Croydon Food & Music Festival – White Label Creative

"A truly amazing street festival that continues to grow beyond our expectations, increasing awareness of the area year on year. A big thank you to your events team who manage to deliver a fantastic event, yet again"

Peter Bagatti, SCBA Chairman

White Label has worked with the businesses in Croydon’s ‘South End ‘ community for more than a decade restoring its reputation as one of London’s most vibrant, culturally mixed evening economies.

Croydon’s ‘South End’ community was among the most impacted regions of the borough in the 2011 riots – as global media reported on incidents throughout the town, the area’s night economy declined – impacted by the perception that South Croydon was no longer a safe place to visit, particularly at night.

It felt like the perception of this key economic zone – renowned for its vibrant international cuisine and community cohesiveness – had been irreparably damaged.

Commissioned as part of the Mayor of London’s Riot Recovery plan to activate place-marketing in the town’s most impacted areas, White Label saw this area as key to transforming Croydon’s perception. Its value to the town’s economy, culture, community and quality of life is an integral part of Croyon’ss success as a place.

Our first task was stakeholder engagement, working to grow and support the South Croydon Business Association, which continues to thrive and support local businesses to this day. We rebranded the area as Croydon’s Restaurant Quarter and worked with the local authority to deliver a range of place-making improvements, with the place marketing focusing around a major ‘feel-good’ event to promote the area’s strengths, repositioning it as a safe inclusive leisure environment for residents, workers, and visitors.

The Croydon Food & Music Festival – launched in 2012 less than a year after the riots – proved an almost instant success with its dozens of street food and restaurant stalls, alfresco dining tables and three stages of live music. It subsequently became one of the town’s key annual events, growing in scale and popularity popular with each edition since its.

White Label continued to work with the South Croydon Business Association and sponsors to develop and grow the event until by 2023 it had become the biggest free event for foodies and music lovers in south London, attracting a record 14,000 people to enjoy alfresco dining on international cuisine served by more than 90 street food and drinks stalls along the borough’s now-famous Restaurant Quarter in South End.

The event remains one of the borough’s biggest free community and business events and became part of London’s Borough of Culture celebrations in 2023, bringing together more than people of all backgrounds and cultures to enjoy great food and music in the happy, carnival atmosphere which typifies Croydon’s popular ‘South End’ community.