Minnesota State Fair CEO says dip in attendance is not a surprise
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Vendors and staff are packing up the Minnesota State Fair for the season, after another year of welcoming nearly 2 million guests.
About 1.92 million people came through the gates this year. That’s slightly fewer than the crowds in the last two years, and short of the fair’s record attendance of more than 2 million in 2019.
State Fair CEO Renee Alexander said that slight dip in the numbers was not a surprise. Attendance set records the first two days but dropped during hot and humid days of the fair. And Labor Day was late this year, meaning the fair overlapped with some other end-of-summer plans.
“There were schools that were able to start prior to Labor Day, and that may have had an impact in just regular calendar changes for different folks,” Alexander said.
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She said some year-to-year fluctuation in the numbers is always expected.
“We're not chasing attendance records,” Alexander said. “I think for us the most important thing is that people who attend the State Fair have a great experience, a safe experience.”
And parts of the fair saw record participation. Some public transit agencies have reported record ridership to the fair. Entries in competitions including crop art and baking were up from last year, too, leading to some long lines and crowded buildings.
Alexander said that’s been a trend.
“I think part of it is, coming out of the pandemic, people started to embrace things like baking and canning and crop art,” Alexander said. “Seeing an increase in those numbers is wonderful, and we love that participation. But on our side, then it's a matter of looking at how do we best support that moving forward?’”
She said fair organizers will review the numbers from those growing areas of the fair and decide whether to improve or change anything about those competitions in the future.
The fairgrounds will also see some updates in the down time before next year’s fair. The 4-H building will undergo renovations, with plans to be ready to reopen for the 2027 fair.
“We're always looking to improve the fairgrounds, improve programming and bring a better fair every year,” Alexander said.
Next year’s fair will be another late one, running Aug. 26 to Sept. 6.
