Balance festival is the ultimate destination for wellness. Hosted at The Old Truman Brewery each year, it combines experts, with world-class trainers, next-gen food brands, inspiring chefs and more, creating a wellbeing haven that inspires everyone to create their own health and fitness journey.
Here are five things we learnt from attending Balance festival this year:
1. Convenience conquers
We are almost settled back into normal life post-pandemic. Consequently, Our lives are becoming busy once again and, as a result, consumers are becoming more aware of the impact this has on their health.
As the luxury of time becomes limited, more and more people are looking for easy solutions. ‘Convenience’ was on the tip of everyone’s tongues at Balance.
With products ranging from hydration tablets that can support during the hot summer commutes, to organic fruit and veg boxes that are delivered direct to the doorstep, every brand was tapping into how they can help make wellbeing easier than ever.
2. It’s all about interaction
Long gone are the days where you’d rock up to an exhibition, with a simple stand, some leaflets and branded t-shirts. This year was all about interaction – interacting with the audience, interacting with each other and most importantly, interacting with influencers.
Barebells pulled in the crowds with its Spin The Sample Wheel and Rokit Health delivered coffee direct to the consumers. Meanwhile, plant-based brands Tiba Tempeh and No Jo collaborated to maximise conversations on both stands.
Influencers and content creators flooded the Balance floor, cameras and lights at the ready. The savviest of brands utilised them, by supplying samples, content and stand interviews. Personal Trainer @HirashahOfficial showed everyone what Balance had to offer, from the classes to The Lab, to brands she enjoyed on the day > https://www.instagram.com/p/CsmfBN0oGX4/
3. Sustainability is here to stay
“How sustainable are you?” These words were heard many times around the show, and often, before many people had even tried the product or found out more info. An extension to the holistic wellbeing approach, people want to know they’re not only supporting themselves, but the people and environment around them too. The good news? The wellbeing sector seems to be leading the way in sustainability. Many brands are proudly displaying “planet-friendly”, “eco” and “sustainable” across their stands.
4. Bio hacking is BIG
Gut health and skincare have always been two hot topics at Balance and this year was no different. From collagen drinks, to vitamins, probiotic brands and more, this year was all about the ‘added extras’ that people can use to support their health – with many products backed by science, to help build that all important trust!
5. People are hungry for more
The Lab (a dedicated learning space) was thriving at Balance this year. The educational talks were packed with people wanting to know more – from the principles of healthy eating, to managing stress through movement, setting up a plant-based business and more.
This is a space where brands could really utilise experts they have to hand, working with them to run talks to create a session that brough both great awareness and invaluable insights to the audience – showing that no matter how long you’ve been in the space, there’s always something new to learn.
This translated to the fitness spaces also, where lessons were packed with people wanting to engage with new training methods – from Barrecore (yoga, ballet and pilates mixed) to boxing, meditation, and circuits.