News

The Galtres Festival Charitable Foundation, which owns the annual event held at Duncombe Park, Helmsley, has confirmed that the future of the festival is bright, despite trading difficulties experienced in recent years.

“Plans for a 2015 festival over the August bank holiday weekend are well-underway,” said event organiser James Houston. “It will be difficult to upstage this year’s event, which received rave reviews, but we’re going to try our best. We expect to be announcing the first of our headliners before Christmas.”

This reassurance is issued in the light of news that a subsidiary operating company, Galtres Festival Trading Ltd, has today ceased trading and commenced issuing letters to creditors.

“It’s been tough going in recent years to make this event pay for itself,” said Foundation Trustee Jane Johnson. “Successive years of bad weather haven’t helped. We’ve decided that the best thing for the future is to start anew, safeguarding revenues and focusing on improving the business model. We believe that the event potentially has a highly profitable future, provided a check is kept on costs, and sales continue to grow. The festival’s popularity is at an all-time high, and if we can capitalise on that popularity the event will have a bright and prosperous future.”

Mrs Johnson added: “This restructuring is not in any way a means of not paying people. On the contrary it’s our firm intention to pay all suppliers in full at the earliest opportunity. It’s about safeguarding revenues. Our event has a hugely positive economic impact on the region, and we are determined to see that continue.”

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enquiries to James Houston [email protected]