Brewery hosts town businesses to celebrate creative spirit

The first Made in Whitby Festival showcased the town’s businesses and local produce last week.

Whitby Brewery in East Cliff hosted two days of stalls, talks, demonstrations and live music in a celebration of Whitby’s creative spirit.

The event, funded by Anglo American and supported by the York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub, was organised by a collective of Whitby businesses. 

Darren Archibald, director of Whitby Sea Salt, said: “The idea for the Made in Whitby Festival came from conversations with local producers and manufacturers with a view to showcase their skills, ingenuity and entrepreneurship that runs alongside and supplements the already very successful tourism industry.

“The festival has been a great success for all involved, with both stall holders and festival goers happy and smiling. We had interest to be involved from many businesses but could only accommodate a small number within the courtyard of Whitby Brewery. We are looking into the possibility of increasing the numbers of stall holders and festival goers at the next event with the help of very passionate organisations and businesses.”

A variety of Whitby businesses took part in the festival, with some using the event to launch new products.

Vicky Bolton, Anglo American’s social programmes manager, said: “Anglo American wants to support local economic growth and connect people to opportunities, supporting the creation of new businesses and supporting existing businesses to expand, develop and innovate. Made in Whitby is a fantastic opportunity for businesses from the local area to showcase their world class products and increase awareness of their offering, and Anglo American is delighted to be supporting it.”

Harriet Stainton, business relationship manager at York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub, said: “Made in Whitby Festival has been a fantastic showcase of the town’s businesses, local produce and creativity. At the York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub, we connect businesses of all sizes to what they need to drive success and manage growth, so we were pleased to support the festival. It’s brought many businesses together and we look forward to working with them further to build on this success.”