- Picturesque Moyne River in Port Fairy
Another sold-out Folk Festival in Port Fairy has left organisers thrilled, but small businesses struggling to make a crust – despite an influx of trade – have left a sour note on an otherwise fruitful weekend.
Festival Committee President Mr Bruce Leishman says it’s “always a success”, even without financial data available at this time.
“We have sold out every year,” he said.
However even he was shocked how quickly the last of the 11,500 adult tickets were snaffled up.
“We were surprised we sold out about three weeks in advance this year,” he said.
Leishman also praised the work of over 150 volunteers, who assisted with construction of the arena in the preceding two weeks.
“That’s a huge effort from our volunteers,” he said.
The renowned community collaboration from Port Fairy locals has been the cornerstone to consistently delivering the most lucrative event in the town’s calendar.
Highlights from the 2012 Port Fairy Folk Festival
“The festival itself is blessed that we do have heaps of funds,” said Mr Leishman.
“We’re not musically minded – the committee. We treat it as a business.
“We’ve never made a loss in the past,” he said.
With the significant revenue made from the festival – which costs $2.5 million to stage – the committee is generous in its donations across the community.
“A lot of our money will go into Moyne Health Services,” Leishman said.
“The hospital will be trying to do a $20 million revamp in the years to come, so they’ll come and ask us for quite a substantial donation.”
The festival is a stable economic tool for the region, with local businesses placing a great deal of emphasis on preparations for the weekend.
Some – like Ms Rebecca Nelson – manager of Rebecca’s Café, begin the build-up months in advance.
“In December, you’re working for January, and so on,” she said.
“You’ve got to have a massive crew to get it all done.”
But despite the inexorable flow of customers over the weekend, Ms Nelson says penalty rates are hurting her profits, and will continue to do so.
“I don’t think it will be as successful for us because of the different wage structure,” she said.
“It’s really affected our bottom line.”
So much so, she seriously considered not opening for Good Friday and Easter Saturday, saying it’s not worth it.
This comes just days after the Fair Work Commission rejected applications by a number of employers to have penalty rates in hospitality and other industries scrapped.
Ms Nelson however, wasn’t in a position to comment further on the matter.
For Bruce Leishman, he has a simple gauge to test the festival’s success.
“If everyone’s still smiling by Monday afternoon, we’ve usually had a very good festival.”
For now, Port Fairy will shuffle on towards 2014.
