Open Air Business December 2018

EVENTS
access to its car parking facilities
and great signage to the venue.
How did you find applying for
permission?
We already have experiences on
site so have our licenses in place.
Noise and lighting into the night is
covered already under our wedding
agreements, as is serving food and
drink.
Working with our local authority
has been very important, we
have found them happy to work
with us and support us in our
projects as we keep an open line of
communication with them.
How have you planned the layout
of the events?
We don’t use a marquee, but have a
number of small structures around
the woodland which we perform
wedding ceremonies or bush-tucker
experiences in at other times of
the year. Made using the timber
from the wood, these are used for
the story telling elements of the
Christmas Woodland event.
For Magical Woodland we have
“ALL OUR
ACTORS
HAVE BEEN
CHOSEN
BECAUSE OF
THEIR FOCUS
ON THE CUS-
TOMER, NOT
NECESSARILY
THEIR ACT-
ING ABILITY”
constructed new structures to
deliver the entertainment. We have
a water spectacular controlled by
WII controllers where light swirls
around and water dances to music.
It took us two weeks to construct
all the structures needed.
The events utilise the full 15 acres
of woodland. We are very lucky
that natural ‘bowls’ have formed
so we are able to keep installations
hidden from sight until people walk
to them. We try to create a natural
flow using characters or animation,
but also allow visitors the option to
make their own routes.
What entertainment do you
offer?
Our policy is to use local where
possible, for everything we
deliver. We also hire people who
have the same objectives as us to
ensure the customer has the best
experience possible, which means
we have to be as flexible as needed
all the time.
To create the Christmas theatre
in the woodland we originally
worked with a theatre company
in Liverpool, but their focus was
on the acting, not flexibility and
customer engagement. We now
work with a local family run
business that is passionate about
providing an unparallelled and
personal experience. Since this
change, we have seen our visitor
numbers grow. All our actors
have been chosen because of
their focus on the customer, not
necessarily their acting ability.
They need to be attuned to the
child’s appreciation of the mystery
and what they like, but also what
will scare them. The actors are in
character from the moment they
arrive until they leave, the mystery
never stops.
For the Magical Woodland we
needed to look for partners who
were willing to support our vision
and help us to develop the event
over the coming years. We looked
for entertainers who could deliver
outdoors and in all weathers,
but most of all focussed on the
entertainment of the customer.
Because this event is selffinancing,
we need to work with
people who are willing to take
the risk with us. The artists we
contracted agreed to work with us
on a profit related pay agreement
for the first two years, meaning
they receive a share of the income
through ticket sales, and the
only way to ensure payment is to
create an outstanding experience!
We are not charging our catering
suppliers for the first two years
while we develop our audience;
we feel it is important the caterers
get something from the event and
in return will support the event
providing a quality experience.
What provisions do you make for
power, lights and sound?
Sound and light are two of the
themes for the Magical Woodland,
which is why we partnered with
Event Equipment – they have the
expertise and resources to match
our vision, which is fundamental
to the success of the event.
We do have a strong
infrastructure already in place
to provide a whimsical wedding
setting of fairy lights and soft
music within the woodland itself
and of course the wedding barn is
fully powered, so our guests can
party into the night.
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