An indie business guide to trading at festivals in the UK

As summer comes to a close, I caught up with Julie Macken, who owns the incredible Neve’s Bees with her daughter, Neve. Summer is all about festivals and here Julie shares her experiences trading at festivals as an indie business. She shares the inside track and lots of useful tips so if you’re thinking about adding festivals to your business plan for 2025, this blog is for you. >>

Tell us a little bit about Neve’s Bees

We make 100% natural skincare products and have been around for the last 7-8 years. All our products are made in Oxfordshire and are completely natural and unprocessed.

Our mission is to bring back the wildflower meadows and we donate 10% of our profits to wildlife charities & causes.

Our products can be found online, on our website, and in-store at selected boutique and skincare shops.

What festivals have you traded at and what did you enjoy about them? 

This year we managed to trade at Wilderness and Glastonbury Festival. Last year we gave Latitude a go. There are a few others we have done over the years, being a mix of small and large-scale festivals. 

Festivals are great because you get that face-to-face experience with people. It is the perfect chance to conduct market research and see how people react to your products.

We love festivals because we get the chance to work during the day and then enjoy the festival itself at night- it’s all about that balance!

“Make sure your brand aligns with the festival”

Did you take your full range of products and did you pick up on any trends?

One thing to consider is that festivals have various policies which you need to adhere to. For example, since Glastonbury is focused on sustainability, glass was not allowed. Therefore we had to create a special range of our products that were in tin jars, not glass. 

Notable trends we have seen so far are dependent on the weather. Last year our rose water spritz sold out because it was so hot. But, a few days into Glastonbury our deodorants ended up selling out because well..you can figure that out.

How effective did you find these festivals in raising your business profile? 

Generally speaking, it depends on the festival itself and how busy it is. 

It has been great for repeat business. We usually create a festival-specific discount code that helps us understand our customers better, allowing us to identify any repeat customers from festivals.

If the festival aligns well with us, results tend to be better.

What attracted you to attend the festivals that you did? Did something specific appeal to you?

We have loved attending festivals as a family for many years. One day we just decided to give it a try. I would say that if you do not like festivals, do not trade at them. It’s a better experience if you enjoy attending festivals or that specific one.

“I recommend going first as an attendee before trading so you can meet other traders and get a good insight into what the festival is truly like.”

Plans and key takeaways for next year.

We are looking to explore and test out other festivals to see which others might align with us.

After attending a few, you learn that certain things appeal at certain times e.g. people want coffee in the morning but as expected, this demand decreases in the afternoon.

Ensuring that our offering resonates with people throughout the whole day is key.

Do you have any tips or suggestions for other indies looking to trade at festivals?

• Make sure that your brand aligns with the festival.
• If you do not like festivals, do not trade at them.
• Do sufficient research ahead of time- understand the audience and ticket sales.
• Maximise pre-festival promotion awareness activities.
• Understand who else is trading so you avoid being just a number e.g: you do not want to be the 10th coffee stand.
• Festivals are expensive and high-risk. Payments need to be made ahead of time so make sure to consider this.
• It’s better to have a few people with you manning the stall – it is a long day. If you need to source someone for this, that is a cost to consider.
• Consider which staff you need at the festival and your business’ home base.
• Make sure the stall looks eye-catching and aesthetic, as well as comfortable.
• Look at offering special deals to help entice people.
• Be clear on what you want out of it. If it is only from a commercial perspective, it might not be the best investment.
• Start with smaller-scale festivals then take it from there.

Neve’s Bees offers a vast range of 100% natural skincare products. Make sure to check out the online store and follow on socials to find out which festival you can catch them at next year!