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Fast Facts
ABOUT THE LOWCOUNTRY OYSTER FESTIVAL: The Oyster Festival is a two-day tribute to the mighty mollusk so many of us know and love. It is little wonder that the Oyster Festival has been the highlight of Charleston’s “January-doldrums” for the past 26 years. And for 20 consecutive years, the Lowcountry Oyster Festival has been named one of the “top 20 events in the southeast” by the Southeastern Tourism Society. MAIN EVENT LOCATION: Since 1991 the Greater Charleston Restaurant Association has hosted the Lowcountry Oyster Festival’s Main Event on the grounds of historic Boone Hall Plantation. Located on 700+acres, just north of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, Boone Hall is one of America’s oldest working plantations. It is a flexible venue which can comfortably accommodate groups from 30 to 15,000. The Oyster Festival uses multiple tents and a permanent stage on the plantation’s spacious back lawn… and acres of parking on the polo fields.
OYSTER RECIPE CONTEST: Date TBD. Festival’s Oyster Recipe Competition kicks off the festivities with high energy rivalry. With oysters as the star ingredient the contest pits some of Charleston’s finest chefs head-to-head in a culinary battle. This contest will take place at the Culinary Institute of Charleston, Palmer Campus. Sunday, January 31st… An oyster-lover’s dream … It’s early on a cold Sunday morning and two gigantic tractor trailers filled with 65,000 pounds of oysters roll onto the back lawn of Boone Hall Plantation... the prelude to the Lowcountry Oyster Festival. Highlights of Sunday’s “rain or shine” Main Event include the legendary “Oyster Shucking & Eating Contest,” selection of domestic and imported beers, entertainment and a Kids Corner (complete with pony rides and jump castles). GCRA SPONSOR: The Greater Charleston Restaurant Association represents the largest private sector employer in the tri-county area. The association serves as the voice of the Charleston Area food service industry on government and public relations issues. Annual fundraising events like the Taste of Charleston and Lowcountry Oyster Festival, both sponsored by the GCRA, enable them to give back to the community. To date, the GCRA has donated more than $1,000,000 to the Ronald McDonald House, Hollings Cancer Center, and Charleston County Schools Science Materials Resource Center. ’09 ATTENDANCE & VISITOR PROFILE: The annual Lowcountry Oyster Festival hosts more than 11,000 guests from the tri-county communities. The Festival also welcomed visitors from the drive market cities of: Columbia, Greenville, Spartanburg, Charlotte, Raleigh, Asheville, Atlanta and Savannah and Knoxville, TN. The “Profile of Visitors & Visitor Assessment” (2008) performed by the College of Charleston Department of Hospitality & Tourism provided the following demographic profile of the Lowcountry Oyster Festival patrons:
OYSTER FEST TICKETS & BUCKETS: Advance tickets for the Festival’s Oyster Recipe Competiton and Sunday’s Main Event can be purchased for $10.00 each on the GCRA website closer to the event. Tickets can be purchased on the day of the event for $12.00 (children under 10 are free). Oysters are sold by the bucket (aproximately 3 – 4 dozen @ $8) and served with cocktail sauce and crackers. Festival guests are encouraged to bring their own oyster knives and gloves or they can purchase them at the event. No pets or coolers are allowed. *The Lowcountry Oyster Festival is a “rain or shine” event. The purchase price of all tickets is non-refundable. SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Sponsors will be able to position their products and services in front of thousands of potential customers in the Lowcountry Oyster Festival’s pre-marketing and promotional materials as well as early public relations efforts. The Lowcountry Oyster Festival also gives sponsors an excellent opportunity to spend one-on-one, quality time with prospects and customers during the event.
*Note: The Lowcountry Oyster Festival is a “rain or shine” event. Sponsorship dollars, although tax-deductible are non-refundable. MEDIA EXPOSURE: The four major networks cover the Festival “live” each year; while Charleston Magazine and the Post & Courier have chronicled the event with feature articles and numerous pages of color photographs. With the expanded format, the GCRA has a vehicle to attract coverage from regional and national media outlets. Press Kits will be mailed to:
For information or a detailed Sponsor Package contact: Monique Semper Flynn, GCRA - Special Events Manager: (843.364.0971) or moniquesemperflynn.gcra@gmail.com |
CHARLESTON: FOOD IS A MAIN ATTRACTION: Last year Charleston, South Carolina attracted nearly 5.5 million visitors. When surveyed, visitors indicated that food tied with history as Charleston’s number one tourism attraction. Visitors and residents alike can’t help themselves when it comes to enjoying a fare that rivals any in the nation, especially when it’s served up with oysters, Lowcountry-style. 
SAVE THE DATE: The 27th annual Lowcountry Oyster Festival is scheduled for Sunday, January 31, 2010. 
• Median Income: $100,000 - $140,000 
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