Animal Cage Productions, PartyEDU and Red Cup Nation begin fall festivities with #OaktoberFest.
During the week leading up to Oct. 3., many Twitter-using Ohio University students likely saw a post about what promised to be a massive party on Oak Street.
The party, called #OaktoberFest by its organizers and supporters, delivered on that promise. Red cups in abundance, music blared from the small Athens block while the party spilled into the street. At about 1 a.m., police shut it down.
#OaktoberFest had all the trimmings of a normal, albeit large, college party, with one crucial difference: it was planned or sponsored by at least three separate businesses.
Animal Cage Productions, a sort of event-planning service run by a recent OU graduate, sponsored and planned #OaktoberFest with the help of PartyEDU and Red Cup Nation — all businesses using the Internet and social media to show students a good time and trying to turn a profit in the process.
from the video recap of #OaktoberFest, via Youtube.
Animal Cage has been doing this sort of thing for a while. Founded in 2013, the party-house-turned-small-business regularly plans parties in Athens, sometimes using money from advertisers as funding and other times selling tickets for local events or merchandise at a small markup.
But most of Animal Cage’s profit isn’t pocketed. It’s reinvested in future events, in an effort to “make the community a better place and bring people together,” said Animal Cage’s primary event organizer, who asked to remain anonymous, due to possible ramifications from OU.
“Overall, I’m breaking even,” the person said. “I just do it for students to have a good time. I try to keep prices reasonable.”
Animal Cage uses social media, mostly Twitter, to spread the word about events and to promote businesses, which is in part why #OaktoberFest was sponsored by PartyEDU.
Launched last spring by 22-year-old Lucas Thompson, PartyEDU is a free mobile app that lets users plan and find local parties via Google Maps — provided they have a .edu email address.
PartyEDU hasn’t made any money yet. It had about 800 downloads earlier this month. But cash may start flowing in soon, Thompson said, when PartyEDU begins letting advertisers pay to have their events “featured” on the app.
Right now, opening the app reveals a Stewart Street event planned for Halloween at 2:30 p.m. featuring Red Cup Nation, which also appeared at #OaktoberFest, though it wasn't paid to DJ the party.
Red Cup Nation is an L.A.-based entertainment duo that gets paid to DJ festivals and events. It is “known for putting on some of the biggest, wildest shows around the country,” and often incorporates college campuses into its tours, Perry Nelson, who co-owns Red Cup Nation, said.
from a video recap of a Red Cup Nation show in Athens earlier this semester, via Youtube.
Red Cup Nation pulled in nearly $375,000 in profit by the end of last year, most of which came from getting paid to DJ shows, Nelson said. But the pair also sells apparel through their website (a t-shirt will set you back $20).
When Red Cup Nation returns to Athens this Halloween, it'll be facing competition.
I’m Shmacked, a similar entertainment company known for publishing sleek videos of raucous college parties, recently confirmed a trip to OU via Twitter, after it cancelled an appearance earlier this fall.
I’m Shmacked was allegedly valued at $5 million in late 2013, according to BroBible.com.
“We’re all a different piece of the pie,” Thompson said of PartyEDU, Animal Cage and Red Cup Nation. “We’re giving (students) the tools to have a memorable night.”
@JeremyHTweets
jh982913@ohio.edu
