LOGISTICAL ACTIVITIES OF THE INTERNATIONAL LENT FESTIVAL IN MARIBOR AND THE INTERNATIONAL FOLKART FESTIVAL

Logistics is a relatively young discipline that is making its way into all areas of our lives in the modern way of living. Particularly in the business world, it is becoming an indispensable source of tools not only for better business operations but also for cost reduction.

Problem

Logistics is a relatively young discipline that is making its way into all areas of our lives in the modern way of living. Particularly in the business world, it is becoming an indispensable source of tools not only for better business operations but also for cost reduction. In professional literature, we find quite a few explanations of what logistics actually is and how we can use it to help ourselves.

Certainly, everything we do in an organised manner with the aim of facilitating the daily organisation of our lives is logistics itself. The topic of this diploma thesis was chosen primarily because in my professional life I encounter a very complex example of logistics. The organisation of the international Lent Festival and all its internal festival forms, particularly the organisation of the international folklore festival Folkart, has led me to the realisation that what I do at work every day is an excellent example of logistics.

With the firm interconnection of all departments operating within our public institution Narodni dom Maribor, with the efficient organisation of all entities that influence the work process from different aspects in creating such a large and demanding project as the international Lent Festival, and with unwavering faith in our own abilities and firm conviction in the final success, over the years we have created a product, a brand, that is a true logistical giant! The festival has been organised for nineteen consecutive years by the employees of the Cultural and Events Centre Narodni dom Maribor, with the help of external collaborators.

The Lent Festival has grown into one of the largest festivals in Europe and is visited by over half a million visitors every year. Thus, in the diploma thesis, the course of organisation of the entire Lent Festival has been presented in a fairly condensed manner, with all its most important characteristics that form the pillar of organisation. In the precisely measured space for a diploma thesis, it is impossible to cover every area of organisation and every smallest detail that forms the entire process of festival logistics.

Therefore, the focus was primarily on presenting those most important sections that form the backbone of the festival organisation. At the end, particular attention was given to the logistics of the international folklore festival Folkart, which is also directly my responsibility. Folkart is a festival within a festival and therefore all the more interesting as an independent logistical unit.