THE Battle of Flowers “cannot survive without private sponsorship”, the event’s creative director has said following a significant drop in ticket sales for this year’s revamped event.
Adam Flynn explained that 7,000 tickets were sold for the Friday parade – well below the capacity of 15,000 – after the event was “hit hard by on-the-day sales”.
The Moonlight Parade sold 10,000 tickets – 3,000 fewer than the previous year.
Mr Flynn attributes the fall in attendance this year to bad weather and a “50% decrease in pre-booked tickets” from visitors.
Despite this, he said that he was “very happy with how ticket sales held up”, adding: “Our loyal audience held up and we attracted many first-time attendees, which is very encouraging.”
In a change to the traditional schedule aimed at increasing audience numbers, the Grand Day Parade took place this year in the early evening on Friday 11 August while the Moonlight Parade took place the following day at 9pm.
It is not the first time that Battle has suffered poor attendance levels. Following disappointing ticket sales for the 2019 parade, organisers warned that the event was set to make a loss of between £20,000 and £30,000. Figures for this year’s event have not been finalised.
In an effort to enhance the parade’s appeal as a tourist attraction, organisers are collaborating with Visit Jersey to promote the event in the UK and France. However, specific details about the initiative have not been revealed.
Despite the challenges, Mr Flynn said he remained hopeful about securing sponsors given “the event’s iconic status in Jersey” and the opportunity for companies to “position their brand front and centre”.
He stressed the importance of building partnerships to address concerns, attracting corporate sponsorship in addition to the £150,000 annual government grant.
He also emphasised the need to simplify the volunteer recruitment process, as market research suggested that volunteers were unclear about how to get involved.
Last week it was announced that the Battle’s Christmas Parade has been cancelled for the second year in a row, owing to funding pressures.
Russell Labey, chairman of the Battle of Flowers Association, said he was “disappointed not to be able to bring some free festive cheer to the town centre again this Christmas” but was hopeful the parade would return in 2024.
