LONDON (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Vince Power's Music Festivals plc, the company behind London's Feis Festival, Spain's Benicassim, is reporting that it has been a tough year.
According to an Operational Update released by the company, their Hop Farm Festival held last month in Kent with a lineup that included Peter Gabriel, Suede, and My Morning Jacket, was a loss-maker, failing to generate expected ticket sales even without competition from Glastonbury this year. The Hop Farm festival has been around since 2008 and initially focused on folk and indie music but has since broadened its music offerings.
The company also reported that Benicassim, one of the leading festivals in Spain, continued to turn a profit, but at a much lower level than in 2011.
"The festivals market in general has been affected by the continued depressed economic climate and the availability of strong revenue-generating acts," a spokesman for Music Festivals said in May 2012.
Resultantly, the company expects to report a material loss for the year and is looking at ways to raise additional working capital. In 2011, the company reported pre-tax profits of £795,624 on revenues of £13m.
Power formerly ran the Mean Fiddler group of venues and festivals, but accepted a takeover bid from Live Nation UK in 2005. Power then launched the Vince Power Music Group but that company entered administration in 2010. His new venture, Music Festivals, staged an IPO in 2011, opening at $63 but the company's stock has suffered since and is currently trading at $6. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
