Christopher BarrettLast year, independent Spanish promoter Last Tour successfully gained B Corp certification for its festivals including the 40,000-capacity Bilbao BBK Live. Access caught up with the company’s comms director Eva Castillo to find out how that accreditation has impacted the event this year.
Located in a stunning mountain setting on the fringes of bustling Bilboa city, Bilbao BBK Live is one of Europe’s leading festivals, regularly attracting both artists and attendees from far and wide. Among the more than 100 bands to perform across the festival’s 12 stages at the 11-13 July event will be Prodigy, Arcade Fire and Massive Attack.
“As a B Corp company, we have implemented a plan of measures to generate a positive social impact for society and the planet,” says Castillo. “The measures include a strict waste reduction and recycling system, the promotion of sustainable mobility, programmes to prevent sexist aggression and to support gender equality, the hiring of local teams, maximising the social and cultural impact of the festival locally by promoting free-to-attend concerts, making donations to projects supporting migrants, reforesting forests, and contributing to a food bank.”
Among the most apparent changes to the event’s look and feel for festivalgoers this year will be a change in aesthetic created by using natural resources to dress the stages and other structures.
“This year we have made several changes with the aim of integrating the festival structures into the natural space and turning the Kobetamendi mountain into the great headliner of the festival,” says Castillo. “In this sense, we have replaced all the stage canvases with branches.”
As part of a B Corp company, Castillo says the aim is to be consistent with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations member states: “We always seek to review our work processes with all our partners for constant improvement aligned with the goals set in the Agenda.”
The event has not been immune to the hike in supply chain costs felt by all in the industry, but Castillo and her team have been pleased to see a resurgence in ticket sales for this year’s event: “They are better. We are seeing a rise in newcomers buying tickets, especially among young people. Sales are also increasing in countries such as Italy and Portugal.”