For a practical event estimate, start with what customers paid, remove discounts and refunds, then account for the products sold, any payment-processing fees you recorded and the event expenses you know about.
Simple actual-result structure
Sales − discounts − refunds − product costs − recorded processing fees − known event expenses = operational event profit estimate.
1. Work out net sales
Add the value of active sale lines, then subtract sale discounts and refunds. Do not count a voided transaction as a sale. If you manually record only totals, be consistent about which discounts and returns those totals include.
2. Subtract the cost of what sold
For each product, multiply units sold by that item’s unit cost. This is why a reusable product catalogue helps: a £20 sale is not £20 of profit if the item took materials, stock or maker labour to produce. If you choose to include your labour in unit cost, do not count the same labour again as an event expense.
3. Add the costs of taking part
Include the pitch fee and other event-specific costs you actually incurred, such as travel, parking, accommodation, packaging or hired equipment. Keep unknown actual costs marked unknown; do not silently treat the plan as the real amount.
4. Enter the real payment fee if you know it
Card or payment-service fees reduce the event result. A fee rate can be useful as a forecast assumption, but it is not proof of the actual charge. FairProfit records the fee you enter and warns that a zero fee on card sales may overstate profit.
A worked planning example
Imagine a plan for 24 pieces at £15 each, with a £5 unit cost, £82 of event costs and an assumed 2% processing rate:
- Planned gross: 24 × £15 = £360.
- Planned product cost: 24 × £5 = £120.
- Illustrative processing fee: 2% × £360 = £7.20.
- Estimated contribution before event costs: £360 − £120 − £7.20 = £232.80.
- Estimated profit at that plan: £232.80 − £82 = £150.80.
At the same assumed product mix and fee rate, an approximate break-even revenue is £82 × £360 ÷ £232.80, rounded up to the next penny: £126.81. That is a planning estimate, not a promise that a specific combination of items will sell.
Illustrative scenario, not a testimonial: A maker finishes a market with cash and card sales, a few refunds, some stock left and a parking receipt. Recording each piece separately helps them distinguish “takings” from the event’s estimated contribution after known costs.
What this number leaves out
An operational event estimate is only as complete as the entries. It may exclude VAT, owner payroll, general overhead, tax, unsold stock value and any cost you have not recorded. It is not statutory accounting or tax advice. Ask a qualified adviser about your own reporting obligations.
How FairProfit helps
FairProfit Desktop keeps a local product catalogue, event stock and costs, forecasts, manual sale/refund records, actual expenses, stock reconciliation and event comparison together. Figures can remain provisional until required costs and stock have been reconciled and the event is closed.
Want a simple estimate before planning a full fair?