closer look at it , mostly its made under licence by hershey ( worst chocolate in the world, and a poor attempt at copying cadbury) and packaged as cadburys etc.

Fireworks were better than i expected , so kudos on that one.

It was a damn good job the wind was blowing in a south easterly direction, I dont know whether it was planned or pure luck.
The position of the bonfire in relation to the wind direction will ultimatly determine how successful the event will be.
I think in future the Bonfire should be further away from the vendor area. Had the wind changed we could have been looking at a disaster with all the hot embers that were caught in the wind.

All in all , nobody was injured and everyone enjoyed it ,,,, so it was a success..

WELL DONE

[Scottish Sharon]

You can go to the International Food Club and buy bottles of Irn Bru for $1.55 so to pay $2.50 yes its overpriced. Well Done everyone on a good British night out.

Sharon

[chris]

A lot of the food and drink that I saw was IMHO overpriced. Was it simply price gouging to make as much as they could or was it to do with the fact that the vendors had to pay $100.00 for their spot on an event that pretty much over and done with in about 2½ hours?
I posed the question before as to whether some vendors would have made any money there and I suspect many made a loss. That being the case, it's unlikely they will return to make another loss. Perhaps the vendor space needs to be less costly.
In my local Chamber of Commerce we organize an 'Expo' which for the past 3 years has made over $6,000 in profit. We charge lass than $100.00 for pretty much a whole day of potential trading and we have no problems in getting vendors back each year.
The Osceola County Convention & Visitors Bureau this year helped sponsor the event (financially as well as other ways) and I know that they are keen to see the event grow and become a firm fixture in the tourist calendar. For that happen the equation has got to work.

[British American Chamber]

Hi Everyone, the pics from Guy Fawkes are available on our facebook BACC Central Florida. They are also on a website that you can access but I don't think that we are allowed to post website addresses so please let us know if you would like the address in a private message.
As far as the feedback on the event, we will keep working to improve it but the main reason for the vendors paying is to showcase their companies, not to make money on the sales (that was always suggested to be a bonus and not all of them sold items anyway) . We will be clearer next year about the prices that they charge but although we have the involvement of the CVB, we need sponsorship money from vendors to help pay for the fireworks and rides. Anyway, it's a work in progress, glad everyone had fun!