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Coupons exchange hands at Pierogizilla, a State Fair of Texas food stand, in Dallas\u2019 Fair Park, October 5, 2026.<\/p>\n
Tom Fox\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n
It may seem silly to think about what happens to the thousands of tickets exchanged at the State Fair of Texas<\/a>, but using those paper coupons for a corny dog or ride on the Ferris wheel is just step one during the 24-hour day of a ticket at Fair Park.<\/p>\n And for vendors, the wait \u2013 well, weight \u2013 is worth it.<\/p>\n \nWhy does the State Fair use coupons instead of cash?\u00a0\n<\/p>\n Coupons<\/a> reign as the \u201ccurrency of the land,\u201d said Lindsay Clark, the fair\u2019s chief financial officer. The system began in 1975 as a universal way for vendors to accept payment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really part of the legacy and the tradition of the State Fair; so here we are, our 51st year,\u201d said Jaime Navarro, chief operating officer. \u201cIt\u2019s a unique system. It\u2019s worked well for us, and we love it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n One monetary system with a single set of rules decreases vendor wait time and provides ease for fairgoers, Navarro said. \u201cWhen you find something that can work like that, especially on a monetary side, you just keep doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n Related: 3 meal combinations at the State Fair of Texas for $25 and under<\/a><\/p>\n The process<\/p>\n Once fairgoers spend their $1 coupons, vendors place the collected tickets into a fair-provided metal container with a business-specific barcode. At closing time, vendors bring their collected coupons to fair officials, which will be cleaned \u2013 yes, physically cleaned \u2013 counted and weighed the next day.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n That weight equals the vendor\u2019s profit, minus the fair\u2019s percentage (based on each business\u2019 contract).<\/p>\n A coupon lock box is pictured behind the Stifflers Moms Cookie Factory counter at the State Fair of Texas in Dallas\u2019 Fair Park, October 5, 2026. Coupons are locked up so they can be weighed for cash returns to vendors.<\/p>\n Tom Fox\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n A small team of 10 to 12 meticulous people clean the coupons, and a \u201cvery, very, very precise scale\u201d is used for weighing, Clark said.<\/p>\n First, the clean team dumps their designated bag onto a table, checking for any invalid, illegitimate State Fair tickets. Then, pieces of trash and specks of cotton candy sugar get wiped off before weigh-in.<\/p>\n Stiffler\u2019s Concessions<\/a> manager Ashley Mayshaw is working her 15th seasonal year at the fair. She said the company uses\u00a0a Toast system to track what they sell and how many coupons they receive each day. Toast is a food industry-specific point-of-sales system.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not perfect, but it gives you an idea of how much product [you\u2019re] sending out,\u201d Mayshaw said. \u201cBefore, all we did was take tickets and throw them in the box.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n After storing the coupons overnight, the fair counts them the next morning and brings a receipt to vendors, similar to a Chuck E. Cheese ticket machine, Mayshaw said.<\/p>\n Mitigating counterfeits, coupon security<\/p>\n Clark said the fair uses several built-in production and counting safeguards to keep operations transparent with vendors.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat is the vendor\u2019s paycheck, right? It\u2019s their till,\u201d Clark said. \u201cIt\u2019s as important to us as it is to them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n When new vendors onboard, Clark said they receive a tour of the facility and a behind-the-scenes look at the coupon weighing process. Vendors are encouraged to ask questions and have the option to request an independent reweigh and hand count, if needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe joke out here is typically a vendor will request a hand count once,\u201d Clark said. \u201cIt’s usually their first year, and they come out and count their coupons and realize maybe there’s a difference of a coupon or two \u2026 and that we’re counting it right, and maybe it’s not worth the time to do the hand count.\u201d<\/p>\n Related: State Fair of Texas expands access to student ticketholders after bad weather<\/a><\/p>\n Because coupons carry the same value as a dollar bill at the fair, there are some protected \u201ctrade secrets\u201d within the manufacturing and storage process, Navarro said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe wouldn’t want to peel back the curtain to the same degree we wouldn\u2019t want to peel back the curtain on our bank operations,\u201d Clark said. \u201cIt\u2019s for the safety of our team.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Clark said counterfeit coupons have been a problem at the State Fair but volume has decreased in recent years.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere has to be some type of integrity built into the system for counterfeiting or anything like that,\u201d Navarro said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mayshaw said she remembers seeing counterfeit coupons while working at the fair, specifically in 2024. In response, some vendors implemented security measures like installing lights that turn counterfeit coupons a different color, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been here so long I can feel them,\u201d Mayshaw said. \u201cThey\u2019re real thick \u2026 The tickets now, they\u2019re real thin.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n A State Fair of Texas employee doles out coupons at a booth in Dallas\u2019 Fair Park, October 5, 2026.<\/p>\n Tom Fox\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n Related: With a new affordability push at the State Fair of Texas, are the good vibes back?<\/a><\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Other challenges include \u201csticky fingers,\u201d Mayshaw said, from people not putting tickets in the metal boxes, forcing vendors to install cameras.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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