The Hop Farm Festival was one of Kent’s most high profile casualties of the economic downturn earlier this year.

Launched by Vince Power in 2008, it boasted a no sponsorship, no branding mantra, in contrast to other commercialised music festivals such as V and Reading, and attracted top artists including Prince, the Eagles, Bob Dylan and Morrissey.

The sixth event was due to take place last weekend at the Hop Farm, near Paddock Wood, but in May Mr Power announced that it was being cancelled due to the poor economic climate.

He said: “Despite fighting hard, circumstances are such that, based on poor ticket sales and the forecast selling rate, substantial losses would be made.”

Its demise means that Lounge on the Farm at Canterbury’s Merton Farm is now Kent’s longest running summer festival, an achievement its founders are justly proud of.

Victoria Hazell, who started it with Sean Baker in 2006, said: “It’s not been easy. We started the same year that Electric Gardens started at Mount Ephraim, then we had Zoo8 at Port Lympne and the Hop Farm Festival. We always had someone else in the county going after the same market. But the secret is to put locals first.

“Our main aim was to try and be an economic and cultural boost for Kent. Not all the traders are from Kent but if a food trader is outside it is in the South East and they have to purchase produce within 20 miles of Canterbury.”

But despite the strong competition offered by the Hop Farm Festival, the pair, who both live in the city, say they were disappointed by its demise.

Ms Hazell said: “Being able to see the artists that Vince booked in Kent was great. It is never good to see the end of another festival.”

Lounge on the Farm was almost a victim of its own success, however, after the 2011 event took a more commercial approach with headline acts including the Streets, Ellie Goulding and Example, attracting a new younger audience but alienating many of its regular supporters.

Victoria said: “We have always aimed at the 25-plus market and their children but in 2011 the programming was younger and it changed the event.

“We had 4,000 new followers and a healthy bottom line but not a healthy event. Attracting 16 to 19-year-olds brings its own problems. It was not all bad but not what we created Lounge to be.”

The pair have purposely returned to the festival’s roots this year with an eclectic range of headliners – American blues singer Seasick Steve, dance group Soul II Soul and Brit Award nominee Jessie Ware, Mr Baker said: “The Lounge line-up should be left-field, a bit quirky, to attract lots of different people.”

In their bid to attract a wide range of festival-goers, they have reduced the ticket prices every year since 2011, with this year’s adult weekend pass costing £100.

Ms Hazell said: “It is very difficult for people out there, so we purposely went against inflation and charged what we thought people could afford to pay.”

Lounge on the Farm is at Merton Farm, Canterbury, from Friday, July 26 to Sunday, July 28. Adult weekend tickets cost £100, under-13s go free.

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