Introduction
"Milk is for the babies. When you grow up, you have to drink beer.” Arnold Schwarzenegger says. This slogan drew me a step closer to Beerfest Asia 2009.
Beerfest Asia provides an opportunity to test your taste buds with over one hundred brews from all over the globe. Over at Beerfest Asia, we noticed more than twenty-five breweries and not to forget some local brewery too. Beerfest Asia 2009 is held right beside the Singapore Flyer and on the F1 track facing Marina Barrage and city, providing a breathtaking night cityscape. Rain or shine, nothing can stop the event for it is carried out under a 2100sqm marquee. Spreading over the five days, Beerfest Asia 2009 opened its door to patrons from 29 April to 3 May 2009. Different band performances are scheduled on different days to fill up different atmospheres. Apart from that, there were F1 stimulators and patrons can ease their anticipation for the F1 race by driving a couple of laps on the machine. It is not just all about beers, as food is not to be missed. I found a variety of food ranging from Swiss Bakeries to Kelong Food which is perfect for filling empty stomach before a drink. Soaking myself in the live music, food, beer and games for a night totally yanked out all the stress. The Beerfest Asia 2009 was a successful event with many satisfied patrons, like me.
Similarly, in Munich people celebrate Oktoberfest which is one of the largest and most popular festivals in the world. Oktoberfest is held over a span of sixteen days and usually during the late September. At Oktoberfest, wider range of food is sold and you can find traditional German cuisines like hendl. Music is definitely in and there are even amusement rides at Oktoberfest. A special thing about Oktoberfest is that many people like to wear the Bavarian costumes to celebrate this festival which boosts the festive atmosphere.
“It’s all about beer!” That’s what everyone exclaims for. Beerfest Asia 2009 brought in from Australia to USA with over one hundred kinds of beer and up to twenty one different breweries. With exotic beers from Chile, Switzerland and Thailand on sale, many beer lovers turned up at the event to drink till their hearts content. Personally, I am not much of a drinker but I found myself developing a liking for the Irish Magners Cider. A sweet blend that is not too harsh on a juvenile drinker like me. Despite all the foreign brews occupying most of the event, you can find local brewery; Archipelago Brewery. Also, the household brand; Carlsberg is available too. At Beerfest Asia, what a potential customer would pay for is what they think they need and want for. The atmosphere at Beerfest Asia 2009 gradually built up as the clock ticks away. At the end of the day, everyone danced and chilled as much as they wanted to. Beerfest Asia 2009 is not like a usual trip to your regular pub, the live and joyous atmosphere is certainly worth paying for.
Over at Munich, they have fourteen tents with different brewery in them. There are about fourteen breweries at Oktoberfest. Each tent differs from size, style, food, music and programs. For example, Schottenhamel tent which is seen as the most important tent as it signals the start of the event when the Munich mayor taps on the first keg. Needless to say, Oktoberfest has win over Beerfest Asia in terms of its myriad range of food and ultimately the traditional festive atmosphere. At Beerfest Asia, patrons only experience a laid-back, light-hearted happy atmosphere while at Oktoberfest; people are dressed up in costumes.
Price
The price of the admission ticket ranges from $10 to $78 depending on packages. For concession tickets, early bird tickets, at-the-door tickets and hospitality tickets are at $10, $20, $35 and $78 respectively. To purchase beer in the festival, you need the Beerfest currency which is vouchers in a book selling in quantity of $10 or $50 in value. Merchandize like tee shirts are also available at the Beerfest currency booth.
Packaging and Distribution
For Beerfest Asia 2009, there are group packages which entitles a discount twenty percent for fifty or more tickets purchased. Also, they packaged themselves with Singapore Flyer to come up with the “hospitality pass” which allows users to have a full ride on the Singapore Flyer. Also, the “hospitality pass” includes beer runner service, $20 food vouchers, beer voucher and reserved seat at the main marquee. At the same time, Citibank credit card holders enjoy discounts off for their entrance fees when they pay with their credit card.
For Oktoberfest, patrons can book a hotel cheaper as of a package form. So far they have not release any information about its packaging and distribution for the Oktoberfest 2009.
Promotions
At Beerfest Asia 2009, they had several promotions like early bird special, concession price, group booking discounts, credit card discount and more. One of the interesting promotions they had was the hospitality tickets package. Patrons can enjoy a Singapore Flyer ride, beer runner service, a $20 food & beer voucher and a reserved seat within the main marquee. It is great to be a youth, as I made use of the concession promotion and got my tickets at only $13. Also, there is a free drink for every purchase of ticket! This promotions push beer lovers and first timers to give it a try. By paying only $13 and getting to taste so many beers, it is certainly worthwhile.
Meanwhile, at Munich’s Oktoberfest patrons are enjoy discounted rate for hotel rooms at partnership hotels. This is very useful as there are many tourists at Oktoberfest and this promotion proves practical. Or even locals can book a room if they expect themselves to get drunk too.
Place
Sitting on the F1 track and facing many of the skyscrapers and our honorable Singapore Flyer, Beerfest Asia 2009 was on the prime location. With the nearest train station at Cityhall of about ten minutes walk; patrons can take public buses to city and other places. For large groups like tourists, the Singapore Flyer is very accessible as there are many large parking lots meant for tour buses. Similarly, there are many parking lots for drivers. For white collar workers, it is just a few roads from the central business district area. For those who get lost easily, there is shuttle bus service to Singapore Flyer with three pick-up points between Aldelphi and St. Andrew’s Cathedral, outside Suntec City Convention Centre and at Millenia Walk. Inside the tentage, it is while ventilated with air-coolers and fans so no worries about warming up after a few mugs of beer.
Over at Oktoberfest in Munich, it is held at Theresienwiese and public transport would be recommended as there are no parking lots nearby to the Oktoberfest. However, there is a subway that brings patrons straight to the gate of Oktoberfest. In any case, taking public transport would be better as drink drive is strongly discouraged. People can go to Oktoberfest by bus, streetcar, U-Bahn and S-Bahn. The Oktoberfest are very well decorated and the tentages always have colorful draping ceiling which stands out in the day.
Partnerships
Supported by governmental agencies like Singapore Tourism Board and Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau, Beerfest Asia 2009 gained more exposure. Also, Beerfest Asia 2009’s important partnerships will be its official ventilation partner, Bio-Air, and many other supporting companies like Lowe Refrigeration, DAS Audio, CSP productions and many more. Some of these partnerships support by renting their products to the event. Partnership with broadcasting companies is vital as they are one of the key to drawing crowd in. Such broadcasting companies like Timeout Singapore, FHM Singapore and radio Power 98. These broadcasting companies will feature the events on their pages or on air, so to create more awareness for the event.
Programming
It is a pro that Beerfest Asia 2009 was held over 5 days which includes the weekends as it minimize the chance for people to miss the event. This is important as many Singaporeans are working and they are only free on weekends. On certain days, children are allowed at the Beerfest till evening, while certain days kids are not allowed. This is due to the program line up ahead. For example, the genre of music plays by the upcoming live band. There are different genres of music on different nights. To name a few like, pop music, rock music, blues and psychedelic music. The special program was the live band performance of Vertical Horizon which is a very well-received rock band. Vertical Horizon played its gig on Saturday night, which is a prime time slot. As they are very popular among the youths, it draws a new group of crowd and creating a whole new experience for youths. This is a very good marketing benefit as for the future Beerfest Asia, youths will continue to support for music and the pleasurable past experience. Local bands also get to shine at Beerfest Asia, a few to name are bands like Jack and Rai, The Good Fellas and my favorite 53A. Not leaving out foreign bands like Hell Belles from United States, with their premier performance in Singapore! Other than that, patrons can also enjoy a fun round on pool, foosball or air hockey. There are many ways for patrons to bond up with each other at Beerfest Asia.
Similarly at Oktoberfest, there are many live bands playing at different tents. Programs like family games at certain “family-friendly” tents are available too. Most of the programs in a beer festival is roughly about the same. But there is room for improvements for Beerfest Asia.
People
With the right people, the right service attitude, the overall experience would certainly be a good one. The people busily involved in Beerfest Asia 2009 are the ticketing staff ushers, security, waitresses, bartenders and performers. All of them have their role to play and they contribute to making a pleasant experience for patrons. The ushers at Beerfest Asia were very helpful as I enquire about the Beerfest currency as well as the booths to redeem my free drinks. The waitresses are very friendly and agreed to take a photo together without hesitations. Bartenders are very easy-going people who would casually joke with patrons usually. The patrons are mostly made of up Singaporeans and foreigners like Caucasians. Unfortunately, the crowd was not hyped up until late at night. Many patrons eventually joined into the groove of the live music and had a fun time in front of the stage. It is very important as participation is actually the best feeling.
Best Practices
One of the few best practices is to purchase your tickets earlier as you would be eligible to enjoy discounts. Instead paying more for the admission fee, why not pay more for your drinks? Also, drink water when you start to take more alcohol as it keeps you sober. This also can help to prevent headaches and hangovers the next day! Finally, take cab if you are feeling tipsy. Never drink drive as it is ultimately dangerous.
Stakeholders
There are six types of stakeholders for the Beerfest 2009. The first type is media stakeholders, they are our Time Out Singapore Magazine, FHM Magazine, FM Radio Power 98.0 and food search engine; hungry-go-where. The second type is co-workers, such as Bytes Ticketing, Rheographics Media, Artistes and bands. The third type is host organization, like Singapore Tourism Board, Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau and Australian Government. Also, corporate sector such as Absolut, the official spirit for Beerfest. The fourth type is sponsors like Lowe Refrigeration, Bio-Air, Food &Beverage Logistics, Timbre Music, Citibank Card, B-YOND, NLX Event Services, D.A.S Audio, CSP Production, Food & Beverage Logistics, Bio-Air. The fifth type is participants and spectators who are at the event to be audience and they can be locals or tourists just to attend to the event. The last type is host community and it includes the Singapore Flyer, Grand Park Hotel, Harley Owners Group
Purpose of the Event
The event is to introduce more beer to Singaporeans, at the same time, spread the same kind of celebration tradition to us. Similarly, there might be quite a number of foreigners who migrate over to Singapore and misses beer festivals like Oktoberfest. At the same time, foreign brand of beer can test response at such festivals, once it has a demand, the brewery can sell their beer here without worries. Hence, this Beerfest Asia is much meaningful.
Conclusion
Overall, it is my first time to a beer festival and it is so much fun compared to what I expected. Though there is still room for improvement, in terms of its staging and its tentage style, I still had fun. However, just from photos I could tell that Oktoberfest was so much more fun. In my opinion, perhaps the organizer or Beerfest Asia could take this chance to promote local bands and also invite other mainstream bands to perform in order to draw crowds. Hopefully, next year’s Beerfest Asia will be more exciting and packed with interesting programs! Without saying, I believe I will be there at Beerfest Asia every year and I would pass this joy down to other friends!
