Names: Anna Dina Green, Ed Green, Sarah Swales and (not pictured) Dani Sharp and Hannah Doe – all volunteers.
What business or group are you involved with?
We put on monthly pop-up gigs in different secret locations in and around Frome, with three surprise bands or performers. We’re volunteer-run and many local businesses and private individuals have donated their spaces for free and have been part of the wonderful Sofar community.
These include; The Silk Mill, Lilley’s Cider, Sofa Smith, the Merlin, Conigre House, the Red Shed at Chesterblade Hills, The Courts Garden, Holt, Wild Beer Co and Truly Sopel.
There are more planned – we can’t reveal yet as ticket holders only find out the location the day before! We’re always looking for new and interesting venues!
Why did you choose Frome? (Sarah) I chose Frome as my parents live here, but I couldn’t imagine anywhere better, especially after spending the last 17 years in Seattle. I love the community, architecture, beautiful countryside, and great music and arts scene.
(Anna) I chose to move to Frome as there is a real ‘can do’ attitude from both the town council and the amazing people who live here and run all sorts of enterprises. It’s inspiring and there’s always lots of fun stuff to do, a huge appetite for the arts – which led me to offer up Sofar Sounds to the local scene, even though technically we’re not a city and way too small. I’ve never been afraid to punch above my weight.
Tell us something people may not already know about you. Sarah: I have been a photographer for years but in my past life working in the record industry in Prague, I was responsible for devising a marketing plan, resulting in selling more of David Hasselhoff’s album in the Czech Republic than in any other country, including Germany! It flopped everywhere else. I had to suffer six days with him in total, but managed to “market the unmarketable” and present him with a gold disc.
Anna: My first ‘job’ out of uni was to open and run a boutique on Carnaby Street in central London. I wanted to promote customised and upcycled ladies fashion, to extend the life of garments and combat throw away culture. It wasn’t a huge financial success as people didn’t want to pay more for beautiful handmade goods when there was a Primark around the corner. I had big rents to pay and just about broken even over two years. It was however, a huge success as a step into entrepreneurship and I learnt loads about business in general, which I’ve applied to other ventures.
For more information about Sofar Sounds check out their instagram @sofarsoundsfrome
