Entertainment partnerships specialist Brand & Deliver has been appointed by Dreamland Margate, the UK’s oldest amusement park, to devise and manage a promotional campaign based on seasonal sponsorship and awareness-driving brand partnerships.
Dreamland Margate, which re-opened to the public in June 2015, is keen to drive nationwide brand awareness, engage customers and increase footfall.
Dreamland was one of the UK’s best-loved amusement parks and, at one time, a UK top ten visitor attraction. With 16-acres, the park included a zoo, miniature railway, 2,200 seat purpose-built Cinema, cafés, restaurants, bars, retail and a 2,000-capacity ballroom playing host to The Who, The Yardbirds, the Rolling Stones, T. Rex and Hawkwind to name but a few.
Considered to be the oldest-surviving amusement park in Great Britain, the site of Dreamland (as it was re-named in 1920) dates back to the British railway boom of the early 1860s when, in its original form, the ‘Hall by the Sea’ was operated by famous circus impresario, ‘Lord’ George Sanger.
In 2003, plans to close the park and build housing on the site triggered a ‘Save Dreamland’ campaign and the creation of The Dreamland Trust, which worked with partners to secure £18m public funding to restore Dreamland and its jewels: the Grade II*-listed Scenic Railway, Grade II*-listed cinema complex and Grade II-listed menagerie cages.
Brand & Deliver will work with a small number of highly focused brand partners, offering Dreamland prize packages to support the summer holiday period. B&D’s in-house brand matcher software, Coporor, will identify initial brand targets quickly and efficiently, followed by a direct and tailored approach to develop partnership agreements. The team will also work to secure sponsors across the three Dreamland seasonal themes: Summer, Screamland (Halloween) and The Frosted Fairground.
“Dreamland is the UK’s original pleasure park, packed with beautifully restored and retrofitted rides from the Golden Age of British seaside holidays”, said B&D’s Head of Entertainment Partnerships Richard Barnes. “We will be targeting a select number of brands for highly focused partnerships running over the entire summer period.”
Katie Lipington, Marketing and Sponsorship Manager at Dreamland Margate, said: “Dreamland is one of the South East’s best kept secrets, but as we approach our one-year anniversary, the time has come to grow awareness nationwide. We’re looking forward to working with brands that can help us spread the word about Dreamland’s unique seaside magic and make it a go-to destination for old-fashioned thrill seekers everywhere.”
