They say horse racing is the sport of kings. If that's true, then a beer festival at a horse race must generate a king's ransom in ticket sales. The big business brew fest found a new locale at this year's Kentucky Derby. The event got the attention of the American Business Journal, a respected publication known for spotting lucrative business trends. In 'BeerFest Showcases A Growing Industry' David Mann writes of how craft brewing is making the effort to assert itself in a state know for another drink - bourbon.
Is Louisville a beer town? Can it be mentioned in the same breath as famous beer capitals such as Dublin, Munich or Portland? The Louisville beer industry has made huge strides during the last few years. Finnis said the growth in the industry is a result of a public that is more aware of craft beer, who now pay more attention to where their drinking dollar is going.
Mann goes on to comment on the big business of craft beer and so-called "showcase marketing" aka the venerable beer festival. Tickets to the Kentucky Derby BeerFest were sold for $35 apiece and included unlimited beer tastings, a sampling mug and a BeerFest pin as part of a customized ticket package.
Lousiville has been host to another beer festival for years, known as the Louisville Independent Business Alliance (LIBA) Brewfest, held at the Louisville Slugger Field baseball stadium. The LIBA Brewfest is a virtual who's who of local microbreweries and the annual event is a consistent sell-out.
Louisville Kentucky is an up and coming beer festival hot spot, but some cities' brew fests have such an allure, is it possible that people are willing to relocate their lives to be near them?
Hickory Hops
Just like Louisville Kentucky, North Carolina is attempting to establish a reputation for itself as being a place for sought-after suds. Known more for BBQ than beer fests, the burgeoning Carolina scene has author Paul Viau denying he relocated his life just to be nearby, sating that "contrary to popular opinion, I did not move to the area solely because of the beer scene."
One of the beer festivals touted by Viau is the annual Hickory Hops beer festival which took place last month in Hickory North Carolina. According to Viau, Carolina breweries put their best foot forward and showcased their products during the festival, and one from Viau's hometown won 3rd place in the Best of Show competition.
As seen on the official website, tickets for Hickory Hops were $30 when purchased in advance, with a promise to sell tickets at the gate had the event not sold out. And as with nearly all brew fests nowadays, Hickory Hops offered a special ticket for designated drivers at a reduced price. That special designated driver ticket is a critical part of the beer festival ticketing software purchase process, as mentioned in an earlier post.
Event safety and compliance with local laws should always be of the highest importance [for beer festivals]. Local laws vary, but it is safe to say that the penalties for drunk driving are severe and are reason alone for a festival to offer special designated driver tickets.
Selling festival tickets at different prices (general admission and designated driver) in different tiers (multi-day and single day) can be a complicated task to manage. That doesn't even include things like pre-sales for VIPs or a souvenir beer mug with a ticket purchase.
ThunderTix Beer Festival Ticketing Software
The ability for beer festivals to offer special "designated driver" tickets depends on the choice in online ticketing software.
The ThunderTix plan for beer festivals includes the tools to sell designated driver tickets at a different price. We also provide you with tools to create custom ticket packages to sell premium extras like sampling mugs and t-shirts. We are experts in festival ticketing, with our technology powering some of the largest events in the country. And we have pricing tiers to match your beer festival's projected ticket sales volume.
Our pricing for beer festivals is tailored to meet your special circumstance. We have several ticket levels to choose from, each one is an economical way to start selling tickets today, including seasonal operations (Spring to Fall). If you don’t see your annual ticket volume listed, please contact us at your convenience.