Have you always wanted to run your own skate event but never known where to start?
Hosting events or competitions can be exhausting, but seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces when the day finally comes makes all the hard work worth while. And, with the uptake in skaters over the past few years, we think it’s about time more civilians stepped over the line and got involved in the industry side of things to keep up with demand – and what better way to start than running a local skate event!?
Once you have decided on your WHY, ie; what are your goals for this event? What do you hope to achieve? Are you fundraising? What is your target? Are you bringing people together? Who?) to make the organisational process a little less daunting, we have compiled our top 8 tips to help you get on your way to running your first ever skate event!
1. FIND A VENUE
Think about what type of space might work for the event you want to host. Will your event be inside or out? If outside, you’ll need to plan for unpredictable weather and research any council permits you may need. If it’s inside you’ll need to write up a pitch to the venue letting them know some essential information (when you’d like to host, how many people you expect, what is the entry fee and will this go to the skatepark or will you hire the park from them for the day instead?
2. SECURE BUDGET & FUNDING
It’s possible to run events with zero budget (we did it for years and often still do!) but it is a helllll of a lot easier if you can secure a headline sponsor to front some cash to help pay for event essentials like a photographer/filmer, guest refreshments etc. If you can’t raise money, look for local photographers who may be up for coming along for the day, and reach out to local food places to see if they’d like to sponsor your event. To compensate for their time/products, you could promote them on your social pages, include their logos or banners on printed or online promotion, or create some content for them that they can then post to their own socials.
3. ARRANGE PRIZES FROM SPONSORS
All jams need prizes! Start by asking your local skate shop if they’d like to support, reach out to local brands or business and offer to feature their logo or leaflets/flyers at your event. They could even have a pop up promo stall if space allows! Think about what things your guests might want from the day, what is the age range? Do your prizes match your audience? Think outside the box and contact service providers for free lessons or tickets you could give away, florists for big congratulatory bouquets, or ticket offices for gigs and events!
4. SPREAD THE WORD
Make a poster, post it to social media and ask your friends to do the same. Send it to skate accounts and publications to ask if they could share, print it out and give it to your local skate shop, hang it up across your chosen venue and also any nearby skateparks (be sure to collect these once the event is over! Let’s keep our planet tidy 🥰💚) contact local (or national!) news outlets, you never know who might be interested!
5. BOOK STAFF / VOLUNTEERS
No woman is an island! And you’ll need all the help you can get with your very first event – call on your brothers, sisters, friends and foes, (maybe not foes) to come and help you, you’ll need someone to monitor arrivals/ registrations, someone to capture the day for post event media, someone to be on the mic, someone giving our prizes etc. If you think about what you want to happen at each step, it will be easier to figure out what help you may need along the way. Which leads us onto our next tip….
6. PLAN EVENT SCHEDULE
How long will it take to set up? What time do you need to arrive? Do you need to do a risk assessment? Do you need to put up signs around the venue or mark out designated parking? What time to do the activities/comps start? When does the food arrive? When will prize giving be? Do you need to help tidy up before you leave?
7. ARRIVE EARLY TO DECORATE
Get there early! You’ll want to have a run through with your event team so that everybody knows where to be and when, and what they need to do when they are there. Be sure everything is set up and looking great before your start time – you’ll always get that one excited group arriving early so it helps to be prepared!
8. DON’T FORGET TO HAVE FUN
This SHOULD go without saying but we’re gonna say it anyway because you’ll be surprised how easy it is to get caught up in the whirlwind of event hosting. If you plan and prepare for your event and get on board an awesome team to help you, you will be able to kick back and let loose at the event too!
Let us know if these tips have inspired you to start planning your first event!
We’d love if if you could share this to get more skaters inspired to host some skate events this summer!
girlskateuk.com 