$240k profit for Mardi Gras

The future of Sydney’s iconic Mardi Gras festival is secure after organisers revealed a 34 percent jump in profits.

New Mardi Gras chairman Marcus Bourget said the community group’s profit for 2007 was $240,424.

The profit is in marked contrast to 2005’s festival that recorded a $245,000 loss -“ a deficit Bourget at the time said was a cataclysmic event.

The result is better than our forecast, the chairman said, which is very pleasing given the hard work put in by everyone involved.

Bourget said stricter financial controls, an emphasis on revenue-raising events and giving individual working groups greater collective responsibility were the main reasons for the turnaround.

This year’s sell-out Mardi Gras party also eased pressure on the bottom line.

For me there isn’t one stand-out event because they were all so successful, Bourget said.

At the party we managed to put on the best line-up of talent New Mardi Gras has done, we looked at reinventing Fair Day and there was a lot more on offer.

The parade was a huge success and one of the biggest in terms of participation in the history of Mardi Gras.

We’ve concentrated in the last few years on delivering events which play to our core strengths while reshaping ourselves into a sustainable outfit.

This result underscores the great effort that has gone into this. It’s recognition of how far we have come from almost losing this important tradition. Adding a few new events and reformulating some of the old favourites has paid off.

New Mardi Gras general manager, Anna McInerney, said that careful management of expenses meant that the organisation was now in a solid position and well placed for the 30th anniversary celebrations next year.

We’ve kept a close eye on our costs to ensure we continue giving Sydney what they tell us they want each year, she said.

We’ve worked hard to maintain the high standard of our events while producing them all on a level that is sustainable.

Bourget signalled a note of caution, however, stressing the organisation needed to ensure costs were kept in check.

We’re heading in the right direction but we’re not out of the woods yet -“ it’s a step-by-step process to achieve results.

New Mardi Gras is busy preparing for this year’s Sleaze Ball, to be held on September 29. Next year’s Mardi Gras parade and party will be held on March 1. The New Mardi Gras annual general meeting will be held on July 14.

To become a member or volunteer log on to www.newmardigras.org.au