Here is the scoop on the CR Bash:
We never did it to try and make a profit. We originally planned it for two reasons.
First (and foremost) we wanted it to be an inexpensive way to give ourselves additional branding and affiliates for IwantU. That worked out extremely well for us.
Second, we are a fun-loving bunch and having our own show and people down to visit and hang out with, without us having to travel out of our own backyard, was something we felt like doing.
The first Bash attracted quite a few business owners, of some of the larger companies around. It also attracted a lot of affiliates with a lot of traffic. This may be due to the nature of the event, owners saw it as a vacation and didn't send reps, but came themselves. The attendee quality was very high IMO, full of decision-makers and affiliate with traffic.
As we were not out to make money, we wanted to make it as affordable as possible to our guests, due to them having to fly internationally. That said, many paid $200-$400 for their flight and nothing else. Transportation, all meals, all alcohol, all activities and parties, were sponsored. We tried to give the sponsors the lowest cost and most exposure as we could.
The second Bash, we saw slightly less attendees but still broke even and seemed to put together a very enjoyable show for all involved.
The third Bash, is when we sold IwantU. We lost our primary reason for putting on the show and didn't put much into it (previous events, we advertised in AVN/XBiz, on GFY, at the shows at our booths, etc...). With the growing number of shows and probably our own lack of effort, the show was a failure and lost money. It didn't help that the guys who throw the Panama Summit held it on the same dates and talked trash about our show. That's pretty sad if you ask me, but hey I guess when you are desperate, you sink to low levels
Last year, we attempted to revive the Bash simply for fun and changed the format to "package deals". This way, if we couldn't get any sponsors (as expected), we could cover the costs and whoever wanted to come down could come down and hang out. It mostly ended up being local industry folk from down here, but a few people made the trip down and it was a fun time.
What does the future hold? Perhaps a new hybrid, adult-gaming show? Perhaps another go at the CR Bash when we have new adult products to promote? Time will tell
Thanks to everyone who did attend one or more of our shows in the past though and feel free to share your own experiences/comments - I know Robbie loved it.