ROYAL OAK, Mich. – April 26, 2010 – Ford and its Detroit Region, in partnership with the Southeast Michigan Ford Dealers, has entered the summer activities arena as Title Sponsor of the 13th annual Arts, Beats & Eats festival. L. Brooks Patterson, Arts, Beats & Eats festival founder, today announced that the region’s largest Labor Day weekend celebration now is to be known as Ford Arts Beats & Eats presented by Citizens Bank.
Also joining Ford Arts, Beats & Eats is Citizens Bank, which has signed on as Presenting Sponsor. The Festival will take place in downtown Royal Oak for four days, Sept. 3 through Sept. 6, 2010, and again will deliver an eclectic music lineup, nationally recognized juried fine arts show and the finest restaurants in metro Detroit, all in a family friendly atmosphere.
“We are proud that our dealers are able to support the community by becoming title sponsor of Ford Arts, Beats & Eats,” said Doug North, owner of North Brothers Ford and chairman of the Southeast Michigan Ford Dealer Advertising Fund. “Not only is it an investment in the communities we serve, but it is also a perfect opportunity to showcase our products.”
Kevin Giacomini, Ford Great Lakes Regional Marketing Manager, added, “Ford Arts, Beats & Eats is an excellent venue to present our entire Ford lineup including the all-new Fiesta, 2011 Edge and Mustang. Our ‘Drive One’ display property will offer a variety of interactive activities that will entertain and inform festival attendees. We are also planning a consumer drive event, featuring the 2011 Fiesta. Additionally, Fiesta will be the sponsor of the festival’s Alternative Music Stage.”
Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson explained, “We continue to stage this highly successful and much anticipated festival as a partnership between civic, community and corporate entities, as a means of supporting the region’s quality of life without utilizing Oakland County taxpayers’ funding.”
Cathy Nash, Citizens’ president and CEO, said, “We are excited to be a part of the premier festival in Oakland County. The event brings tremendous excitement to the region over Labor Day weekend, but what’s truly special is the lasting affect it has on the community. We look for ways to invest in the communities we serve, and this sponsorship is a great fit for us. The festival’s commitment to local charities, such as hunger relief, and the Arts allow us to show our support in a big way.”
NEW WEB SITE FOR ARTSBEATSEATS.COM
Visitors to the festival website, artsbeatseats.com, will notice it has a whole new look and feel this year, the work of Royal Oak-based Skidmore Studio. Skidmore provided its services to conceptualize, design and build the site as part of its sponsorship support. The new site will be very user and patron friendly, with regular Twitter updates posted and easy access to “what’s hot.” It will feature the ability to purchase tickets in advance and provide up-to-the minute, key information such as music lineups by stage, as well as parking options.
Tim Smith, Skidmore’s president and CEO, noted, “Web sites today are the information portal for savvy consumers, in this case Ford Arts, Beats & Eats visitors. With smart phones, mobile devices, social media and expectations, to have information instantaneously at the visitors fingertips, Arts, Beats & Eats needed a site that was cutting edge. We are very pleased to donate our creative and technical talent and to ensure that artsbeatseats.com would be all that and more.”
CHARITY PARTNERS
This year, 15 local Royal Oak charitable and civic entities will benefit from the festival, in return for operating festival beverage stands. These include the Royal Oak Optimists, Royal Oak Public Library and the Royal Oak Historical Society. (A complete list of organizations is also provided). These local organizations will join twelve other regional charities that will be sharing in gate proceeds, and combined, are projected to receive more than $200,000 from Ford Arts, Beats & Eats.
Jim Ellison, mayor of the City of Royal Oak, commented, “This is just one of the ways that Ford Arts, Beats & Eats is extending partnerships into the Royal Oak community. We applaud the fact that Royal Oak will have its signature on the festival including today’s positive announcement. Royal Oak is honored to play host to such an outstanding celebration.”
SOARING EAGLE CASINO & MADE IN DETROIT ALSO RETURN
Also being announced today is the return of the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mt. Pleasant as exclusive Casino Sponsor. In addition to critical funding, the Casino partners with the Ziibiwing Center of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe to provide a beautiful display of Native American artwork.
Kid Rock’s Made in Detroit clothing line also has re-signed and will again sponsor an entertainment stage as well as set up tents to display one of Detroit’s most popular summer fashion lines.
VINCE & JOE’S BRINGS IN GREAT TASTE & INTERNATIONAL VILLAGE
Ford Arts, Beats & Eats will also be made possible with another new sponsor addition: Vince & Joe’s Gourmet Market, which has two metro area locations – one in Clinton Township and the other, Shelby Township. The market will also sponsor an international village complete with ethnic themed restaurants and a stage dedicated to cooking demonstrations throughout the weekend.
The Market’s co-owner Vince Vitale explained, “The ‘Eats’ is one of the tastiest parts of the festival. We are thrilled to step up as a sponsor this year. Visitors to the festival make a point of seeking out the wonderful variety of local, ethnic and international foods and we wanted to demonstrate our support.”
FESTIVAL PROGRAMMING IS SURGING
The Fine Art Fair just hit its application deadline and to date has more than 400 applications for the juried fine art fair, already doubling last year’s application pool. In regard to cuisine, 43 other restaurants in addition to Vince & Joe’s have already signed up for the festival, leaving the festival just eight spaces short of a food sell-out. And, the music development is also progressing as the festival announced that it will have 174 local bands perform at the event, which will be selected by a new music committee and application process.
HISTORIC SPONSORS ALSO RETURN
Sponsors who have also committed at this point to Ford Arts, Beats & Eats include Pepsi, Budweiser, Michigan Lottery, ITC, HealthPlus of Michigan, Comcast, MetroPCS, and Trenton Ice Cream Shoppe.
For additional information, visit www.artsbeatseats.com or call 248-334-4600.
