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Guest Cancellation - Sugar Ray Leonard


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To be honest, I think when you get guest cancellations to the extent that Cardiff has had this year, that refunds should be offered...I know you pay for the event and not the guests, but they are the main reason we go and this year it has suffered badly. I'm not blaming SM for this but at the same time, but some of us attendees have paid more this year for tickets, only to watch the value of the event decrease on what feels like a weekly basis. Shame that SM advocate buying tickets early only to then offer on the day what is a massively inferior experience.

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Come on mate, there is no need for this, Try and keep it professional. It is annoying I know I have lost a couple of guests myself.. Just remember SM don't want this to happen.. They have lost out too.. They must of paid out on Air flights, Hotels, Travel arrangements and don't forget loss of Revenue from the show.

 

If you don't want to go then save your money for the next show. :smile:

Edited by Queen_Sindel
Original quote removed - thank you for saving me to type a reply. ;)
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To be honest, I think when you get guest cancellations to the extent that Cardiff has had this year, that refunds should be offered...I know you pay for the event and not the guests, but they are the main reason we go and this year it has suffered badly. I'm not blaming SM for this but at the same time, but some of us attendees have paid more this year for tickets, only to watch the value of the event decrease on what feels like a weekly basis. Shame that SM advocate buying tickets early only to then offer on the day what is a massively inferior experience.

It could happen to any event. The fact is that if guests were only offered contracts they couldn't cancel due to work etc, no one would ever sign up.

 

It's very unfortunate but there will never be refunds for entry offered based on guest cancellations. No signing events work like that.

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It's very unfortunate but there will never be refunds for entry offered based on guest cancellations. No signing events work like that.

 

 

But maybe they should.

 

I've never believed they should. Everyone is aware of how entry tickets work and the refund policies etc. It's not like people are missold anything.

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It's very unfortunate but there will never be refunds for entry offered based on guest cancellations. No signing events work like that.

 

 

But maybe they should.

 

I've never believed they should. Everyone is aware of how entry tickets work and the refund policies etc. It's not like people are missold anything.

 

 

People are sold entry tickets on the strength of the guest line up. Yes that guest line up could change but what are the choices?

1) Don't buy a ticket until the event when you have to queue around the block for hours and we were warned back in December that Saturday was going to be busy

or

2) Buy a ticket in advance despite there being no guarantee that the reason you want to attend will end up being there and thus potentially wasting your money when all you want is to meet some guests who end up all cancelling

 

Those are the options you're effectively presenting us with. Is it any wonder that people resent it?

Edited by Stenun
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This is really disappointing, all of the 3 I wanted to meet are now cancelled. This line up has been poor in comparison to following years and to other shows following at other locations. It surprises me that in the area that is famed for the BBC productions and all the recent films and the sport attached to Cardiff those resources are not used. There also seems to be no effort in Adding big names after a big guest has cancelled. Surely when arranging these events a back up plan should be important.

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I think what most people are saying is It would help if more guests were booked in the first place.

Showmasters know that guests almost always cancel.

 

They manage it well for other cons.

London for example, if half of the guests announced cancel it will still be a pretty good lineup.

Edited by benweblight
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I appreciate everyones frustrations as have lost a number of guests as well from the show on Saturday.

 

As someone who has been going for events since the 1990s, this pretty much always happens and whilst it's disappointing, chances are many of the guests will come back in the future, so you will get another chance.

 

You really couldn't run an event on the basis that you get your entry ticket refunded as well as your photo/talk ticket because I think you would find that sometimes the event would then make a loss and then there would be no events companies and no events.

 

So my advice is still go, enjoy the atmosphere, enjoy the stalls, see all the great cosplayers and try and meet one or two guests you hadn't planned on meeting, you never know, they might surprise you.

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You can't book a whole load expecting some to cancel. It doesn't always happen, and if they don't cancel then they'll be way over budget. It could never work like that.

On more than one occasion I've been to an event where the last minute replacement was far better (or rarer) than the guest they replaced, leaving me thinking if X hadn't backed out I might never have met Y.

 

It's all swings and roundabouts. Earlier guest announcements are good for promoting; and drawing fans in, but it comes with the increased chance the guests plans will change come the actual event.

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It's always disappointing when a guest cancels especially if you are only planning on meeting that one guest. Maybe SM should introduce a policy of booking more then one guest from each genre so if one cancels there is still someone worth meeting from that field. I know SM work hard approaching and asking a ridiculous amount of people to attend each show but maybe if there is only one guest from a particular field available then it would be better if they attended another event where more similar guest would be available.

 

Now I realize that a guest like Sugar Ray would only be available for a limited amount of shows, maybe even just this one event, so SM would have had no option but to take the chance to book him when he became available. But if there were more sports guests attending at Cardiff then the blow of Sugar Ray's cancellation would have been reduced and at least sports fans would have had other people to meet.

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There are a lot of problems with direct replacements for cancellations, especially for guests that are popular for numerous things. It's difficult to please everyone, and to take your example - 'sports' is a very wide scope and how many would be happy if you replaced Sugar Ray with a footballer or something? Or even a different boxer? A lot of people would only want to meet a boxer the calibre of Sugar Ray rather than someone else etc. It's a difficult situation.

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It was quite unusual to have Sugar Ray Leonard announced for the event, but I guess it may have been because that was the only date he was available for. I remember when I met him at LFCC a few years ago, he may well have been the only boxing guest at that one as well.

 

It always come back to , you have to be prepared for guests to pull out , I know its tough, it's frustrating and can be upsetting, but there can be all sorts of reasons why they are unable to make an event , having intended originally to do so.

 

I don't think there is really another way around it. We are fortunate that we do get the chance to meet so many great guests and since I first went to Autographica back in 2001, there have often been cancellations at events, sometimes as late as the day of the event. Fortunately most have come back to a later event, sadly one or two never seem to make it back, but what can you do, that's the nature of the beast.

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Should desperately be trying to reach out for a Joe Calzaghe or Ricky Hatton, make it worthwhile for me please!

Edited by Queen_Sindel
part of post removed - the "buy early" issue has been explained before. We understand you're annoyed, but this wasn't a malicious announcement. So please don't phrase things this way.
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