About Festival of Marketing

DISCOVER THE HISTORY OF FESTIVAL

Festival of Marketing was born from a passion to unite the marketing industry and foster a collaborative environment where marketers could learn and share ideas on how to be successful in the ever-evolving world of marketing.

Since its inception in 2013, we’ve been committed to providing an inclusive and engaging place for marketers to gather, connect, and exchange knowledge. With a thoughtfully curated line-up of top marketing and celebrity speakers, Festival offers a unique opportunity to gain valuable insight, spark discussion, and inspire action towards building better brands. From tackling the most pressing issues in marketing to exploring emerging trends and strategies, Festival of Marketing continues to empower marketers to drive meaningful change and thrive in the fast-paced marketing landscape.

Register your interest below to be the first to hear about Festival’s plans for 2024.

THE FIRST FESTIVAL OF MARKETING!

This Festival was hosted across multiple London venues including; Old Billingsgate, Old Truman Brewery, and Grange Hotel. Each venue hosted one of our strands of content, including; Jump, Crunch, Punch & more.

The event also featured fringe networking events, including the Marketing Frenzy final evening party. Now known as Festival After Dark in recent editions of FoM.

Despite being our first FoM, our event purpose hasn’t changed all that much. Here’s a quote from the vaults, from Econsultancy’s COO back in 2013…

“The Festival of Marketing is aimed at providing a content-rich, inclusive and fun environment for marketers to learn, debate and exchange ideas on what it takes to be a modern marketer of the future.”

We like to think this is still true of Festival today.

THE FESTIVAL IS HOSTED AT TOBACCO DOCK, WHERE IT REMAINED UNTIL 2019

Festival is already taking shape as the event it is today. What could our 2014 delegates expect from Festival…

120 sessions across ten stages, plus one-to-one advice clinics and networking with 4,000 senior marketers from across every sector.

FESTIVAL GOERS BREAK A GUINNESS WORLD RECORD TOGETHER

More than 617 people took part in the “largest marketing lesson”, making Festival of Marketing a Guinness World Record title holder.

Plus, Festival launches its very own marketing awards, the Masters of Marketing Awards.

Shortlisted entries were displayed in unique interactive awards gallery at this year’s FoM. The awards are still going today, in the form of the Marketing Week Masters.

THE HEADLINE STAGE COMES INTO ITS OWN

With over 200 speakers at this year’s Festival, it’s hard to choose just a few to mention.

On the Headline Stage alone delegates heard from… Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak, Sir Martin Sorrell, FA’s chairman Martin Glenn, and TV personality Katie Price.

DID YOU TRY FESTIVAL’S VERY OWN BEER IN 2017?

Festiv’Ale was served as part of Festival After Dark networking party.

Plus, the most important debate of marketing history (we’re not at all biased)…

Mark Ritson & Byron Sharp offered their bold visions for the future of our industry. It’s a Headline session that is still spoken about today.

FESTIVAL HOSTED MARKETING WEEK’S 40TH BIRTHDAY PARTY

The birthday bash was a party like no other, taking place on day one of this year’s Festival.

Festival City is always an integral part of a visit to the Festival, but in 2018 it was unmissable…

What do 2018’s delegates, David Bowie and the Queen all have in common? That they’ve had their portrait taken by renowned photographer, RANKIN.

Other highlights included, Tim Peake’s Space Descent Tour Bus, a cinema in Sitecore’s Experience Room, and the Festival bookshop.

IT’S ALL ABOUT WHO YOU KNOW…

This year, Festival introduced a dedicated networking lounge to compliment the array of other networking opportunities.

After all, there were plenty of fellow senior marketers to connect with at this event.

2019 saw 5,000 attendees from over 1,500 top global brands gather together to shape the future of marketing.

FESTIVAL GOES VIRTUAL FOR OUR MOST INTERNATIONAL EVENT EVER

No one needs reminding of the reasons we couldn’t meet in-person last year. But our virtual edition made the event accessible across the world.

We welcomed delegates from 81 countries and from 6 of the 7 continents (we were just missing some Festival goers from Antarctica!).

2020’s delegates benefited from more content than ever before. Sessions took place over five days, with on demand access for an entire month.

THREE UNMISSABLE VIRTUAL EVENTS

In 2021, there were 11 days of learning split across three separate virtual events; The Bottom Line, Fast Forward and The Year Ahead.

With over 345 speakers sharing their expertise, our delegates walked away with plenty of insight and inspiration.

FESTIVAL RETURNS TO IN-PERSON

It was so wonderful to discover, learn and connect with some of you in-person this year!

The first Festival of the year took place on 23-25 March, in-person at The QEII Centre and virtually.

The second Festival of the year took place in-person, on 06 October 2022 at The Brewery, London! Festival brought together a carefully curated group of top speakers from the marketing world and beyond, offering the insight, provocation and inspiration that will would help you do your job better.

10 YEARS OF FESTIVAL

Festival of Marketing 2023 once again took place at The Brewery, London! Festival seamlessly gathered a selection of leading speakers providing dynamic and inspiring content. The engaging sessions delivered unparalleled insights, and thought-provoking discussions, all aimed at empowering you to elevate your learning.

Be the first to hear about Festival’s plans for 2024, register your interest below.