Sacha Lord, the night time economy advisor to Mayor Andy Burnham, has confirmed that he is stepping down from his role at both The Warehouse Project and Parklife.
Lord has said that he intends to focus on his roles in the hospitality sector, for which he is a vocal advocate, and his contribution to the mayor’s office.
“The decision to step down was not an easy one for me to make,” he said in a statement.
“I will miss the team, the events, the customers, I’ll even miss the stress and the late nights, but I’ve known for a long time that Parklife 2024 was going to be the last for me.
“There could not have been a more perfect moment for me to step away than now – exactly 30 years since my first event at The Hacienda – and I’m so excited for what’s to come.
“This decision will free up my time to focus on my roles in the night time economy and hospitality sectors, and of course, most importantly, the birth of my first child with my beautiful wife Demi later this year.”
Lord co-founded The Warehouse Project in 2006 with Sam Kandel and Rich McGinnis – who are both staying on to run the business – taking on venues such as the old Boddingtons Brewery in Strangeways and the arches at Store Street under Piccadilly Station.
It moved to the 10,000 capacity Depot Mayfield in 2019, where it saw 275,000 people head through the doors in 2023, with the likes of Disclosure, Megan The Stallion, Nile Rodgers & Chic, The Prodigy, New Order, The Chemical Brothers and Calvin Harris having played the venue.
Parklife launched in 2010, and is now Europe’s largest metropolitan festival, attracting 80,000 people each year.
Lord added: “I’d like to thank the millions of people who have stepped foot into The Warehouse Project or Parklife over the last few decades, and those who have supported me and the team. I would also like to thank the tens of thousands of staff members we’ve had over the years, the suppliers, and those closest to me for putting up with the late nights.
“I am very excited to watch from afar, and I’d like to wish the team the very best going forward.”
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