Events recognizing Collingwood’s arts scene, fashion, music and shipping history earned top marks provincially last week.
Four Collingwood events were named as part of Festivals and Events Ontario’s Top 100 Festivals and Events at their annual conference that ran Feb. 24 to 26 in Kitchener. Sidelaunch Days, Trail Tunes, Collingwood Fashion Week and the Collingwood Art Crawl all earned a spot on the list this year.
“It’s wonderful,” said Sue Nicholson, general manager of the Collingwood BIA, who attended the conference.
Nicholson said the Collingwood BIA recognized the strength of the fashion sector downtown, which is what led to the advent of Collingwood Fashion Week. She said having the event has led to more collaboration between downtown fashion proprietors.
“With arts and culture, we recognized that it was a driver, so (the art crawl) was a way to really highlight another sector that really draws from our regional trading area and visitors,” she said.
The Top 100 Awards spotlight Ontario’s premier festivals and events, celebrating those that showcase innovation, uniqueness, economic contributions, and leadership. In the fall of 2024, community festivals and internationally recognized events were submitted for consideration and carefully evaluated by an independent panel of judges.
"We extend our heartfelt thanks to FEO for these honours and to our incredible community for your steadfast support,” said Mayor Yvonne Hamlin in a news release. “We are excited for the 2025 events season, as we continue to showcase Collingwood’s rich culture and passion for community.”
This year’s iteration of the four events will see Trail Tunes running on June 7, Sidelaunch Days running Aug. 8 to 10, Collingwood Fashion Week running Sept. 22 to 26 and the Collingwood Art Crawl running Sept. 26 to 27.
Nicholson said one of the benefits of being on the list, is being recognized provincially can be used as part of the marketing for the events moving forward, and can help with attracting sponsorships.
“I think there’s a real opportunity to build on tourism visitation, which is key to... dollars we can bring into the downtown,” said Nicholson.
For more information on Collingwood’s events throughout the year, click here.