Skiddle lost more than £65,000 on last year’s disastrous Hope and Glory festival in Liverpool, the company has revealed.
The ticketing website told the Liverpool Echo newspaper that it lost a total of £62,583 on last August’s event, which was made up of £32,583.18 from customer refunds and a £30,000 advance to festival organisers.
The cancellation of the festival, which came about due to safety fears after it had already started, and subsequent administration and legal fees took the total above £65,000.
Skiddle received the booking fees when tickets were bought, however the money from the festival tickets went straight to the promoter. However, when the festival was cancelled and it became apparent organisers would not be refunding out-of-pocket customers, Skiddle chose to return the cost of the tickets.
Richard Dyer, co-founder and director of Skiddle, told the Liverpool Echo: “One year on from Hope & Glory Festival the people of Liverpool are rightly still upset about this disastrous event and the lack of accountability and responsibility that followed from the organisers.
“After the event, it soon became clear there would be no cooperation from the directors of Hope & Glory Festival and no refunds for tickets issued. Skiddle – as one of the ticketing partners – then took the unprecedented step of refunding customers out of our own pockets because it was the right thing to do.”
The event was cancelled in August last year after thousands of fans were left waiting for several hours as St. Georges Quarter became severely overcrowded. Eventually, police were ushered in after it was discovered that punters had limited access to toilets and food and drink facilities.
The festival’s line-up included artists such as James, The Fratellis (pictured), Razorlight and Charlotte Church.
After an investigation, Liverpool City Council found that the damning report stated the city centre site was not ready, and the event’s management plan was “not fit for purpose”.
Skiddle said it would continue to support smaller festivals across the North West region.
Dyer added: “Despite the numerous mistakes made by the festival, we are confident this sequence of events was an anomaly.”
Image: Hope and Glory
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