Art Deco Festival wins major national event award

Published: 29 March 2019

Last Updated: 13 May 2019

At a glitzy gala dinner in Auckland on Tuesday night, the Tremains Art Deco Festival 2018 took out the title for best regional event at the NZEA Event Awards. 

In the company of some of the best events in New Zealand, the Art Deco Festival was up against a number of other incredible events on a national stage. 

“It's an incredible honour to receive this award in the presence of event professionals at the top of their game," said Vicky Rope, Acting GM of Art Deco Trust. "We deliver such a rich, diverse festival which, for a small region, packs a lot of punch. The small, dedicated team who put this together are exceptional and can be proud of this achievement.”

Judges complimented the organisers on their strategy and refreshed vision showing clear momentum for the Festival into the future.

Art Deco Trust's Vicky Rope: “It's an incredible honour to receive this award in the presence of event professionals at the top of their game. We deliver such a rich, diverse festival which, for a small region, packs a lot of punch.”

Festival Director Glen Pickering was delighted. “It was absolutely outstanding to be named best regional event for our 2018 festival. Our aim is to offer an incredible experience to everyone who attends. We need to ensure it is accessible for all, community driven and celebrates the heritage and the era. The Art Deco Festival is such a fantastic event to work on: the backdrop of the city, with its stunning Art Deco era architecture on our doorstep, is the perfect stage for this festival.”

In its 31^st year, the Art Deco Festival has huge economic, community and social impact on the city of Napier - and the entire Hawke’s Bay region. With 350 events over 5 days, the festival is the largest event in the Bay and has a strong presence on the events calendar in New Zealand.

The 2018 event was the first time the festival took on a hero element of focus, which was music in 2018  This allowed Pickering to thread music throughout the myriad of events in the programme. With a fashion focus at last month's 2019 Napier Art Deco Festival, the event continued to rise in attendance and popularity.

Kevin Murphy, Napier City Council Event Manager, was also thrilled:  “It's fantastic that the unique Art Deco event has been recognised. The Art Deco Trust does an amazing job to deliver this event with limited resources. Art Deco is really our point of difference so this is just great for our city.”

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