Exploring Events: World Whisky Day with Spirit of Speyside and Fèis ìle/The Islay Festival

World Whisky Day (21 May) is an important date in the Scottish calendar because of the nation's internationally acclaimed reputation as the home of whisky. What better way to celebrate the day than to take a look at some of the fantastic festivals, supported by EventScotland, that celebrate ‘the water of life’.

The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival (27 April to 2 May) is held in the world-famous Speyside region of Scotland each year and hosts over 500 events for festival goers to choose from. The festival attracts visitors from near and far, and were finally able to relaunch the event after two years for six-days of celebrations.

Fèis ìle/The Islay Festival (27 May to 5 June) also returns after two years of virtual events and has an exciting programme of music, dance, and whisky. The island is transformed into a haven for whisky-lovers, offering distillery open days and a range of other whisky activities, plus a taste of island culture through ceilidhs and music events.?

We took some time to speak with George McNeil, Chairman of the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, and Ben Shakespeare, Social Media and Communications lead at Fèis ìle, to discuss the promotion of their events to local and international audiences, their key takeaways from the last two years of hosting events, any challenges and opportunities that arose, and the most enjoyable aspects of their festivals.

How did you approach the promotion and marketing of your events to various audiences?

George: We took a multi-level marketing approach, utilising our press contacts to widen our regional and national media coverage, engaging whisky experts and non-whisky drinkers alike with our diverse programme of events.

We worked with the local community to promote the festival, as it’s always a fantastic opportunity to generate business in the north-east. We worked with local hoteliers, transport links, and other event organisers to create a positive experience for first-time festival goers and remind festival veterans why they choose to come back each year.

Ben: As a voluntary organisation, we work together to promote our event organically by curating positive and memorable experiences for festival goers, which helps to create conversations both in person and online. This helps us retain a regular number of event goers who are happy to return to Islay each year.

Although we understand the importance of Islay as a whisky tourism destination, with Fèis ìle we want to share the other exciting and rich histories of our island. I believe people come to Islay Festival for the whisky but always return for the island and its people.

What key takeaways from the previous two years do you feel were important to apply to the planning of this year’s event?

George: Throughout the past two years, it was important for us to keep an open line of communication with event stakeholders and attendees, providing regular social media updates to keep The Spirit of Speyside in the minds of whisky lovers and reassure our audience that we would return.

Since restrictions were still in place last April, we hosted a virtual festival to an enthusiastic worldwide audience. Although it wasn’t the same as celebrating in person, it was amazing to see the support and engagement from avid whisky connoisseurs around the world.

Later in 2021, we were able to host our first in-person event ‘Spirit of Speyside Limited Edition’ festival, which saw audiences from UK and Europe brave the November weather for a hot toddy or two.

Overall, the main takeaways from the past two years were about learning to be flexible in the face of change and the importance of engagement and communication with your audience, as they are your greatest advocates.

Ben: Like other event organisers, we had to adapt to the abrupt and uncertain changes of the last two years. We came to appreciate the importance of moving events to virtual platforms, especially because we are separated from the mainland and travel restrictions made it almost impossible for outsiders to visit.

In 2020, we hosted our first virtual Fèis ìle and attracted an audience of 250,000 which was astounding as our festival would normally have capacity for only 15,000. Following its success, we launched another virtual festival in 2021, which had fewer views, however distillers across Islay also launched their own virtual events so overall the combined number of views between our event and the distillers would have exceeded half a million.

With events returning in full force, were there any challenges you faced in the planning and delivery of your event that you did not anticipate?

George: We were concerned with the affect that the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions would have on our audiences, but we were delighted to see the return of regular visitors and some newcomers as well. We felt we were able to curate a positive experience for event goers and hospitality services we worked with were able to meet the demands of our large audiences.

Some of our biggest challenges arose due to supply chain issues and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Covid-19 restrictions. We experienced a number of last-minute cancellations, and this affected our idea of festival numbers. However, our administrative team worked tirelessly to manage attendee and stakeholder expectations, maintaining an open line of communication.

George: We are excited to return to our very first in-person event after two years and I believe we are in a strong position to provide a very exciting programme of events. We know our audiences are excited to return to Islay for this fantastic cultural event, but we did not anticipate the high level of demand.

We have had to increase our capacity to accommodate event goers, and local businesses have also equipped themselves efficiently to deal with the large number of tourists. Although we will be busier than we’ve been in a long time, it’s still an exciting time for Fèis ìle and we look forward to welcoming guests with a warm Islay welcome.

What do you think people enjoyed and will enjoy most about your event??

George: Apart from visitors being provided the opportunity to taste and experience some of Scotland’s rarest, superior whiskies, the Spirit of Speyside Festival is an event for whisky enthusiasts and novices to come together, connect with other like-minded people and immerse themselves in the rich heritage of Scotland’s finest whisky region.

Ben: We have worked hard to create an international community through Fèis ìle, so I think festival goers are really looking forward to seeing their friends again. The essence of our festival is about connecting over a dram in a place that provides a rich atmosphere, steeped in Islay’s history and heritage.

For more information about these events, visit their websites.