Al's French Fries ends nearly 70-year run at NC State Fair
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- The North Carolina State Fair's move from a flat-rate fee for food vendors to a 15% cut of sales is prompting at least one longtime staple to bow out after nearly seven decades, leaving some familiar faces absent when the gates open in 48 days.
The fair previously charged vendors $180 per linear foot, but officials say the new percentage-based model aligns with industry trends.
A family member of Al's French Fries said off camera that the change would make it difficult for a business that operates only 10 days a year.
The vendor announced last week on social media that "after many difficult conversations and a great deal of reflections" it would end its nearly seven-decade run at the fair. Thousands responded online, many expressing disappointment over the departure.
North Carolina State Fair Manager Kent Yelverton said the shift mirrors what similar fairs already do.
"That is the way the fair industry has gone. All but just a small number of fairs our size do the percentage. That makes us partners with the vendor ... and as the vendors have good days, we have a little bit better day," he said. "Businesses go through changes, and we're going through a change in the way we do things to follow industry trends."
While some vendors are stepping away, others are preparing for another season.
Angel Sweets owner Angel Louis is returning for her third year at the fair.
She sells wine-infused cupcake flights with optional cocktail "shooters."
Demonstrating one dessert, she said, "That little shooter is a strawberry daiquiri so that you can squeeze in a cupcake, and then you get the full essence."
Louis said she hopes fairgoers continue supporting local vendors.
"Just kind of see how it goes and still have all the same great things that people love about the fair. So we're looking forward to it," she said.
Fair officials could not yet say how many food vendors will participate this year, saying plans are still being finalized. Attendance is expected to reach 950,000.
