Study shows Cactus Festival has impact: executive
Survey finds street vendors, local shops keep crowd coming
An economic impact study that found this year’s Dundas Cactus Festival supported $1.3 million of economic activity in Ontario — and $1 million in Dundas and Hamilton — shows volunteer organizers are on the right track, festival president Steve Deighton said on Monday.
The impact study by Paradigm Consulting Group of Ottawa cost festival organizers about $5,000 but will be used to help program future festivals by indicating what they do right, and also provide hard numbers for possible grant applications.
That total economic impact makes Deighton happy — however, it’s not the only thing the study provides.
“I think what it shows is, this is more than just a local festival,” he said. “(But) the study isn’t just about economics.”
The consultant used a sample of 1,100 — much higher than any survey conducted by event organizers over the past 42 years.
It found 89 per cent of those surveyed came to the festival to visit street vendors.
Deighton was a bit surprised vendors were the top attraction but noted they include a variety of artisans, handmade crafts, food and local organizations. The second highest attraction was the street sale by King Street West businesses, with 63 per cent saying that was what brought them.
“It shows the importance for our downtown merchants,” Deighton said.
Third was the Family Fun Zone, at 37 per cent, and fourth was music in general. David Wilcox’s performance was 23 per cent — highest for any individual event. The Spoons followed close behind.
“This justifies the amount of money we spend on music, and how we schedule it,” Deighton said. “It shows headliners drive a lot of the decision-making.”
Total attendance over the three days was 105,000 — including 67,591individuals. Of those, 12,591 were out of town visitors — close to 20 per cent of the individuals attending at least once.
“For a festival that’s been around, we’re fresh and attracting a decent amount of people,” Deighton said.
The study found 34 per cent of those surveyed brought children, under the age of 18, with them to the festival — another vote of confidence, Deighton suggested, for the festival’s “family-friendly” atmosphere.
According to the study, combined spending of out-of-town visitors and festival organizers totalled $811,000. “These expenditures supported $358,000 in wages and salaries in the province through the support of six jobs, of which four jobs and $210,000 in wages and salaries were supported in Dundas/ Hamilton,” the report stated.
The report states total net economic activity (GDP) generated by the event was $635,000 for Canada, $584,000 for Ontario and $321,000 in Dundas and Hamilton.