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By Christy Anyanwu
The 9th Edition GTCO Food and Drink Festival kicking off on May 1 will be “bigger and better, the bank has announced.
With the theme, “Everything Food and Drink,” the event will have 204 free retail stalls, up to ₦30 million in merchant loans for vendors, and a children’s theatre when it opens at the GTCentre in Oniru, Victoria Island.
Guaranty Trust Bank Holding Company Plc says the festival has grown beyond a seasonal celebration into a cultural platform where food and drink serve as a meeting point for storytelling, innovation, and opportunity, with this year’s edition reflecting “not only the variety of cuisines on display, but also the depth of stories behind them” from time-honoured traditional dishes preserved across generations to bold contemporary interpretations of global cuisine.
Group Chief Executive Officer Segun Agbaje described the event as “a living expression of what we stand for as an institution: innovation, opportunity, and enterprise that is accessible to all,” adding that “what makes this platform special is not just its scale, but its humanity.
“It brings together people from different walks of life around something universal – food and drink – and in doing so, it breaks barriers and builds connections that extend far beyond the event itself.”
Chief Communication Officer, Oyinade Adegite, told journalists that the bank’s support for vendors goes beyond the three-day festival, revealing that small businesses using GTCO POS machines can access “up to 30 million Naira” in merchant loans based on cash flow, and that the group previously ran a “food and fashion loan… priced at 90 cents” to subsidize vendors. “The loans are there for you to take… it’s for all small businesses,” Adegite said, noting that many vendors return after the event to access financing.
She acknowledged past complaints about stall placement and foot traffic at previous editions, saying the team “took the lesson very quickly” after noticing that some vendors felt barricaded from the main pavilion.
“We were very quick to react. We would just open and collapse the door the next day. Next time, we just made sure that it’s already open,” she said, explaining that counter spaces were used to accommodate more vendors after the children’s play area was doubled.
On calls to expand the festival to other cities, Adegite was blunt: “Expansion to a less scary area. Maybe West Africa. But in terms of expansion, maybe not now. First, difficulty maintaining the quality, the standards.”
She stressed that vendor selection prioritizes “presence, consistency and the fact that you have a good presence online,” adding, “We don’t want jack of all trades. Today, I’m doing drinks for you. Tomorrow you are focusing on the corporates in that crowd. Which one exactly are you? Consistency wins the journey of life generally.” As the festival inches toward a decade, Adegite said, “the idea is not just to survive but to thrive over the years. Let’s see how we can put these businesses out there more.”
