Taste of Tawa International Food Festival Serves Up Success in Its First Year
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
Our very first Taste of Tawa International Food Festival has wrapped up, and the results are something our community can be proud of.
Held from 4 to 22 June 2026, the festival brought together 28 local eateries, showcasing food from 15 countries and inviting people to discover somewhere new to eat. The aim was simple: support our hospitality businesses during a traditionally quieter time of year while encouraging locals and visitors to experience the incredible range of food available right here in Tawa.
Looking back at the feedback, it's clear the festival achieved exactly that.
Strong Results for Local Businesses
One of the most encouraging outcomes came from the businesses themselves:
75% experienced an increase in customer numbers compared with a typical June.
Nearly 70% attracted customers who had never visited before.
More than 60% believed the festival generated additional income.
An impressive 94% rated the festival marketing as effective or very effective.
94% said they would definitely or probably take part again.
Many businesses told us that customers mentioned the festival as the reason they decided to visit for the first time. Some featured dishes proved so popular they've now earned a permanent place on their seasonal menu, while others noticed plenty of new faces walking through the door throughout the event.
Perhaps most pleasing of all, every participating business said the festival was easy to take part in.
A Massive Marketing Success
Taste of Tawa also delivered outstanding marketing results for both the festival and our local hospitality businesses.
Our social media channels experienced their strongest period of growth in recent years. During the campaign, our Facebook page gained more than 400 new followers, while Instagram grew by 45%. With a relatively modest investment in paid advertising, our Facebook and Instagram campaigns reached almost 37,000 people across the Wellington region.
The campaign began with two giveaway competitions that generated significant excitement and helped participating businesses gain hundreds of new followers. Many of the eateries also got behind the festival by sharing our posts, creating their own content and encouraging customers to get involved, extending the campaign's reach even further.
Beyond social media, the festival was promoted through posters, flyers, window stickers and colourful bunting displayed within many eateries. Early customer feedback shows these materials were highly effective, with almost half of respondents recalling the festival through Facebook, followed by a third noticing the flyers and over a quarter seeing the bright-green window stickers. The bunting was particularly popular with business owners and helped make participating eateries easy for customers to identify.
Interest also extended online, with the dedicated festival webpages attracting almost 3,000 page views during the three-week-long event.
Exploring Tawa One Bite at a Time
The passport challenge encouraged people to visit multiple eateries throughout the festival.
While we realise that many people either did not participate in the passport idea or did not submit their completed or partially completed forms, we were encouraged to receive passports and online entries that represented around 200 stamps across cafés, restaurants and takeaway outlets.
Most participants came from Tawa, while 17% travelled from Johnsonville and 8% from Porirua, showing the festival succeeded in attracting visitors from outside the suburb.
Early responses from our current Be Our Guest – Try Tawa survey have also been overwhelmingly positive. People particularly enjoyed discovering new eateries, trying featured dishes, experiencing the variety of international cuisine and supporting local businesses.
Looking Ahead
Like any new event, we've also identified opportunities to improve the Taste of Tawa model.
Feedback from businesses and customers included ideas such as:
expanding promotion outside Tawa to attract even more visitors;
working with outside agencies to help promote the event;
encouraging more festival-exclusive dishes;
keeping it inclusive so there is something for every budget;
making the passport process even clearer for customers and easier to submit;
adding more social media competitions; and
extending the duration of the festival.
These suggestions provide an exciting roadmap as we begin planning the next festival.
Taste of Tawa - Thank You
The success of the inaugural Taste of Tawa International Food Festival is a testament to the enthusiasm of our participating eateries, the support of local businesses and community partners, and everyone who came along to discover somewhere new to eat.
The festival showcased the incredible diversity of Tawa's hospitality scene, introduced many people to eateries they hadn't visited before, and gave our local businesses a welcome boost during a traditionally quieter time of year. Delivered on schedule and very close to budget, the festival achieved excellent value through increased customer numbers, strong community engagement and significant marketing reach.
Perhaps the greatest outcome is the solid foundation that has now been established for the future. With the overwhelmingly positive feedback from businesses and customers, Taste of Tawa has every opportunity to become an annual event that celebrates our local food scene, attracts visitors to Tawa and continues supporting our hospitality sector.
A huge thank you to everyone who played a part in making our first Taste of Tawa International Food Festival such a memorable success. We look forward to building on this year's achievements and serving up an even bigger and better festival next year.
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