Jazz & RootsFestival Budget at a Glance
A board-ready read on where the money comes from, where it goes, and the signals worth watching before show day.
At a Glance
Income
Total income is $186,958, dominated by public grant funding. Earned revenue (merchandise + VIP) is small but present, leaving the festival highly dependent on a handful of grant lines.
- Grants$143,958 · 77.0%
- Sponsorships$31,000 · 16.6%
- Earned (Merch + VIP)$12,000 · 6.4%
Note: Merch ($2,000) and VIP Tickets ($10,000) are listed under Sponsors in source data but are reclassified as earned revenue here for diversification analysis.
Top 5 lines = 86.4% of all income. Top 3 alone = 74%.
| Source | Type | Amount | % of Income | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants — $143,958 | ||||
| City of Columbia H-Tax | Public grant | $100,000 | 53.5% | Concentration |
| Richland County A-Tax | Public grant | $23,333 | 12.5% | Watch |
| Richland County H-Tax | Public grant | $13,125 | 7.0% | Watch |
| SC Arts Commission Festivals Grant | State grant | $7,500 | 4.0% | Strength |
| Subtotal — Grants | $143,958 | 77.0% | ||
| Sponsorships — $31,000 | ||||
| Palmetto Citizens (Presenting) | Cash sponsor | $15,000 | 8.0% | Anchor |
| Prisma Health | Cash sponsor | $5,000 | 2.7% | Strength |
| ABC Bonding | Cash sponsor | $2,500 | 1.3% | |
| Jeffcoat Law Firm | Cash sponsor | $2,500 | 1.3% | |
| Columbia Metro Airport | Cash sponsor | $2,500 | 1.3% | |
| Katherine Davis | Individual | $2,000 | 1.1% | |
| David Campbell | Individual | $500 | 0.3% | |
| Russell-Massey | Cash sponsor | $500 | 0.3% | |
| Gerald Migliaccio | Individual | $500 | 0.3% | |
| Subtotal — Sponsorships | $31,000 | 16.6% | ||
| Earned Revenue — $12,000 | ||||
| VIP Tickets | Earned | $10,000 | 5.4% | Underbuilt |
| Merchandise | Earned | $2,000 | 1.1% | Underbuilt |
| Subtotal — Earned | $12,000 | 6.4% | ||
| Total Income | $186,958 | 100.0% | ||
Expenses
Total expenses are $166,826. Production swallows 84.5%, with marketing alone (~$55.6K, 33% of the budget) costing more than 2× the entire artist roster.
King & Columbus alone is bigger than the entire artist roster ($25.8K) by 67%, and 5.4× the headliner fee.
| Line Item | Category | Amount | % of Expenses | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Artist Talent — $25,800 | ||||
| Endea Owens (Headliner) | Artist fee | $8,000 | 4.8% | On-target |
| Lucia | Artist fee | $6,000 | 3.6% | |
| Martin Bejerano (The Purple Project) | Artist fee | $3,000 | 1.8% | |
| Syr | Artist fee | $3,000 | 1.8% | |
| Willie Bradley | Artist fee | $2,000 | 1.2% | |
| Folderol | Artist fee | $2,000 | 1.2% | |
| Brittany Turnipseed | Artist fee | $1,800 | 1.1% | |
| Subtotal — Artists | $25,800 | 15.5% | ||
| Production — $141,026 | ||||
| King & Columbus Digital Advertising | Marketing | $43,080 | 25.8% | Outsized |
| Festival Director | Staffing | $20,000 | 12.0% | Critical |
| Video Wall | Stage / AV | $16,500 | 9.9% | Review |
| ACS Sound & Lighting | Stage / AV | $11,711 | 7.0% | Reasonable |
| Catering | Hospitality | $9,953 | 6.0% | |
| Portolets | Site logistics | $5,750 | 3.4% | |
| Something Borrowed Rentals | Site logistics | $5,146 | 3.1% | |
| Physical Signage | Marketing | $5,000 | 3.0% | |
| UES / Yellow Shirts (Security) | Site logistics | $3,750 | 2.2% | |
| Merchandise | COGS | $3,500 | 2.1% | |
| Experience Columbia Billboards | Marketing | $3,000 | 1.8% | |
| Grace Outdoor Billboards | Marketing | $3,000 | 1.8% | |
| Artists Hotel Rooms | Hospitality | $2,361 | 1.4% | |
| VIP Lounge Rentals | Hospitality | $2,000 | 1.2% | |
| Social Media Manager | Marketing | $1,500 | 0.9% | |
| Golf Carts | Site logistics | $1,378 | 0.8% | |
| Car Rental | Hospitality | $1,149 | 0.7% | |
| Event Insurance | Risk | $1,149 | 0.7% | Underfunded |
| Artists Runners | Hospitality | $600 | 0.4% | |
| Green Room | Hospitality | $500 | 0.3% | |
| Subtotal — Production | $141,026 | 84.5% | ||
| Total Expenses | $166,826 | 100.0% | ||
| Net Position (Surplus) | +$20,132 | 10.8% margin | ||
What If We Cut Digital Advertising?
King & Columbus Digital is the budget's largest line at $43,080 — bigger than the entire artist roster. Drag the slider to see how the budget rebalances if next year's contract comes in lower.
What the numbers say
▲ STRENGTHS
- Healthy 10.8% surplus. Most jazz nonprofits aim for breakeven; your festival posts a real cushion.
- Four distinct grant sources across city, county (×2), and state — better than the typical single-source rural festival.
- Headliner fee ($8K) is right-sized for Endea Owens at this market tier. Not paying over the odds.
- Local sponsor anchor (Palmetto Citizens, Prisma Health) is renewable, mission-aligned, and visible on print and signage.
▼ RISKS & WEAKNESSES
- 53% of income from a single funder. Best practice caps any one source at ~30%. A bad H-Tax cycle = budget collapse. (Concentration risk)
- 77% grant-dependent, 6.4% earned. Industry healthy mix is ~30–40% earned. You are roughly 4–5× too low here.
- Marketing = 33% of expenses. Standard nonprofit festival ranges 10–18%. King & Columbus alone is 26% of total spend.
- Insurance at $1,148. Two-day outdoor festivals typically need $3K–$8K coverage. This line looks thin enough to flag with the board.
- No contingency / reserve line. The "surplus" is functioning as a hidden contingency. Make it explicit. (Operating reserve)
- Artist roster < marketing. Inverted ratio for a music festival; long-term this affects both programming reputation and artist relationships.
Benchmarks
Comparing Jazz & Roots Fest against typical nonprofit jazz / regional music festival ranges.
| Metric | Jazz & Roots | Healthy Range | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top funder concentration | 53.5% | ≤ 30% | Action Needed |
| Earned revenue % | 6.4% | 25–40% | Action Needed |
| Sponsorship % | 16.6% | 25–35% | Watch |
| Grant dependency | 77.0% | 30–45% | Action Needed |
| Artist talent % of expenses | 15.5% | 25–40% | Watch |
| Marketing % of expenses | 33.3% | 10–18% | Action Needed |
| Production % of expenses | 84.5% | 55–70% | Watch |
| Reserve / contingency line | $0 | 5–10% of budget | Missing |
| Net surplus margin | 10.8% | 5–12% | Healthy |
| Insurance % of expenses | 0.7% | 2–5% | Action Needed |
Recommendations
Specific moves for FY2027, organized by what to protect, reduce, restructure, or monitor. None require dropping artists or changing the program scope.
Headliner & Local Talent Fees
Endea Owens at $8K and Lucia at $6K are right-sized. Don't trim talent to fund production. In fact, adding ~$5K next year would push artist share toward the healthy 20% mark.
Festival Director ($20K)
This is the only ops salary in the budget. Cutting this is how festivals get into trouble. If anything, it justifies expansion in year two.
King & Columbus Digital ($43,080)
Single largest line item — 26% of expenses. Demand a media-mix report with attribution. Target a 30–40% reduction (~$13K–$17K saved) by shifting to programmatic + organic / earned media. Reinvest in earned-revenue infrastructure.
Video Wall ($16,500)
Verify this is essential to the audience experience vs. a "nice-to-have." A scaled-down LED package or single-screen rental could free $6K–$8K with minimal fan impact at Finlay Park's intimate footprint.
Add Earned Revenue Lines
Target FY2027 earned revenue of $35K+ (from $12K). Add: GA wristbands at $20–35, day-of merch table targets, a Friday "preview night" ticket, food vendor commissions, and a VIP tier expansion. Each pulls grant dependency down.
Insurance Coverage Review
Get three quotes for a 2-day outdoor music event with alcohol service and headcount >500. Industry baseline is $3K–$8K. Underinsuring is a board-level fiduciary risk — even on a clean show day.
Establish a Reserve / Contingency Line
Make the surplus visible. Carve $15K–$17K (≈9%) as an explicit "Festival Operating Reserve." Adopt a board reserve policy: target 3 months of festival operating expenses by FY2029.
Sponsor Concentration
Palmetto Citizens = 48% of sponsor cash. Build a second $10K–$15K presenting sponsor for FY2027 so no single sponsor's exit creates a hole. Healthcare, finance, hospitality are warm-lead categories.
H-Tax Renewal Risk
$100K from City of Columbia H-Tax = single biggest dependency. Maintain quarterly stewardship (impact reports, attendance demographics, economic-impact studies) so renewal isn't a vote — it's a foregone conclusion.
Hospitality Creep
Catering ($9,953) + Green Room + VIP Lounge + hotels/runners/cars = $16.5K (10%). Reasonable today, but watch for scope drift in FY2027 if artist count grows. Set a per-artist hospitality cap.
Reclassify Earned Revenue
Move Merch ($2K) and VIP Tickets ($10K) out of the "Sponsors" bucket in your books and into an "Earned Revenue" line. This single accounting cleanup makes diversification reporting honest in your 990 and grant applications.
Sound & Lighting Production
ACS at $11.7K for a two-day jazz event is reasonable and necessary. Audio quality is brand quality for a jazz festival — don't squeeze this line.
Bottom Line
ColaJazz & Roots Fest 2026 is a structurally profitable festival ($186,958 in, $166,826 out, $20,132 surplus) sitting on top of a structurally fragile income mix. Three moves change the financial profile materially: (1) diversify into earned revenue toward a $35K floor, (2) cut digital advertising by a third and reinvest in talent and reserves, and (3) formalize an operating reserve and right-size insurance. The artistic program is sound; the back-office is where the next year of work belongs.
Board Action Items
A one-page checklist of the discrete decisions to bring to the next board meeting. Tap to check; selections persist if you reopen this page on the same device.
