This article is from page 6 of the 2012-10-30 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
ORGANISERS of the upcoming Ennis Trad Festival estimate that the event could generate up to € 2.5 million for the local economy.
A crowd of around 10,000 people are expected to visit Ennis during the festival, which takes places in the Clare county capital from November 8 to 12. Up to 500 musicians will perform at venues around the town for the festival, which is now 19 years in existence. There will once again be a strong international dimension to the thousands of music lovers that will descend on Ennis. An association of American veterans of the Vietnam War and a large group of Swedish music students will be among the throng soaking up the atmosphere.
According to festival chairman, John Rynne, the event will give a pre-Christmas boost to the Clare economy.
He said, “We’re in the midst of this terrible recession and there is a lot of doom and gloom about but we will have a lot of people coming in to the town spending money, spending on accommodation, taxi, pubs, food. There is a lot of money. We reckon that anything up to € 2.5 to € 3 millions is spent in the town and its environs. You will have people coming for the music but also going off to visit other parts of the county.”
Mr Rynne said the festival also offers a unique opportunity to market Ennis to overseas tourists.
He explained, “If you have 10 American tourists going back home telling their friends about the great music they heard in Ennis, that will build up year after year. It all adds up.
“We are spending millions on these advertising campaigns to market the country but at the end of the day the product sells much better than advertising,” he added.
Mr Rynne said the festival received a “fairly slight” response to an appeal for support from local businesses. He said that while it is a tough time for traders, the festival would help to generate a lot of “repeat business”.
He added, “It has a big footprint around the world internationally. It is very well recognised internationally.”