Record crowds turned out for the Redditch Food Festival, with organisers Redditch BID hailing the event a huge success.
More than 45 stalls attended the 3-day event from Friday 27th to Sunday 29th May, around StStephen’s church on Market Place, Church Green East, and Alcester Street, showcasing food from around the world, tempting sweet treats crafted by artisan producers as well as a variety of beverages including cocktail stands and quirky craft items.
The town centre was vibrant and bustling at the fun-filled weekend of entertainment including the live demo kitchen headed by multi-Michelin star Chef Jean-Christophe Novelli on the Saturday who interacted with his fans at a book signing in Aroma Coffee Bar.
When asked of his thoughts on Redditch, he replied: “This is a great town, a great community and the event is so well organised, I visit many places around the country, and this is one of the best.
The organisers should take pride in putting together such a great event and I look forward to returning one day.”
Entertainment from Katy Ashworth, Madam Zucchini and performances from a variety of local talents from Indigo Arts, Top Box Theatre Company, and Shaun Paul Smith Dance Academy created a magical atmosphere for visitors to enjoy while they browsed the stalls.
Bench seating hired in for the event were placed around the church in the green area of the town and many families soaked in the sun while enjoying their lunch, creating a picturesque image of Redditch town centre.
The response has been amazing!
Muj Rahman, Redditch BID manager said of the event: “The response we received from the community, and the influx of people from outside Redditch to attend our event has been amazing. The town was buzzing, the atmosphere was beyond expectation and the all the hard work in planning such an event came together perfectly.”
“The weather was on our side too and it added to the amazing weekend for the festival and surrounding local businesses, who benefited from the huge influx of people into the town centre. The event has clearly highlighted the connected community we have and how they come together to support our efforts. I for one am proud to be part of that community.”
“I am often asked if Redditch can be great again and this event confirmed my answer, Redditch is great and revitalise Redditch will continue to build on this success.”
Social media has been flooded with positive and encouraging comments on the success of the event, with many commenting on how great it was to see the town centre so lively.
The event was attended by the newly appointed Mayor of Redditch Cllr Ann Isherwood and many of the Borough and County Councillors that visited the town centre throughout the weekend.
“As the Mayor of Redditch, I was filled with immense pride at this fantastic event organised by Muj and the BID team. I was given the best welcome in my Mayoral year and given exposure to some of the finest in Redditch. It was lovely to meet with local people that I would never have been able to reach had it not been for this event,” said Cllr Ann Isherwood.
A huge success!
Ken Williams, General Manager of Kingfisher Shopping Centre added: “The Redditch Food Festival has been a huge success in boosting the town centre economy with thousands of visitors attracted to this new calendar event over the three days.”
He continues, “We know from our footfall counting system that Redditch saw an additional 2,500 visitors on the Friday, an additional 4,000 visitors on Saturday and additional 4,500 visitors on Sunday compared to the same days on the previous week. This increased has propelled Redditch town centre footfall to higher than pre-pandemic levels which is a significant achievement. Businesses, residents, and visitors should take great comfort from the efforts of the relatively new Business Improvement Team working hard to revitalise Redditch.”
Kingfisher Shopping Centre provides crucial support to these events and the businesses inside benefit from the increased footfall.
Robert Holdcroft, franchisee of the McDonalds restaurant said: “The Redditch Food Festival organised by the Redditch BID team has been a great success. I have heard that many businesses (including my own) had a very busy weekend, and this highlights the value of having a BID in Redditch and the positive results from the efforts of the team.” Heart of Worcestershire college also provided support by offering parking facilities to the traders attending the event.
The clean-up efforts post-event has been incredible with the BID team on site late Sunday evening tidying up and Redditch Borough Council promptly clearing the town centre grounds and emptying all the bins early morning. A collective effort of the different stakeholders in the town working together to revitalise Redditch.
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