Driving CarFest Forward: Anjna Raheja on Innovation, Inclusion, and Making a Difference.
Since taking the wheel as Festival Director in 2019, Anjna Raheja has transformed CarFest into a multi-faceted celebration of music, food, well-being, and family fun—all while staying true to its mission of raising millions for UK charities. Women Talking had the opportunity to interview Anjna to learn more about her journey, the evolution of CarFest, and what’s next for this dynamic festival.
CarFest has grown into one of the UK’s biggest family festivals. How has it evolved since its launch in 2012?
When Chris Evans first launched CarFest, with the aim of raising as much money as possible for children’s charities, the festival mainly focused on cars and music because those were his two big passions. Since then, it’s completely grown into what we now proudly call seven festival sites in one. We’ve expanded well beyond cars to include CarFest, FoodFest, KidsFest, RetroFest, SpaFest and StarFest. This transformation has allowed us to create an event where there’s genuinely something for every single person, no matter what they love. If you’re not into cars or motoring, you can spend the entire weekend enjoying other activities without seeing a single engine. But what has remained at the heart of CarFest is fundraising as that is our founding mission, last year we raised £1.26m for the charities and this year we are aiming to donate even more.
What are some of the biggest changes or innovations you’ve introduced?
When I joined CarFest in 2019 as Marketing Director, the festival was navigating through some challenging times, with Chris moving from Radio 2 to Virgin Radio and then of course, the pandemic. One of the biggest shifts was our decision to focus exclusively on our South event in Hampshire rather than running two festivals. This wasn’t an easy decision, but it has allowed us to donate significantly more to our charity partners, which is our primary objective.
I’ve also worked to strengthen our relationships with local suppliers and the Hampshire community. We’ve expanded our corporate partnerships too, like our collaboration with bp pulse, our headline sponsor who have been incredibly supportive of the festival. But perhaps the innovation I’m most proud of is our commitment to making sure visitors don’t need to spend extra money once they’re through the gates – we take time to make sure we have fantastic free content in each festival site so that the ticket price gives visitors real value for money and everything you need for an amazing experience over the entire weekend.
CarFest is described as “seven festival sites in one.” Can you tell us more about these different elements and how they create a unique experience?
Absolutely! There’s the original CarFest, celebrating all things motor and car culture, we have three track shows a day and a paddock where visitors can take a look at the most eclectic and beautiful range of cars you’ll see from F1 to novelty bed cars. StarFest invites visitors into the worlds of TV, cinema, music, literature, comedy, and fashion, with leading celebrities, authors and this year a new Talent Lab where our younger visitors can try their hand at learning both musical and creative skills. SpaFest is all about wellbeing and investing in yourself with fabulous talks from experts and sessions including sound baths and yoga, while KidsFest is for children of all ages with games and shows for toddlers and interactive and exciting areas for older children too including sustainable and STEM education areas that are completely absorbing. There also lots of activities such as skateboarding and survival skills to encourages everyone to discover the great outdoors. FoodFest is an amazing celebration of all things delicious: we have a Chef’s Stage with leading chefs that you see on your TV screens, a tipple tent for learning more about particular drinks, a BBQ cookout, then there are rows and rows of fabulous artisan products to sample and buy. Then there’s RetroFest where everyone enjoys reliving some of the greatest moments in history and pop culture.
What makes CarFest unique is that we curate content specifically for each mini festival. If you’re only interested in food, for example, you can spend your entire weekend enjoying food-related activities and interactive workshops. The same goes for every themed area. We deliberately create these distinct experiences while ensuring they work together cohesively. It’s like having seven festivals for the price of one ticket!
Last but not least is our incredible music line up – I think this year’s is one of the best yet.
You’ve worked hard to make CarFest an inclusive festival. How do you ensure the event is accessible and enjoyable for everyone?
Inclusivity is absolutely central to what we do. First, we’ve created these different festival experiences to ensure there’s something for everyone, regardless of their interests, background, or abilities. We have designated accessibility parking, raised viewing platforms and so on. We’ve deliberately designed CarFest to be a place where everyone feels welcome and represented.
We’ve also worked hard on our pricing structure – while we do have premium options, we’ve ensured there are affordable day tickets available, we’ve introduced a staggered payment option and crucially, we’ve packed tons of free activities into the ticket price. Once you’re in, you don’t have to spend another penny to have a full weekend of experiences.
We’re also very close to our charity partners, including Children in Need, Young Epilepsy, Starlight, Rainbow Trust, Naomi House/Jacksplace, Teenage Cancer Trust and the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, which naturally keeps us focused on accessibility and inclusivity. Some of the most powerful moments of the festival are when our Young Charity Ambassadors take the stage – it reminds everyone why we’re there and creates this incredible connection between the festivalgoers and the causes we support.
The festival industry is often male dominated, particularly in motorsports. What challenges have you faced as a woman in this role, and how have you overcome them?
The festival world, like many industries, has its challenges when it comes to diversity. I’m fortunate to work with Chris Evans, who values diverse perspectives and has created a really supportive environment. We actually have more women than men working at CarFest but of course everyone is treated equally.
What’s actually been fascinating to witness at CarFest is how we’ve created a festival that’s genuinely for everyone, breaking down traditional stereotypes along the way. We see just as many women passionate about cars and motorsport as men, and equally, plenty of men who love our meditation and wellness sessions at SpaFest.
That’s something I’m particularly proud of – we’ve built an environment where people’s interests aren’t defined by gender, and everyone feels completely comfortable exploring whatever appeals to them. We’ve had incredible feedback from families who appreciate that their children experience this kind of inclusivity from an early age.
The biggest challenge I’ve faced isn’t so much about being a woman specifically but about balancing the commercial realities of running a festival with our charitable mission. Unlike corporate-backed festivals with deep pockets, we start from scratch each year because we donate all our profits to charity. We can’t negotiate the same discounts or block-book artists like larger festivals. This means we have to be incredibly creative and efficient with our resources. Our core team is just about 10 people, which is tiny compared to other festivals of our size! So, I’ve had to become very strategic about how we create value and experiences without the massive budgets other festivals might have.
What advice would you give to women looking to break into leadership roles in events and festival management?
I’d say focus on becoming a great marketer first – understanding audiences, creating compelling experiences, and communicating effectively are skills that transfer brilliantly to festival management. Build a diverse network across the industry, because festivals touch on so many different areas – from production and logistics to entertainment and hospitality.
Be prepared to work incredibly hard – those 100,000 steps I walk during the festival weekend aren’t an exaggeration! But most importantly, find a purpose that drives you. For me, seeing the impact we make for our charity partners provides the motivation to overcome any challenges. When you’re connected to a mission bigger than yourself, you’ll always find the resilience to push through the tougher moments.
CarFest has raised millions for UK children’s charities. Can you share a particularly memorable moment or success story that highlights its impact?
Last year alone we raised over £1.26 million for our charity partners, which was incredible. But the most memorable moments for me are when our Young Charity Ambassadors get up on stage. Each charity chooses someone to help people understand how their donations are spent throughout the year. Watching the connection that Chris and the audience have with them – that’s when you’ll find me crying in the pit! It’s incredibly emotional because you see the direct impact of what we’re doing.
Chris always reminds us: “If we’re not making money for charity, we’re not doing this.” That purpose runs through his blood and inspires all of us. The festival is genuinely a force for good, and seeing how it changes lives – both the beneficiaries of our charities and the festivalgoers who have this joyous experience – that’s what makes all the hard work worthwhile.
Beyond fundraising, how does CarFest support the wider community?
We have a significant positive economic impact on the Hampshire area. The local hotels, bed and breakfasts, and pubs all benefit substantially during the festival weekend. Since focusing solely on our Laverstoke Park Farm location, we’ve been able to build deeper relationships with local suppliers and contractors, keeping more of our spending in the community.
It’s interesting that half of our audience comes from within 50 miles of Laverstoke – so we’re very much a local festival for many people. We work closely with local parish councils to ensure we’re being responsible neighbours, managing things like traffic flow and noise. And we’ve been able to create this wonderful tradition that many local families look forward to every summer – something we’re very proud of.
What goes into planning such a large-scale event? Can you walk us through the behind-the-scenes process?
Planning CarFest is a year-round operation! Since we give all our profits to charity, we literally start from scratch each year. Our core team begins planning as soon as the show before ends and we gradually build up the team as we get closer to the festival date, bringing in content editors and crew.
There are so many moving parts – from booking artists and attractions to coordinating with suppliers, managing logistics, marketing, and working with our charity partners. We have to curate content for each of our seven festival sites, ensuring there’s plenty to do without spending extra beyond the ticket price.
But what keeps me awake the week before? It’s always the weather! By that time, our crack operations team has everything else under control, but the British summer is the one thing we can’t plan for and actually it never ever stops our CarFest visitors from having an incredible time.
Are there any exciting new additions or surprises in store for this year’s CarFest?
This year’s music lineup is particularly exciting – we’ve got Rita Ora, Madness, Travis, Tom Walker, Squeeze and many more incredible artists performing plus emerging artists on our Wigwam stage.
We’re also creating some special experiences with our corporate partners, like the dedicated areas we’re setting up with bp pulse, our headline sponsor who’s been tremendously supportive of making the festival accessible to everyone.
But I think what makes each year special isn’t just the new additions – it’s the atmosphere we create. Last year was genuinely the happiest festival I’ve ever worked on, and we’re building on that positive energy for this year’s event.
What originally drew you to event management, and how did you come to be part of CarFest?
I’m a marketer through and through – I love connecting people with experiences that bring them happiness. When I joined as Marketing Director it was a perfect fit for my skills and values. The combination of creating incredible content and experiences while supporting important causes resonated deeply with me.
What’s interesting is that when I first started, people would tell me about how joyous CarFest was, and honestly, it sounded too good to be true – nothing is really that wonderful, right? But it genuinely is one of the happiest places I’ve ever been. Even when I’m exhausted from walking those trillion steps around the site during build-up, running on minimal sleep, seeing the happiness on people’s faces makes it all worthwhile.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job as Festival Director?
Without question, it’s standing next to Chris on stage on Friday evening and seeing genuinely elated people walking around the site. Many visitors have been coming for years and feel like the festival belongs to them – there’s this incredible sense of community.
And then there are those moments with our Young Charity Ambassadors that I mentioned earlier – those are profoundly moving. Fundamentally, we’re a festival, but we’re also a force for good. Seeing that purpose come to life through both the joy of our visitors and the impact on our charity partners – that’s the ultimate reward.
Looking ahead, what’s your vision for the future of CarFest? How do you see it evolving in the next five years?
Our vision is to continue growing our impact for the charities we support while maintaining the special atmosphere that makes CarFest unique. We want to deepen our connections with the Hampshire community and local suppliers, making the festival even more sustainable.
I’d like to explore more innovative corporate partnerships, providing meaningful connections between their objectives and our visitors, through great experiential activations – arrangements that create win-win situations for companies, their employees, our visitors and our charitable mission. We’ll continue evolving our festival sites to reflect changing interests and trends while staying true to our roots.
But most importantly, we’ll remain focused on Chris’s original objective: making money for charity. That will always be our reason to get out of bed in the morning. So, while we’ll certainly innovate and grow, every decision will be guided by how we can maximise our positive impact. As the festival industry faces challenges with rising costs and changing consumer expectations, we’ll adapt – but we’ll never ever lose sight of why we’re doing this in the first place.