Through the National Festival of Making, Blackburn was ready to change perceptions of the town. It wanted to be known for its rich manufacturing history – and the role that making continues to have now and into the future. Orchestrated by Deco Publique, the Festival would create jobs, celebrate culture and shine the spotlight on Blackburn. We were brought on board to deliver the national recognition the town’s heritage demanded.
This was about proving Blackburn’s unrivalled credentials within the manufacturing industry and cultural sector. We approached not just the national press, but also specialist arts and trade titles, with a view to supporting the team’s drive to attract the highest calibre of artists to the Festival. From there, we identified personal stories from the artists working in factories, creating engaging interview opportunities for the media.
To boost the National Festival of Making’s reputation, we developed the media relationships the Festival already had, building on these with influential national and cultural commentators and demonstrating its continued relevance.
We catapulted the National Festival of Making into the public eye and, with it, Blackburn. The Festival has enjoyed consistent coverage across national – and even international – media, including on BBC Front Row and in The Guardian, The Times and Visit England. Regional and specialist titles have celebrated Blackburn’s unique importance to the country’s manufacturing history, with the Festival being named “a firm favourite in the national cultural calendar” by the Lancashire Post.
Recent years have achieved the Festival’s highest attendance levels yet, with tens of thousands of visitors gathering in Blackburn – which continues to go from strength to strength as the nation’s centre of making.
