FEO-ON-THE-AIR

In this episode of FEO on the Air-Festivals Helping Festivals SOS (Share Our Stories)- hosted by Marnie Lapierre, we are joined by Tracy Van Kalsbeek from Kitchener Waterloo Oktoberfest. Kitchener Waterloo Oktoberfest is entering it's 57th year of operation and over the years, many changes have been made to keep the festival relevant and to cater to changing demographics. Strategic partnerships ar...

In this episode of FEO on the Air-Supplier Spotlight- hosted by FEO Marketing and Communications Manager Jay Nijhuis, we are joined by Patrice Guy and Dustin Hadley from NorthStar Fireworks Entertainment Inc. With the May 2-4 weekend and Canada Day rapidly approaching, as well as, the US Tariffs stirring up a swell of Canadian Pride, it is more important than ever that festival and event planners...

In this episode of FEO on the Air-Masterclass- hosted by FEO CEO Dave MacNeil, we are joined by Darren Winger from the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming along with a panel of special guests including Kelly O'Rourke from the Town of Amherstburg, Mark Perrin from PM Entertainment, Pam Mulholland from Tourism Hamilton and Kristyn Gelfand of Uma Nota Culture. Today's conversation is about the im...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Richard Anderson from Smart Serve Ontario and Hassel Aviles Executive Director of Not 9-5 to talk about the exciting new initiative that was launched on May 9, 2024. Smart Serve Cares launched a Workplace Mental Health portal in partnership with Not 9-5 and Greenshield Health specifically targeting the Hospitality Sector and anyone with a Smart Se...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Scott Palko, Festival Director of the Revelree Music Festival. The 2023 event takes place July 21 & 22 at Canatara Park in Sarnia. Scott talks to us about this years event, the challenges he and her team faced, and changes to the event because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The Revelree Music Festival has a goal to be more than just artists on a stage...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Jeanetty Jumah, Folklore Festival Coordinator and President of the Thunder Bay Multicultural Association. The 2023 event was the 50th annual and took place (May 6-7, 2023))and Jeanetty talks to us us all about this years event, the challenges she and her team faced, and changes to the event because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. “Travel the World in 48...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Chelsey Lokstet, Event Coordinator for the Thunder Bay Busker Festival. The 2023 event is coming (July 29-30, 2023))and Chelsey takes time out of her busy schedule to tell us all about this years event, the challenges she and her team face, and changes to the event because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Originally called the Bay & Algoma Buskers Festiv...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Kathleen Douglass, Board Advisor for the Carabram Multicultural Festival in Brampton. The 2023 event is coming up fast (July 7-9, 2023))and Kathleen takes time out of her busy schedule to tell us all about this years event, the challenges she and her team face, and changes to the event because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Carabram is an annual multic...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Tracy Murray from the Saugeen Memorial Hospital Foundation to talk about the Gran Fondo Lake Huron presented by Bruce Power & Suppliers. The 2023 event is coming up fast (Sunday, August 20))and Tracy takes time out of her busy schedule to tell us all about this years event, the challenges she and her team face, and changes to the event because of...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Myles Rusak the CEO of Sound of Music Festival in Burlington. The 2023 Festival is just 3 weeks away (June 15-18)and Myles takes time out of his busy schedule to tell us all about this years event, the challenges he and his team face, struggles with Government funding and the slow climb back from 2 years of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The Sound of Musi...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Rob Gray from Creative Club Global. For those who attended the FEO Conference in Richmond Hill, you will remember that Rob was the Hospitality Suite sponsor and built the lounge furniture and bar area out of Lego Blocks. Creative Club is an educational organization committed to making learning come alive for students in elementary and middle schoo...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Naomi Campbell who is the Artistic Director of the Luminato Festival in Toronto. Luminato Festival Toronto is an international arts festival dedicated to performance, media and visual arts, and programming that cuts across traditional artform boundaries. Luminato works closely with Canadian artists to support the development and creation of distin...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by David D'Cruz who is the President of Spotlight AV Industries (SAVI). SAVI provides clients with audio and video production services and rental solutions in and around Toronto. Putting your event in the spotlight is their goal. They accomplish this by helping you design a unique, one of a kind event. Their team of event producers makes your vision...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Matt Sobhy who is the Sales Director for XEvents. This is the first time we've spoken with Matt since he and his team set up the amazing experiences for our FEO Awards Gala evening in Richmond Hill. XEvents also created the look and feel for the Awards Gala the year before at our conference in the London Convention Centre. XEvents is a proud FEO M...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Tala Kassar who is the VP of Business Development for Digiteau AVX Event Solutions Ltd. This is the first time we've spoken with Tala since she presented at our annual conference this past February in Richmond Hill and since Digiteau provided all of the digital display screens set up all around the hotel and conference space. Digiteau is a brand n...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Adam Key from Impact Canopies Canada. This is the first time we've spoken with Adam since he hosted an information booth in the Marketplace at our annual conference this past February in Richmond Hill. Impact Canopy has been a long time supporter and member of FEO. Adam and Dave chat about the continued need for the product Impact Canopy makes dur...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Judy Haber from Performance Sponsorship Group. This is the first time we've spoken with Judy since her highly rated presentations at our annual conference this past February in Richmond Hill. We get caught up on what has been happening in her world of corporate sponsorship since the pandemic hit, and talk about what has changed in the last 40-50 d...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Lisa LaVecchia, President and CEO of Destination Ontario. Lisa speaks about the plan moving forward for when the Province does eventually re-open for business and tourism. The health and safety of all Ontarian's continues to be the number one priority for Destination Ontario, and they have created a valuable three-step plan so that when the time i...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by the Hon. Lisa MacLeod, Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and Beth Potter, President and CEO of TIAO. Minister MacLeod speaks about the Provincial response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the plans moving forward with Government assistance for festival and event organizers in need of help. Beth Potter speaks about the role TI...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Minto Schneider from Explore Waterloo Region. Minto and Dave discuss the role that Explore Waterloo Region plays in helping to market Festivals and Events in the Waterloo Region., and how event organizers need to better work with their DMO and RTO to grow and market their event. Minto also talked about the new MAT tax being collected from Hotels,...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Jeff Clarmo from Northstar Fireworks Jeff and Dave discuss the history of Northstar Fireworks in the Pyro Technics industry, the types of shows they have done in the past, the need to book your festival or event early and the estimated cost of running a fireworks show. Jeff also made a huge announcement that Northstar Fireworks is introducing Dron...

The deadline for Celebrate Ontario Grant applications is rapidly approaching! You have until Tuesday, January 21, 2020, at 5:00 pm to submit. We are sure there are many questions about how you determine the amount you can request, what the grant money can be used for and the best way to fill out the forms? We brought Paul Samson from the Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism, and Culture Industries...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Jason Shim from Pathways to Education Canada. Jason and Dave discuss the mission statement of Pathways to Education Canada which is to "make Canada a country where all youth have an equal opportunity to graduate from high school and build the foundation for their future success". He talks about his digital background coming from a very small compa...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Marie Zimmerman from the Hillside Community Festival in Guelph. Marie and Dave discuss the fact that Hillside Festival was declared carbon Neutral this past September and what it takes for a festival or event to achieve that incredible status. They also spent some time talking about her session "Going Carbon Neutral? Well, Get Going!" coming up at...

In this episode of FEO on the Air we are joined by Andrea Johnston and Katie Pergau from the Centre for Applied Human Dynamics The ladies and Dave discuss the importance of volunteers to the festival and event industry and the need to ensure each volunteer is assigned tasks that best represent their interests. This makes for happy volunteers that return year after year. They also spent some time t...