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– Throughout the past five years, more than 50,000 people have entered the county to attend the Sanford Pottery Festival – the largest pottery festival in the state.
There have been no studies to find out how much money they spend, but organizers do know who attends and feel it contributes to the local quality of life.
In 2005, festival founder Don Hudson commissioned a research study to learn more about festival goers. Ruth Doherty, with Direct Marketing, a division of in Raleigh, found the following:
- The Sanford Pottery Festival drew customers from 795 zip codes from across the United States;
- There were 111 zip codes from North Carolina;
- The highest percentage of instate zip codes came from the Raleigh/Durham/Cary area; and,
- The majority of attendees were baby-boomers (persons born 1946-1964) and earned $50,000 - $125,000 or more a year. It also drew a younger crowd with families.
Stephanie Saintsing-Gryder, executive director for the North Carolina Association of Festivals and Events, and executive director for the Barbecue Festival in Lexington, stressed, “A festival opens a town to new customers. By
developing a signature event, a town can roll out the welcome mat to hundreds of thousands of people. There’s no better way to put a town on the map!”
Sanford Mayor Corenlia Olive said that’s helpful when she’s recruiting a new business to relocate in Sanford.
“Whenever an industrial scout comes to town, the Festival is the first activity they mention as a reflection of the quality of life. It’s creative, artistic, open to every age and it’s fun. The fact that it rewards students by giving proceeds to schools for visual arts programs makes it all the more inviting as a sellable item for people interested in coming to Sanford. It’s a recruitment tool.”
She added that when new businesses relocate to Sanford, their employees find volunteering at the Festival as a way to meet new people and make new friends. “It’s a magnet for positive growth and embraces newcomers.”
Bob Heuts, director of the Lee County Economic Development Corporation, says word is out about the festival. When he travels across the state, people tell him about it.
“The event is a great attribute to our community. It elevates our exposure, brings shoppers who spend money here and shows we have a dynamic community, strong in the arts. Anything along those lines adds to the quality of life of what Sanford can offer a new company and its employees.”
Jerry Miller, founder of Lazy Days in Cary, summed it up by saying, “A company wants its employees to feel they fit into the community. If a business owner comes to a town and sees a good quality of life with built-in entertainment, then he’ll better consider moving his company there.”
The 5th Annual Sanford Pottery Festival will be open on Saturday, May 6, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday, May 7, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $5 per person. Groups with 10 or more members may purchase discounted tickets for $3.50 by calling 919-777-9933. The deadline to order group tickets is April 30. Parking is free. The Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center is located at 1801 Nash Street, in Sanford. For more information, call (919) 777-9933 or visit www.sanfordpottery.com.
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