Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival, held Sept. 21-22, 2019 at The Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, generated more than $3 million in economic impact for the local area. The festival partnered with Visit Franklin to engage with Franklin-based ChandlerThinks to conduct a thorough economic impact study.
The economic impact study was based on the average attendance of 16,624 for each day of the festival. ChandlerThinks utilized on-site interviews and post-event email surveys to gather information.
“We’ve intuitively known that the festival has a positive financial effect for the community and now we have hard data to substantiate this,” said Brandt Wood, Pilgrimage Festival co-founder. “It shows that our festival attendees don’t just come to Harlinsdale for the music. They stay in our hotels, eat at our restaurants and shop at our retail establishments…benefiting all of Franklin and Williamson County.
“Coming off of 2018 when we had to cancel due to weather, these results also reinforce the value of Pilgrimage to music lovers both in the area and outside the market,” he added.
The estimated overall impact of the festival was $3,023,177 with the major areas being:
- Hotels – $1,287,583
- Food – $850,656
- Entertainment – $448,161
- Shopping – $436,777
Approximately 44% stayed overnight during their visit, 38% ate at a Franklin restaurant and 33% visited downtown Franklin.
“We can’t thank Pilgrimage Festival enough for continuing to deliver an incredible event that not only attracts thousands of visitors, but puts Franklin, Tennessee on the world stage for yet another reason to visit,” said Ellie Westman Chin, CEO of Visit Franklin. “As this study shows, large numbers of people are hearing about Franklin because of Pilgrimage Festival, but exploring beyond The Park at Harlinsdale Farm because they love what they find in Franklin and throughout Williamson County.”
In addition to the economic impact, the festival also generated extensive local, national and even international media coverage. This coverage reached an audience of more than 563 million with a media value of more than $17 million, providing Franklin and Williamson County with invaluable exposure.
Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival celebrated its fifth anniversary in 2019. Details and advance ticket sales for the 2020 festival will be announced soon. For more information on the festival, visit www.pilgrimagefestival.com.
