IMC Hawks Blog

Benson’s Mule Days Brings Home Southern Charm

Every year 60-70,000 people go to the small town of Benson, North Carolina. Why would this many people go to a town of only 3,569? For nothing other than Benson Mule Days! The event takes place at the end of September every year and includes rodeos, a mule pulling contest, arts and crafts, vendors, music, a parade that attracts 20,000 on its own, and more! Festival goers can be seen around Benson on their horses, and people from as far as Wilmington travel on horse back to celebrate the event.

It may seem like such a festival wouldn’t draw the crowds that it does, but Benson’s Mule Days has become one of the largest festivals in North Carolina. Travelers from Alaska, Germany, and California make their way to Johnston County in order to experience the small town, southern feel of this festival. Benson is the perfect place to hold a festival like this because it is so small and has a historical downtown area. When visitors walk through the aisles of arts and crafts and street vendors while hearing bluegrass music play in the background, they feel just as they should while in a small North Carolinian town. There is plenty for people of all ages to enjoy while experiencing southern hospitality.

North Carolina’s image is perfectly illustrated by Benson’s Mule Days. Those not from the south trying to get the experience of all that it has to offer need to look no further than Mule Days.

-Brie Golden, Micaela Fouhy, Will Cosden, Lindsey Baggett, Andrew Mayer

April 8, 2011

Great Grapes Wine, Arts & Food Festival

Nothing screams spring quite like the sunny weather, beautiful walks with trees in bloom, with a glass of wine in hand and live bands serenading the evening. Thanks to the Great Grapes Wine, Arts & Food Festival, you can experience all of these, and much, much more.
G.G.A.F.F is home to casual wine tasting with over a hundred different varieties of wines available for tasting. Souvenir tasting glasses are available for purchase upon entering the festival, and once in hand, you are free to stroll from tent to tent and table to table for tasting and sampling the rich heritage of many North Carolina vineyards. The atmosphere is created for one to relax in the beautiful green setting of the Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Regency Park (Cary, NC).

This particular festival takes place April 16th, 11am-7pm.
Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets. This way, all may settle in on the lawn and enjoy LIVE music on the Main Stage . Chefs are also in attendance, offering expert advice, tips and tricks for your next night in the kitchen! There is even a kids activity area where children can come play, listen to music, and learn about art and other cultural intrigues.

Other events during the day include grape stomping, art showcases, and tastings-wine and food pairing.

Can’t make it to Cary next week? No worries! The G.G.A.F.F is in Reston, VA (April 30th 12pm-6pm) Cockeysville, MD. (June 11/12 12p-6pm), Reston, VA (September 10/11) and Charlotte, NC (October 1st)
More information can be found on the festivals website:
Uncork the Fun!

-Maxann Keller

April 7, 2011

The North Carolina Seafood Festival

The North Carolina Seafood Festival is Carteret County’s annual seafood celebration and the second largest festival in North Carolina. On the waterfront of downtown Morehead City, a crowd of 200,000 plus people flock towards the smell of fresh, local seafood and the arts and crafts of various vendors every year.

The festival was founded in 1987 and is known to be Carteret County’s premier event each year. The festival takes place the “First Weekend in October” every year. The 3-day long celebration impacts the community’s economy by nearly 32 million dollars. People from all over the state and the east coast come to sample North Carolina’s greatest, as well as tastiest natural resource – seafood!

The Seafood Festival has been around for almost 25 years now and a lot has changed in society as time has passed. Therefore, the festival itself had to make some changes to keep up with the times. Set up in a parking lot across from a Morehead City landmark, The Sanitary Restaurant, is a stage that hosts several bands and artists as they play their music for the festival attendees. Next to the stage is a large digital screen. Displayed on the screen are text and picture messages that people send to the provided phone number. These texts consist of anything from who their favorite college sports team is to how much they loved the cajun shrimp pita pocket at the St. Egbert’s booth at the festival. This allows the crowd to interact with the rest of the surrounding audience. Although the Seafood Festival purpose may be to primarily provide shrimp, oysters, crab, gator bites, funnel cakes, corn dogs, etc., does not mean that it is not tuned in with the current technology outside from deep fryers and broilers.

April 6, 2011

IMC and Blueberries and Burgaw, Oh My!

North Carolina is a diverse state with many commodities and much history to celebrate. The North Carolina Blueberry Festival is one of the numerous state revels that will hold its 8^th annual festival on June 18, 2011. It takes place in Historic Downtown Burgaw, just 30 miles from Wilmington, where the first cultivated blueberry production in North Carolina began in the 1930’s. Pender County now ranks second in the state for blueberry production, showing their love for blueberries through the annual festival.

Since the festival began in 2004, Burgaw has quickly branded itself as the “Blueberry Town” making the festival its leading event. Although Burgaw is home to a small population of 4,000, the festival draws in more than 30,000 visitors. Aside from blueberries, the festival also offers entertainment, artisans, food vendors, and more. In order to attract such a large crowd, the festival relies on its website and Facebook page. Both media outlets are used to inform the public and to facilitate communication. The Facebook page also lists contact information on how to purchase available promotional items to market the event that include, limited edition signed and numbered print by Ivey Hayes, t-shirts, sweatshirts, blueberry recipe cookbooks, hats, visors, and tote gags.

The organization has also strategically acquired key sponsors such as WECT Wilmington 6 and Star News Media, two major news outlets that reach Wilmington and the surrounding areas. To generate further coverage and recognition of the event, the association sponsors a Blueberry 5k Run and a Blueberry Open Golf Tournament. One of the biggest draws to the festival is the Essay Scholarship which has awarded over $100,000 since 2004. The festival provides scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $4,000 each year, which can be used toward tuition, fees, or books.

This small Southern town has taken big strides towards becoming its own recognizable brand. As their Facebook page states, “The Festival celebrates the historic, economic, and cultural significance of blueberries in the Southeastern region of North Carolina,” and through IMC, Burgaw is paving the way to become a significant and well known “Blueberry Town.”

NC Blueberry Festival Website, check it out!

-Katie Eagle, Deji Adeleke, Anna Kate Babnik,Tiffany Evans, & Carissa Niederkorn

April 5, 2011

The Azalea Fest is Back!

Live music playing in the background, the smell of fried food, and an oncoming parade of the Azalea Queen can only mean one thing; you’re at the Azalea Festival. Wilmington is the host of one of North Carolina’s largest festivals. Besides word of mouth, the Azalea Festival has a large presence on their website and social media sites. They capitalize on this by using their Twitter, Facebook, and also a blog. These social media outlets facilitate two way communication with their publics. They use IMC to interact with their customers and festival attendees. There are tons of events that take place during the week and mostly over the weekend like a cake tasting, 5K race, circus, and much more. The Azalea Festival adds value to the image of Wilmington; as soon as you enter the city you see a sign that says “Welcome to Wilmington, Home of the Azalea Festival”. It takes place in the historic part of downtown Wilmington and has been a long time tradition since 1948. The residents of Wilmington as well as visitors from around the state have attended the festival for the past sixty three years. According to the Azalea Festivals’ official website, “More than 200,000 people attend the two-day weekend street fair”. They also say, “It has been estimated that the festival weekend activities contribute more than $5 million to the economy of Wilmington and the coastal Carolina area“. Support your local Wilmington economy and check out this years’ 63^rd annual Azalea Festival. Visit their website for times and events http://www.ncazaleafestival.org/default.aspx.