Shambala Festival is making history by becoming the first employee-owned music festival in the United Kingdom. The annual four-day event, scheduled for August 27-30 in Northamptonshire, will feature performances by artists including Bob Vylan, Goat, and Los Bitchos.
Kambe Events, the company behind Shambala, announced on April 21 that it will transition to an Employee Ownership Trust. This groundbreaking move ensures that the festival's staff will have a direct stake in its future.
"All of us at Shambala have an emotional stake in what we have built over 25 years; now everyone has an ownership stake too," said co-founder and Managing Director Chris Johnson. "We would be nothing without our people, and they deserve to carry on the Shambala legacy as beneficiaries."
Johnson emphasized that the decision aligns with the festival's independent ethos, stating: "Shambala stands for independence and, in an increasingly commercialized festival scene, we simply could not sell to venture capitalists or the big promotion companies. While exploring alternative paths, we fell in love with the Employee Ownership model."
Dan Raffety, Head of Music and another co-founder, highlighted the broader implications of this shift: "It is patently clear that the current capitalist model is fundamentally broken. As a society, we must explore alternative models of ownership as a way through which the massive power and potential of capitalism can be focused on serving humanity and the planet at large."
The transition marks a significant milestone in the UK festival industry, positioning Shambala as a trailblazer in sustainable and equitable business practices within the entertainment sector.