A Birthday Party Business Plan

Many magicians consider birthday parties for children the lowest-hanging fruit of the magic business. So many young magicians got their first paid gig at a kid’s birthday party. And many magicians perform mainly at children’s parties their whole career. It makes sense. There are lots of opportunities wherever you live and a variety of possible price points. I have done my share of birthday parties since I started gigging, and they were a big part of my father’s magic business. I also interviewed three full-time specialists for this column: David Kaye, known professionally as Silly Billy in New York City (and in his column for this magazine), Christopher Barnes, aka Christopher T. Magician, from Los Angeles, who also lectures to kid show magicians all over the world, and Joe Fields, a local magician in Westchester, New York, who has been performing around the New York City area for as long as I have been alive. Birthday party appearances are their bread and butter, but their business plans are different. I thank them for sharing their time, insight, and candor.