Organise a fundraising dinner that is profitable and warm
The annual dinner funds a large part of the season: profitability hinges on the fill rate and keeping purchase costs under control. The golden rule: sell the seats BEFORE buying the quantities. Allow 6 to 8 weeks.
Win back the first three hours.
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The timeline, phase by phase
6 to 8 weeks out
- Set the date, hall (often the club’s or school’s own) and a simple menu
- Set the selling price: aim for 2.5 to 3× the food cost per plate
- Set the covers target to break even (your break-even point)
- Kick off ticket sales through members — each with a quota
3 to 6 weeks out
- Open online bookings with a choice of sitting and menu
- Organise the raffle: prizes from local shops, permit if required
- Build the volunteer teams: kitchen, floor, bar, till, washing-up
- Push sales: local posters, social media, member word of mouth
The final week
- Close bookings and order to the real quantities
- Build the floor plan by sitting and by booking
- Prepare the cash float, drink tickets and price displays
- General volunteer briefing with timings by station
The day and after
- Set up in the morning, kitchen started at a fixed time
- Welcome with the booking list and smooth seating
- Draw the raffle between sittings to keep the room
- Numbers within 8 days: covers, revenue, margin — and thank-yous
The mistakes that cost you
- Buying the quantities before you know the bookings: that is the margin heading for the bin.
- Pricing by gut feel: without a break-even point, you discover the loss afterwards.
- Too much choice on the menu: two dishes maximum, a volunteer kitchen is not a restaurant.
- The same three volunteers everywhere: use sales quotas and rotas, or burnout follows.
On the budget
A dinner at €20-25 a plate with a €7-9 food cost yields €800 to €3,000 profit for 100 to 250 covers — the raffle and the bar often make half the margin.
This checklist is generic — your event isn't.
TadaPlan tailors the plan to your date, headcount and budget, then alerts you the moment a critical task slips.
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