Chance for local business to support Hat Fair

Posted: 19th February 2020

Chance for local business to support Hat Fair

Hat Fair – the UK’s longest running festival of Outdoor Arts – is inviting local businesses to a special event to learn how they can get involved in, and support, this year’s vibrant festival, which celebrates 46 years in July, and last year broke records with over 90,000 attendances to shows.

The Hat Fair 2020 Festival Preview, which will take place at The Chesil Rectory on Wednesday 04 March, at 5pm, will showcase some of the performances set to pop up outside city businesses over the three-day weekend, that this year runs from Friday 03 – Sunday 05 July, and will once again host hundreds of music, dance, circus, theatrical performers, and more.

The event will talk about how businesses can support Hat Fair by acting as brochure points for festival goers wanting to pick up a programme of the many shows, installations and activities on offer; to encouraging staff to volunteer; and the many ways they can support Play to the Crowd – the charity responsible for the festival – to help keep it free for audiences of all ages to attend and enjoy.

From becoming a corporate supporter of this year’s festival – which has proven vital to Winchester’s economy; to getting involved in the In Crowd card scheme – which gives Play to the Crowd Members access to offers and discounts run by businesses throughout Winchester – over the festival weekend or for a longer term; to running special promotions during Hat Fair and donating a percentage of the proceedings to the charity, to show support.

It will also highlight how in turn Hat Fair can help promote businesses over the weekend – by way of increasing their profiles across promotional material for the festival, with presence on online platforms, and performance locations.

Drinks and nibbles will be provided by The Chesil Rectory – a Play to the Crowd Corporate Member.

Anyone interested in attending the event should email Fundraising Manager, Becca Moore, to secure a place – on becca@playtothecrowd.co.uk and by Monday 02 March.

Hat Fair relies on public funding support from Arts Council England and Winchester City Council. We are very grateful for this support. However, we need to secure further donations from both individuals and companies each year to make Hat Fair happen.