Cultivate Food Growing Festival

About

Waltham Forest Council’s Cultivate Festival is a showcase over nine days in spring for all of the food growing initiatives that on offer in the borough which has an established movement of food growers with many organisations, community groups and individuals growing for themselves and for sale with a strong sustainable ethos. The borough aims to become the urban food growing borough of London, to enhance the sense of well-being for its residents. The food growing festival is delivered by the following festival partners: –

• Artillery, who last year delivered the 2014 Cultivate and in 2013 the highly successful Appetite Festival
• Organic Lea, a workers’ cooperative growing food on the edge of London’s Lea Valley
• Capital Growth, London’s food growing network
• To Market, food and creative marketing agency

Marketing Challenge

This was the second year for Artillery to deliver Cultivate and the Programme Director, Laura Kerry wanted to ensure that local residents and the food growing community in the borough and those linked through initiatives and events happening around the UK received a steady flow of timely news and information about the 9-day event before, during and after the festival.

Approach

To Market has worked with Artillery, the lead partner, on a number of borough-wide projects, which include the E17 Art Trail and Appetite Festival. This was the second on Cultivate. To Market handled the press & pr, social media marketing, website management, refresh and updates, engaged Natalie Coleman, Masterchef winner (and local girl) to open the event, coordinated photography and commissioned specific ‘growing stories’ for use on the website and on social media.