Case Study: How On The Beach boosted self-serve bar revenue by 56% YoY with Boxbar

Summer festivals are all about music, atmosphere and making memories. But behind the scenes, organisers face huge challenges to deliver seamless operations for thousands of fans. One of the biggest? Keeping bar service fast, efficient and enjoyable in environments that are anything but straightforward.

That’s exactly where our self-service bar technology stepped in for On The Beach Brighton 2025. By deploying a self-serve festival bar solution directly on the beach, we helped transform the experience for both the operators and the 65,000 fans who attended.

For anyone looking at festival bar hire or exploring the potential of a self-serve bar, this case study shows how innovation can redefine what’s possible.

The Challenge

Running a large-scale open-air festival is never simple. For the team at On The Beach, the Brighton coastline offers both a dream setting and a logistical test. The backdrop is beautiful, but the limited site space and uneven surface create challenges to overcome.

With no option to extend the site boundaries and sell-out crowds expected across seven shows in July featuring the likes of Carl Cox, Eric Prydz, Bloc Party, Human League, Kaiser Chiefs and Bonobo, every inch of bar capacity had to be maximised.

Long queues were not an option. Fans needed quick, hassle-free access to drinks whilst the festival operators targeted higher sales, smoother operations and happy customers.

Strategy and Implementation

After a successful partnership with On The Beach in 2024, we returned this year with a fresh approach and a brand new product.

Here’s what we delivered:

Three new automated, self-serve Container Bars (patent pending), deployed directly onto the beach. No flooring required. That meant faster setup and reduced infrastructure costs.

Full branding with Peroni and Cornish Orchards Cider. The bars didn’t just serve pints of beer and cider, they became part of the festival experience and provided added marketing value to the festival’s drinks partners.

High-volume serving capacity with 18 points of sale, 36 serving taps and a maximum serving capacity of 4320 pints per hour.

The Results

2 pints served end-to-end in just 25 seconds. That’s over 300% faster than traditional bar service and a 17% improvement on our 2024 On The Beach deployment.

56% uplift in self-serve revenue year-on-year. The result of evolving technology and ever increasing customer adoption and demand.

Happy fans! Customers loved the shorter queues, faster service and smoother festival experience.

Why it matters

Self-service bar technology is transforming festival bar solutions. From reduced setup costs to faster service speeds, the results at On The Beach prove that innovation in bar operations isn’t just possible, it’s essential for festivals.

If you’re looking for self-service festival bar hire that delivers speed, increased sales, reliability and happier fans, Boxbar is ready to help. Get in touch today.