Harry Potter

Harry Potter

Harry Potter: The Exhibition arrives at IFEMA MADRID to captivate its thousands of fans

The eagerly-awaited exhibition for fans of the universe created by J.K. Rowling landed at IFEMA MADRID on November 18th. Harry Potter: The Exibition has become a phenomenon that has already captivated more than four million people in 11 cities around the world. Who has not read or enjoyed a Harry Potter book or movie? This event –unique in Spain- will have thousands of curious people enjoy activities, sculptures or mythical characters from the Harry Potter world until April 1st.

Experiential, mobile exhibition

This exhibition offers a highly experiential content, and just after entering, the magic of Harry Potter surrounds the visitor who feels like he or she is entering the movies. For Veronica Basanta Project Manager of the exhibition at the producer Sold Out, “the biggest challenge of bringing an exhibition like this is to be able to transmit all the magic created by the writer in the Harry Potter saga and that fans when they visit are transported to the world of Harry Potter”. She adds that technically an adaptation is necessary so that it can be displayed in the most suitable way in each room. Another challenge is the management of the public: being an exhibition with such a large influx, everything has to work like a clock, and it is very important that all teams are perfectly coordinated so that visitors have the best possible experience.

IFEMA MADRID, host to the only exhibition of Harry Potter in Spain

“Setting up this exhibition at IFEMA MADRID has been very easy. It is one of the few venues that offered everything we needed in terms of space, height, capacity, etc. The public are getting used to attending large leisure events at IFEMA MADRID. The venue offers many advantages, good connections, and the fact of beting a reference for everyone”, explains Verónica Basanta.

Institutional support

Harry Potter: The Exhibition is a private initiative of Sold Out and Encore as local promoters in Spain, in collaboration with GES and Warner Bros. Consumer Products Ltd. The event provides an important economic injection for Madrid, the only city in Spain that has received the event within its international itinerary. Veronica says there have been no sponsors or institutional support, although both IFEMA MADRID and the City of Madrid have welcomed the initiative very well, and have supported us a lot.

Record attendance: tourists, curious and Harry Potter fans

So far more than 250,000 tickets have been sold, to a varied public in age and origin. Veronica Basanta says that “many of our visitors are from outside Madrid and come to visit the exhibition as the main reason for their trip. We also have a significant number of foreign visitors, who are passing through in Madrid and do not want to miss the exhibition, so we expect to reach 350,000 visitors in less than 5 months, when the exhibition ends on April 2, 2018 “.

A phenomenon that traps different generations

“Depending on the days, we have a maximum capacity of 6,000 visitors per day in IFEMA MADRID hall 1”. The public is very diverse, including many young people, young adults, but also many families. Let’s not forget that Harry Potter is a very transgenerational phenomenon, 20 years ago the first book was published and today it continues to be one of the most beloved entertainment characters”, explains Verónica Basanta.

The communication strategy is adapted to each country and each moment

The exhibition has an open character to Madrid through different actions and teaser elements. “An action in collaboration with the City of Madrid has been very important, to get an appetizer of the exhibition to all the people of Madrid before the exhibition began. We placed four giant replicas of characters and iconic objects of the Harry Potter saga in key points of Madrid. Everyone wanted to take a picture with Dobby, with the Nimbus 2000, the Sorting Hat or next to the flying Ford Anglia, there were queues every day. For us, this action was key to build interest in the exhibition and make known the arrival of it”, explains Verónica Basanta.