Summerfest's complete press release, which reports that revenues were also up handsomely, is pasted below for readers who really, really like numbers or are curious about how many patrons took zipline rides.
MILWAUKEE(July 11, 2013) – Milwaukee World Festival, Inc. officials announcedpreliminary data indicating, Summerfest, “The World’s Largest Music Festival,”grew revenue and attendance while introducing new partnerships and offerings atthe festival.Summerfestmanaged to draw and host 840,356patrons, an increase of 4.3% over 2012’s 805,437attendance. Not only did attendees from the Southeastern Wisconsinparticipate, festivalfans traveled to Milwaukee from 49 other states and 40 countries including Australia,Brazil, France, Spain, Mexico, Germany, Uganda and Poland toname a few.
Foodand beverage sales at the event increased by 7% over last year’stotals in the same categories. Additionally, business to business sales rose by4.1% over last year’s totals, including new sponsorships withJohnson Controls, Uline, Scion, Badger Meter, Boston Store, Pick ‘n Save,Coffee Mate, Palermo’s Verlo, Direct Supply, Forward Dental, Gruber Law,K-Nation, Kemp’s, Tombstone and Jack’s Pizza. Overall, 80 sponsors and media partnerswere part of Summerfest 2013.
“This year’sevent was outstanding! From the music, food and beverage offerings, newdaytime enhancements and promotions, attendees were able to ‘Smile On’ in a bigway,” said Don Smiley, President and CEO of Milwaukee World Festival,Inc. Ted Kellner, Chairman of the Board added, “I am appreciative of thestaff who worked hard to produce this world-class event and thankful toeveryone who supported and attended Summerfest this year.”
An event assuccessful as Summerfest, only happens because of those that work to plan,promote and execute it each year. Approximately 140,000 hours were worked by nearly2,000 seasonal employees during the eleven days of thefestival. Additionally, 875volunteer shifts, equating to 5,400 hours from 400 volunteers and drivers,contributed to help the festival run smoothly.
Summerfestdelivered unforgettable live music experiences to patrons of every age. Over 800 acts took the stage with over1,000 performances. Highlights include Violent Femmes andThe Avett Brothers with special guests Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros andIvan and Aloysa, Dropkick Murphys, Timeflies, Billy Idol, Cake, LL Cool J,Empire of the Sun, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Imagine Dragons, AWOLNATION,The Wailers, Pretty Lights, Alice Cooper, Skillet, Luke Bryan with specialguests Thompson Square and Florida Georgia Line, Rick Springfield, Nelly andForeigner. Additionally, Summerfest celebrated the return of comedy withLewis Black. To bring the music to life, 58 tour buses were parked and 15,185 man hours of local labor wereused to set-up and tear down all shows across the grounds.
In 2013, newdaytime enhancements allowed festival fans to enjoy more than just the music atSummerfest. The successfully launched Paddleboat Water Experiencepresented by Badger Meter, Summerfest Skydive Shows, Zipline, Summerfest Paradeand Big Smile Photo Opportunity presented by ForwardDental provided all patronswith the opportunity to get involved and be part of this year’s Big Gig®. The new enhancements proved to be popular as patrons took 4,105 paddleboat ridesand 4,181 zipline rides,while the Verlo MattressSkyglider provided 92,566 one-way trips.
As in yearspast, Summerfest provided patrons with the opportunity to get in free or at adiscounted rate each day of the festival. In total, 78,445 patrons entered the event for FREE,taking advantage of an admission promotion offer, includingJohnson Controls Stomp Out Hunger Day with Fox 6, Direct Supply Seniorfest Day,Klement’s Day, Goodwill Day, Kohl’s Family Day, Sentry Foods and Dean’s Milk& Ice Cream Children’s Fest Day with Today’s TMJ4, Mountain Dew Day, H.O.G.Day, Military Appreciation Day, Malt-O-Meal Day, Northwestern Mutual “Make aChild Smile Day and Fan Appreciation Day. Additionally, 26,879 attendees entered for FREE onweekdays via the tickets that accompanied Fest Flags and 25,000 weekday tickets weredistributed for FREE during the Opening Day Quarter MillionDollar Ticket Giveaway on site.
Festivalfans sampled over 40diverse food and beverage vendors which resulted in the consumption of 59,947 cheeseburgers,22,300 brats, 13,605 eggplant strips, 41,584 mozzarella sticks, 41,978 ears ofcorn, 167,796 mini donuts and 33,728 ice cream cones. On thegrounds, 4,101,600 feetof towel was used along with 972 gallons of hand soap to help keeppatrons hands clean after those great meals.
A largeinfrastructure improvement was also completed, which helped AT&T provideenhanced cell phone coverage across Henry Maier Festival Park. To fulfillthe project, 260 milesof single mode fiber strands were installed underground. The new infrastructureis comprised of 65 antennas on 11 buildings, 18 of which are located inside theMarcus Amphitheater.
The #SFLiveLounge, also new this year, offered interactive fan experiences which showcasedartist interviews and allowed patrons to participate in the 2013 campaign andother themed days to win prizes. Overall, 63 bands performed a live, acoustic song in the #SFLive Loungethat was captured on video and photo and posted on Summerfest social mediaoutlets including YouTube. Summerfest photographers captured over 15,000 digital imagesduring the 11-day run.
While data on news coverage is still being compiled, the initial results areextremely positive. To date, Summerfest and the City of Milwaukee wereincluded in over 1,600news mentions from January – July 2013. International media attention from 48major outlets focused on “The World’s Largest Music Festival,”including Rolling Stone, USA Today, Billboard, New York Times, Wall StreetJournal, CMT, BBC, Pollstar, New York Post, Teen Vogue, London Sun and PeopleMagazine.Summerfest2014 will take place June 25 - 29 and July 1 - 6, from Noon until Midnight andwill be closed Monday, June 30. Following its 1968 debut, Summerfest hasevolved into what is now recognized as “The World’s Largest Music Festival” andMilwaukee’s cornerstone summer celebration, bringing the music industry’shottest stars, emerging talent and local favorites along with approximately900,000 people from Milwaukee and around the world together each year for anunforgettable live music experience. During the festival, the spotlightshines on over 800 acts, over 1,000 performances, 11 stages, delectable foodand beverages and interactive activities, all in a world-class festivalsetting. Patrons can also enjoy Miller Lite, the Official Beer ofSummerfest. For more details, visit Summerfest.com,Facebook.com/summerfest or Twitter: @Summerfest.
