Chris Simmons
Event & Festival Director
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About
Entrepreneurial Event & Festival Director with a track record of founding and leading successful live music events, festivals, and youth development programmes. Experienced in strategic project leadership, partnership development, funding negotiations, stakeholder management, and multi-venue event delivery. Passionate about building thriving music communities, developing emerging talent, and creating innovative cultural programmes that deliver lasting impact.
Experience
Founder & Director - Start Me Up - West Sussex
(2025-10)
Founded and led a youth-focused music development initiative creating performance, mentoring, and industry engagement opportunities for musicians under 18.
- Developed partnerships with industry professionals, promoters, and festival organisers to expand access to live performance, networking, and career development opportunities.
- Oversaw programme strategy, stakeholder engagement, event delivery, and community development, establishing a sustainable platform for emerging young artists.
Founder / Project Manager - The Smithereen Takeover - Brighton
(2023-08)
Curated and project managed a three-day live music showcase featuring 80+ artists across multiple venues.
- Led event logistics, scheduling, production coordination, artist liaison, and stakeholder communications.
- Delivered targeted marketing campaigns that increased audience engagement and event visibility.
- Managed live operational troubleshooting in high-pressure festival environments
Festival Director - City Sounds Festival - Chichester
(2023 - 2024)
Founded and delivered a city-wide multi-venue music festival from concept to execution.
- Secured council funding through successful proposal negotiation and stakeholder engagement.
- Managed budgets, venue partnerships, artist coordination, logistics, and festival promotion.
Director - We Are Wolfgang Recruitment - West Sussex
(2020-09 - 2023-09)
Founded and managed an independent recruitment agency during the COVID-19 period.
- Developed client partnerships, managed operations, marketing, recruitment campaigns, and business development.
- Oversaw contracts, budgeting, scheduling, and multi-project coordination under tight deadlines.
Education
HND - Audio Visual Studies - Northbrook College, Worthing
BTEC - Media Studies - Northbrook College, Worthing
GCSEs - St Andrews High School, Worthing
