Ostend (The Brussels Morning Newspaper): The W-Festival has closed due to financial troubles, including low ticket sales and its ticket provider’s bankruptcy angering fans who feel deceived by the last-minute cancellation.
The W-Festival a beloved music and arts festival has said it’s closing down. Even though they tried really hard to keep the festival going they couldn’t fix some big money problems. They had to make this choice right before the festival was supposed to start.It has been said that it’s a sad ending for both the organizers and the fans who were excited for another event. The festival’s team tried really hard to keep the company going by doing different things over the years. But the problems were just too big so they had to cancel the upcoming event. They mentioned that it’s the end of a special time for W-Festival which was a big part of the cultural calendar.
What led to the closure of the W-festival and its financial issues?
The company running the festival Wave To Synth in Haaltert mentioned they didn’t sell enough tickets on their website. They said the ticket provider Festicket went broke in 2022 and the tough corona years didn’t help their money situation. They tried hard for years but couldn’t keep the company going. Peter Craeymeersch from the Ostend tourist office was surprised to hear the news. He said they were told 15,000 tickets were already sold which is a lot. It’s a pity they didn’t cancel the event sooner to plan something else. Now people might cancel their hotel bookings for that weekend too.
Ann Ronse seems upset because she bought a combo ticket which usually gives access to different things. When a company shuts down it affects customers who bought such tickets. Her complaint suggests that the company knew about the closure before telling everyone. This could make customers feel unhappy because they spent money trusting the company. If they weren’t told early they might feel tricked especially if they can’t use the services or events from the ticket due to the closure.
It’s still unclear if people who already bought tickets will get money back. Ann Ronse from Ghent bought a combo ticket and feels surprised by this news. She mentioned getting calls to buy drink vouchers recently and some people did so they lost even more money. She feels really upset and deceived saying they knew about the closure weeks ago but didn’t tell anyone.
