SACKVILLE, N.B. — Sappyfest brings much more than music to Sackville.
From significant economic spinoffs to invaluable promotion of the town, Sackville benefits greatly from the annual music festival that brings in about 2,000 music fans into the community every summer.
Jeff McKinnon, treasurer of the Sappyfest board, said the independent music festival has grown significantly over the past 14 years and its success carries over into the community.
“For many residents, visitors, businesses, it’s their favourite weekend of the year in Sackville,” said McKinnnon during a recent presentation to town council as part of the municipality’s annual budget deliberations.
Even more notable, said McKinnon, is how the festival has drawn not only hundreds of visitors into town for the New Brunswick Day weekend but has also attracted people to return and make Sackville their home.
“We often hear of long-time attendees deciding to move to Sackville because they have been exposed to the town through the festival,” he said. “They love the atmosphere, they love the lifestyle, they love the setting and they decide to move here, bring along business and bring along more economic spinoff.”
Jamie Burke, the town’s senior manager of corporate projects, said he has also noticed a similar trend.
“I’ve had calls from people as far away as Ontario, as recently as this particular year, looking to make an offer on a property after attending the festival,” said Burke.
McKinnon said Sappyfest, an event that is now regarded as one of the must-attend festivals on the summer circuit, attracts visitors from throughout the Maritimes, Quebec, Ontario, BC, and the US.
“We work hard to throw one of the most celebrated annual parties in Canada,” he said.
This year’s festival brought in about 2,000 attendees, 100 musicians and artists, and 50 media representatives, and was all run by about 100 volunteers.
“Sappyfest is truly a year-round endeavor. But it’s well worth the work,” he said.
With another successful year in the books, McKinnon said organizers are gearing up to plan Sappyfest 15 in 2020. He said Sappyfest is one of the longest continuously running independent music festivals in New Brunswick.
“With growing competition in the region among other festivals, this is quite an incredible feat.”
And what is the secret behind its success? McKinnon explained it’s the atmosphere that draws people back time and time again - the small-town vibe mixed with an intimate mingling of artists and the audience.
He said the festival tent over Bridge Street creates an “unprecedented festival ambience that can’t be reproduced anywhere else.” He said the downtown streetscape provides a unique setting that makes for amazing photos that get shared on Instagram all over Canada.
The media exposure is also great promotion for the town, from blogs to newspaper articles to radio shows, he said.
Funding for the festival comes from grants from the town of Sackville, the province of New Brunswick, Canadian Heritage and Canada Council for the Arts, private sector donations, as well as revenue generated from ticket, merchandise and beer sales.
Expenses for the festival in 2019 totaled about $125,000 – which included money to hire staff, bring in artists, design and marketing, production, and cost of goods.
McKinnon said while Sappyfest has a part-time creative director and a summer intern on staff, the board’s hope is to also create a summer operations position for the coming year.
Coun. Shawn Mesheau congratulated the organizers on the festival’s success over the past 14 years.
“It’s pretty impressive to see what’s happened here,” he said.
Coun. Bill Evans agreed.
“This is the kind of event that other communities would kill for,” he said.
Evans said throughout his travels in Canada, he has spoken with many people who have praised the festival and its uniqueness.
“This is a huge benefit to the town. I think this is one of our many jewels in this town and I’m proud that we are helping.”
The town typically provides an operational grant of $4,000 to Sappyfest, and also waives the rental fee for tables, chairs and the ticket information booth, as well as offering up staff time for various tasks prior to and throughout the weekend.
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