RPM REPORTER: BRANDS GALORE AT VINTAGE, GOODWOOD

Vintage at Goodwood, a boutique festival in Chichester, flaunts all things Vintage to the coolest of cats, including classic cars, old-school clothes, antique jewellery and costumes. The festival is like no other, with a faux high-street constructed right in the centre equipped with cinema, catwalk (sponsored by Grazia), beauty parlour (in association with the Jemma Kidd Make-up School) and a host of chic bars and shops. Civilised is an understatement; with a host of polite information people, litter-pickers galore and even clean toilets!

Jumping on the ‘clean bandwagon’, were Dyson, who had a stand exhibiting their powerful hand dryers using the ‘The Damp Hands Challenge’. I think we can all agree that from first impression the Dyson brand isn’t exactly synonymous with fashion festival, but in-built into their structure were multiple hand basins and soap, offering people the chance to wash their hands using the Dyson hand dryers to dry them. This practical approach offered people a very useful service whilst educating them on the importance of hand hygiene and allowing them to try out their product.

Bedazzling viewers near the entrance was The Tanqueray Torch Club, a venue providing waitored table service, with a large dance floor and swing bands keeping revellers on their feet all day long. I felt like I’d stepped into the 1950’s, and the ambiance of the room really suited Tanqueray. I also spotted another Tanqueray bar on the main high street, decorated to look like a classy cocktail hang-out with mint wall-paper, white leather booths and an outdoor seating area. Inside, a large bar was the focal point decorated at one end with Tanqueray bottles displayed in the shape of a larger bottle and a great selection of classy cocktails.

Gola too had a small area. It was a vintage football set-up that invited festival-goers to ‘Beat The Keeper And Win £5’. This was a similar offering to our own Bop-it campaign we held last year, where we asked students to ‘Challenge The Champ for a Fiver’. Gola’s campaign seemed to be just as successful; there were queues of young kids, yet after noting the size of the miniscule goal, their attempts seemed even more futile after seeing the hench goal keeper, who blasted the balls away left right and centre! I’m pretty sure those five pound notes weren’t handed out very often.

Last but not least was the wrist band given in exchange for tickets on arrival. This was designed into the shape of a large IWC watch and really stood out as a great brand idea. Usually wrist bands at festivals make collectable items and it was interesting to have the brand displayed on your arm. For that particular weekend, everybody ‘owned’ an IWC watch, and it’s something I would definitely remember. The IWC watch also appeared on the website, showing the countdown until the festival began.