Courtesy: Slam! Sports
Promoters ponder pros and cons of bringing in big names
By JASON CLEVETT - SLAM! Wrestling

Independent wrestling is a tough business, with fickle fans. It seems the number one complaint of fans is that promotions don't bring in "big names" consistently enough. What those fans don't realize is the number of challenges logistic and financial that come with booking these "names."

SLAM! Wrestling spoke with four promoters across Canada, all who have brought in established talent for shows: Devon "Hannibal" Nicholson of Wrestling Supershows, Mike Davidson of Wrestling Fan Xperience, Kurt Sorochan of the Prairie Wrestling Alliance, and Burt The Hurt of Blood Sweat & Ears, to find out about the pros and cons of bringing in talent.

Money is a big factor. One talent alone can cost thousands in airfare, hotel, and the cost of the talent themselves. When you bring in more than one name, you add to those costs. It's not easy to break even.

"Wrestlers and fans don't always realize the cost of putting on shows. It is actually easier to make money going to a very cheap building and using unknown wrestlers who work for $50 because the break-even mark is much lower. I have lost money on every single Supershow I've done, from a few hundred to well into the thousands, because it costs so much to put them on," said Nicholson. "The name wrestlers get big pay, hotel and flights, the arena costs can sometimes be well over $30,000, as well as insurance, ring rental, lights, advertising and basic office costs, which can range from $2,000-$16,000."

In short, it's a can't win situation a lot of the time.

"Also as a wrestler I used to think advertising was the big problem because I never saw or heard any from companies like Stampede. When I became a promoter I found out the people rip posters down very quickly and that radio, newspaper and TV spots cost a lot and a lot of people still don't see them," he continued. Nicholson co-promoted the TNA tour of Eastern Canada in December. "I spent almost $16,000 on advertising for TNA in Montreal and they talked about it for six weeks on the RDS TV show yet we only drew 851 fans and people were telling me the show did bad because of poor advertising/"

"When we have used names such as Lance Storm, Kurt Angle and Christian Cage to name but three, we have done so in Northern Ontario due to sponsorship and advertising," said Burt The Hurt of BSE, which promotes out of Toronto. "The North is able to provide radio and print ads at an attractive cost so that the towns we tour know we are coming and we have done well promoting there. In the Greater Toronto Area our budgets are more restricted and the cost of advertising is way more expensive, so you can bring in a name, but it won't dent your attendance if the general public does not know they are coming due to less advertising, or you can advertise your basic roster show and they may not draw as the wrestlers are not yet well known. Our biggest successes have been in Timmins and Iqaluit, Nunavut where we brought in Robert Roode, Tracy Brooks and Rhino and sold out the arena two nights in a row. That was a feat we are very proud of. It is frustrating that in the GTA a population of five million you can only draw 100-300 people, but in Iqaluit, Timmins and Kirkland Lake you can draw over 1,000 with populations of 6,500, 50,000 and 7,500 respectively."

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