Innovative fan experiences and new ways to eat and drink, drive a record-breaking weekend for Silverstone and Freemans Event Partners.
Racing fans embraced new immersive hospitality concepts, self-service bars, and food and drink from across the globe, as Freemans Event Partners (FEP) delivered its biggest public hospitality event to date.
Some 564,000 fans attended the Grand Prix held this year and Freemans Event Partners (FEP), the end-to-end partner behind some of the UK’s largest events, delivered new hospitality concepts, a fan-led shift to self-service, and record trading across multiple venues, all pointing to a wider change in how fans want to experience live events.
The standout success of the weekend was CARGO Global Eats, which became a must-visit destination. The concept combines premium food and drink with a social, accessible format. Its introduction at the Abbey area of the site, drove a 57% increase in Thursday evening trade in the area, compared with the same period last year. This made it the strongest Thursday performance in the event’s history, proving that when FEP designs a new way for fans to experience event dining, demand follows.
Elsewhere, working in partnership with Lando Norris, FEP delivered an expanded Stowe Landostand, which led to a 78% increase in revenue from the area compared to last year. At the same time, the Luffield Circuit of Flavours concept, developed in partnership with Silverstone, continued to drive dwell time and consumer spend, demonstrating that fans are actively seeking out FEP’s newest formats rather than defaulting to the familiar.
Fans also embraced self-service, with transactions up 54% year-on-year in the main stage area and spend per head increasing 31%. New self-serve Pimm’s and Guinness stations proved especially popular, reducing queues and enabling fans to pour a pint in just 45 seconds.
The results add to what is shaping up as a record-breaking summer for FEP and its portfolio of iconic venues and event partners, where detail is key, as fan appetite for premium, innovative and convenience-led hospitality continues to grow.
Fans flocked to new concepts like Cargo Global Eats and Circuit of Flavours for the entertainment, unique experiences, variety of street food, and signature drinks, all within a relaxed environment built for seamless service. Fan appetite for elevated experiences that enable them to feel closer to the action and which offer a clear point of difference from traditional hospitality, continues to grow. With our partners, we are able to meet that demand, build affinity and drive repeat visits, delivering better experiences for all time and time again.
Event delivery at this scale is difficult to replicate. It showcases the power of collaboration bringing together organisers, suppliers, hospitality teams, food operators, and brands to create fantastic experiences underpinned by the operational excellence that we are known for.
”
ENDS
Media enquiries
For further information, including interview requests and imagery, please contact Fleet Street.
About Freemans Event Partners
Established in 1975, Freemans Event Partners (FEP) is a family-owned, end-to-end events partner serving 50 million customers across more than 1,300 event days each year. FEP partners with some of the world’s most iconic venues and global brands, including Silverstone Circuit, Lord’s Cricket Ground, Wembley Stadium, DP World Tour, London Stadium, Scottish Gas Murrayfield and Royal Ascot, building on a heritage that began with a single fish and chip outlet at Silverstone.
Our event portfolio spans concerts, global sporting tournaments and landmark international events such as the Olympics, Ryder Cup and Paris 2024, through to seasonal light trails and cultural events; working with global rightsholders and brands including the LVMH Group, Visa, Coca-Cola, Mondelez and PepsiCo.
FEP enhances the fan experience at every touchpoint across food and beverage innovation, foodservice, premium experiences, FEP PAY, brand partnerships and CARGO Global Eats. From supply chain to guest experience, our end-to-end model manages every stage of the event, one partner, one accountable team, driving incremental growth and repeat visits, and unlocking greater value for our partners everywhere we go.
