Woolorama committee heartened by outpouring of support after 50th event cancelled due to COVID restrictions

Wagin Woolorama organisers have been blown away by the support from WA’s State’s agriculture community after having to cancel their 50th celebration just 10 days out from the event, with president Paul Powell describing the past week as “surreal”. In the space of 24 hours, organisers of the State’s biggest sheep show — which attracts about 20,000 people through the gates in the second Friday and Saturday of March each year — went from planning to scratching the big soiree because of the State Government’s Level 2 COVID restrictions. Mr Powell said it had been a “week filled with disappointment” after the show was called off on Tuesday afternoon, but said the team had been humbled by the outpouring of support and “heartfelt condolences” from exhibitors, volunteers and sponsors. “It has been a surreal week. . .there has been a lot of support and messages, and now we are moving our attention to refunds and planning next year’s event,” he said. “I just want to thank everyone for their support and for being so good about it. “We are fairly organised for next year, now, so we are looking onwards and upwards. . . that is all we can do.” Mr Powell said it was impossible to know how much money the last-minute cancellation had cost Woolorama, saying the group would probably would not know the true extent until the end of the financial year. Woolorama event manager Amy Kippin said the group would seek financial support through either the State Government’s Level 2 COVID-19 Business Assistance Package or its Getting the Show Back on the Road program. The Woolorama committee meet this week to determine which package it will apply for and how to go about it. “Being able to access financial support is really important for the financial viability of the organisation, and even just being able to get a show up and running for next year as well,” Ms Kippin said. “We are refunding all sponsorship, all trade fair fees, all competitor fees. . . it is a huge cost to our organisation. “We really feel for the likes of hire companies and exhibitors that have spent a lot of money preparing equipment and livestock during the past few months.” The $10 million Getting the Show Back on the Road package aims to reduce the risk of running ticketed events in WA, with financial support for lost ticket revenue or registration fees for events cancelled from February 5 onwards. It provides three tiers of support to cover between 30 and 75 per cent of gross ticketing for events cancelled due to COVID-19 directions with a cap of $150,000. The $72m, Level 2 COVID-19 Business Assistance Package includes different grants depending on how many staff they employ with small businesses — with six to 19 employees — eligible for up to $20,000. Ms Kippin said the committee was determined to honour its refund policy to give exhibitors, sponsors and those connected with the show the “confidence to get back involved”. “We made the decision ahead of last year’s event. . . when a lot of large events weren’t happening due to coming out of level three restrictions. We wanted to give people confidence to come in and enjoy the show, and be part of the show,” she said. “It was something we wanted to carry through this year because the pandemic is now over. “The events industry just keeps on getting knock after knock.” Ms Kippin said she wanted to people know that the committee’s “hand was forced” to cancel the event when the event fell under the State Government’s “public outdoor events” category, with a 500 person limit. The cancellation of Woolorama sparked anger among some farmers, who said it was unfair entertainment venues and major stadiums could operate with a 50 per cent capacity limit, which for Optus Stadium was 30,000 people. “There was never a point where it was too hard. . . we have proved we are an organisation that provides leadership and puts our money where our mouth is,” Ms Kippin said. “The mood has been pretty flat, we are also proud to say that it was never going to be ‘too hard’, we have left no stone unturned to get this show off the ground. “We knew we could hold a COVID-safe show, but the conditions laid on us just meant that we could not run. “We have more than 1000 people on the ground before the gates even open.” Ms Kippin said the committee would aim to support its exhibitors through its Facebook page, by sharing special any posts by exhibitors mentioning Woolorama specials or promotions.