Strong attendance at GO! Organic Festival’s first event has been reported by organizer Diversified Communications, with visitor figures confirmed to have exceeded 10,200 across the two days.
Taking place over 8-9 September in London’s Battersea Park, the festival was designed to mix ‘a serious campaigning message’ with educational and interactive elements, according to Carsten Holm, Diversified’s managing director, who says the success of the opening weekend went beyond the company’s ‘wildest dreams’.
“We knew we had a good idea and that there was a gap for an event like this, but the way both industry and the general public responded has been quite incredible,” says Holm. “We set out with a vision to create a festival which would mix a serious campaigning message and educational elements with lots of interactive activities, features, and, above all, fun. The end result was a truly unique combination of exhibition, conversation, debate, and festival atmosphere all taking place in a magical space where, whatever your age and whatever your background, everyone came together to have a great time.
It was a hugely ambitious undertaking but I really feel we have the foundations for something which will not only become a hugely important marketing platform for the organic sector, but which can become a truly iconic event in its own right
“To get over 100 sponsors and exhibitors in the first year, and to attract 10,236 people, was an incredible result and everyone we spoke to had an amazing time. It was a hugely ambitious undertaking but I really feel we have the foundations for something which will not only become a hugely important marketing platform for the organic sector, but which can become a truly iconic event in its own right.
“We set out to create London’s best day out and from the hundreds of people I spoke to … I have no doubt that we achieved that aim. We are incredibly grateful to all our supporters, sponsors, exhibitors and visitors for trusting us and for getting behind this in such a big way. We look forward to working with everyone to stage an even bigger GO! Organic Festival next summer.”
Festival highlights included a 115-stall marketplace showcasing organic food, drink, beauty and lifestyle brands; an organic beer tent hosted by Stroud Brewery; a Meet the Farmer segment supported by Waitrose; Honest’s Family Eco Art Camp; Clearspring’s Japanese Tea Garden; Abel & Cole’s picnic area; and yoga classes with Freedom Brewery. Additional interactive features included roaming circus acts, fairground rides, face painting, apple pressing, fruit picking, food sampling and storytelling, while on the main stage live performances were given by The Magic Numbers and The Hoosiers, as well as children’s entertainers Andy & The Odd Socks and Mr. Bloom. In the Organic Kitchen, a steady stream of prominent chefs and organic food writers – Rosie Birkett, Jay Morjaria and Melissa Hemsley included – gave demos and recipe tips, while the Natural Talks Theatre hosted talks by a number of organic experts including Jonathan Dimbleby and Helen Browning OBE.
We are incredibly grateful to all our supporters, sponsors, exhibitors and visitors for trusting us and for getting behind this in such a big way
Aileen Nicol, campaign director of Organic UK, comments: “We had a fantastic time at GO! Organic Festival sharing the joy of organic food and drink and engaging people with our Organic – Feed Your Happy campaign. The two days were a real celebration of organic, a fun and engaging experience for everyone attending and showed the diversity of what’s available and how accessible organic is. And being able to share the experience with so many of our members was the icing on the cake!”
To register your interest in attending next year, or for up-to-date festival news and ticket information, please visit: https://goorganicfestival.co.uk/go-organic-festival-2019-interest-form.
