Grassroots venues are the start of the live music ecosystem and provide the first opportunities to artists in their touring career. Venues such as King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut in Glasgow, Sneaky Pete’s in Edinburgh and Thekla in Bristol have all seen artist such as Oasis, Beth Orton and Ash, amongst others play their hearts out to music fans keen to discover their next new favourite band. But for the managers of these venues, it’s not all the glamour of meeting and watching bands perform every night. Instead, grassroots venues up and down the country are struggling to make ends meet and operate with minimal staff. They are managing everything from booking bands and marketing shows, to stocking bars and unblocking toilets! Yet, despite the difficulties they face including rising business rates, closure of venues due to new properties being built and noise complaints, these venues continue to put their heart and soul into providing live shows for music fans each night, as well as making it as comfortable and enjoyable for bands to play.
We at TicketWeb recognise and applaud the hard work individuals behind running these venues and in conjunction with the Music Venue Trust have created a special ticketing package to help make ticketing and marketing as easy as possible. The exclusive TicketWeb package gives clients access to our Backline platform, designed in conjunction with venue managers to provide an easy to use and intuitive system for selling tickets. Access to reporting and event set-up on any device means you can set up your events wherever you are and access to TicketWeb marketing support gives your events additional reach and promotion. On top of this exclusive clients are able to utilise the free PRS management function as well as a Maintain and Sustain Fund ensuring revenue generated is invested directly back into the venue.
Along with participating in MVT’s regional meetings, TicketWeb is the headline sponsor for Venues Day. Andrew Parsons, MD of Ticketmaster and TicketWeb, said: “It is imperative that grassroots music venues thrive in big cities and regional areas across the UK, for artists and fans alike. This is why TicketWeb is proud to be the major partner for the 2018 MVT events in Manchester and Glasgow, bringing together the local experts for these important venues to share their needs and concerns with one another. These meetings will culminate in Venues Day, of which we are proud to be headline sponsor third year running. Bringing this community together in the one room ensures the best fight for the future of the grassroots industry.Ticketmaster and TicketWeb’s partnership with MVT over the years has allowed us to help protect and progress the interests of grassroots music venues across the UK, and we are proud to continue this mission together.”
For more information about TicketWeb Backline and the Music Venue Trust offer visit here.
