We’re negotiating a contract for a celebrity appearance that will span two days of an event. When I looked through the travel and hospitality sections of the agreement, I noticed that we are expected to pay for plane tickets, ground transportation, and hotel stays for everyone traveling with the celebrity. Is this typical?
Unfortunately, yes. Celebrities rarely travel alone, and if you are putting on an event, you are responsible for covering transportation, hospitality, and lodging costs for the celebrity’s entourage. That doesn’t mean that you can’t negotiate on some of the expenses, however. You may be able to negotiate on which airlines are used or whether the entourage travels first class or coach. It all depends on where the celebrity is willing be flexible in their arrangements.
Try to get all of these arrangements set as soon as possible in order to save as much money as you can. Last minute plane tickets, of course, are going to cost more than those bought ahead of time. But, sometimes the celebrity rep drags their feet on getting back to you about these things (or their client doesn’t get back to them right away with an answer), so plan your budget assuming higher costs.
Even if your event is part of a tour and the celebrity is using their own bus, you may be responsible for gas money and food allowances for the whole group. In fact, it’s not just the entourage you could be paying to transport, depending on what kind of appearance you have booked. Check your contract to see if a cartage fee is included—this is the fee to transport equipment. Remember, you’re responsible for reading the contract. Once you’ve signed, it’s a breach of contract to fail to provide for an expense you agreed to.
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