Sheffield’s thriving independent coffee scene is getting its own festival this autumn, as organisers prepare to launch Sip Fest – a week-long celebration of the city’s cafés, roasteries, baristas and coffee culture.
Running from Monday 28 September to Sunday 4 October, the inaugural festival will combine a citywide programme of free events with a major weekend takeover of Trafalgar Warehouse, bringing together independent businesses, national coffee brands and coffee lovers from across the UK.
The week-long fringe programme will see more than 40 coffee shops, cafés, bars, brunch spots, roasteries and creative spaces host free events across the city, encouraging people to discover new venues while supporting Sheffield’s independent coffee community.
The festival then moves to Trafalgar Warehouse for a free industry party on Friday 2 October, before culminating in a ticketed public festival on Saturday 3 October. Split across morning and afternoon sessions, the Saturday event will feature more than 30 stalls, talks, tastings, giveaways, Coffee School sessions, street food, DJs, Sheffield’s biggest latte art competition and what organisers are calling the UK’s biggest coffee run.
Early bird tickets for the Saturday event are on sale now, priced at £5.
Created by a team from Sheffield’s coffee, hospitality and events scene, Sip Fest has been founded by Steam Yard and Corner Store’s Matt Cottrill alongside Motore Cafe’s Neil Midgley, with creative direction and illustration from Steam Yard’s Molly Kirk.
The organisers say the festival is designed to celebrate the people and businesses that have helped Sheffield develop one of the country’s most respected independent coffee scenes. While the city has long been recognised for its music, food and independent culture, its cafés have increasingly become spaces where people meet, work, create and socialise.
Matt Cottrill said: “Sheffield has one of the most exciting independent coffee scenes in the country and we want to showcase this to the city and beyond.
“Sip Fest is about celebrating the places, people and energy that make Sheffield’s coffee culture what it is. We want it to feel like something people genuinely look forward to every year, with a sense of fun but also something meaningful behind it.”
The festival is aimed at everyone from speciality coffee enthusiasts and home brewers to casual flat white drinkers, as well as families, students, freelancers and anyone looking for a social event that isn’t centred around alcohol.
Alongside showcasing Sheffield’s independent cafés and roasteries, Sip Fest will also welcome national coffee brands, creating a platform that organisers hope will attract visitors from across the country while shining a spotlight on the city’s growing coffee culture.
Cafés, roasteries, makers, brands, venues and traders are now being invited to get involved in both the citywide fringe and the Trafalgar Warehouse events.
For more information, to buy tickets or register your interest in taking part, visit sipcoffeefestival.com or email hello@sipcoffeefestival.com.
