Austinites Capitalize on SXSW

One of the biggest events in music is held in Austin, and some locals know exactly how to handle it.

South By Southwest (SXSW) is an annual festival held every spring in Austin, Texas, releasing hundreds of thousands of movie, technology, and music fans from all over the globe into the city’s streets. Many of the locals are embittered by the traffic the festival brings, but for more capitalistic Austinites, these numbers mean virtually unlimited opportunities.

The New York Times refers to the festival as “the envy of every other American City.”

It is no secret South by Southwest is a gold mine for the city of Austin. Market research done by the festival itself shows SXSW being responsible for injecting more than $190 million into the Austin economy. This figure, according to the SXSW City of Austin Economic Impact Analysis is drawn from two main sources: operational output and attendance expenditures. The study goes on to note that third party income is not included in the analysis.

With the festival’s ten-day stretch, those travelling to Austin are looking to stay a while. Hotels fill up almost as quickly as admission badges are sold, and festivalgoers are looking for alternative places to stay.

Willing Austinites take advantage of skyrocketing hotel rates by subleasing their apartments to travelling attendees, and the profits can be hefty.

“I’m charging $650 [a night], and I already have the interactive portion booked,” said Chris Callaway, an Austin resident who subleases his apartment frequently.

South by Southwest is comprised of three main sections: film, interactive, and music. Callaway plans to make $3,900 from the technology section alone, which still leaves an opportunity for the other two-thirds of the festival. In order to have a place to stay during the music portion, Callaway charges $750.

There are risks involved, of course. The subleasing organization Callaway uses has a damage reimbursement policy that insures any damages will be monetarily accommodated.

“I am actually in the process of being reimbursed for damages done,” Callaway said. “Overall, it’s well worth the money.”

Callaway asked that his real name not be used, as many owners frown upon subleasing, and he prefers to avoid the risk of eviction.

Websites like Airbnb.com allows renters to post their home for travelers to pick and choose. Renters are required to post bios and pictures of their house, and travelers put up reviews rating the quality of their stay. Hosts are expected to prepare their living spaces to the standards of a hotel, from clean sheets to stocked refrigerators.

Festivalgoers aren’t the only ones targeted by Austinites. Exhibitors and bands that haven’t quite made it yet don’t always have a place to stay.

Nathan Guus van Oort, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, graciously offers his home to traveling bands in exchange for admission badges to the festival.

“We hosted an Irish band called St. Deluxe one year and got 8 wristbands,” Oort said. “Another year we hosted a band called Skiggy Rapz, a Dutch hip hop group, and again got 8 wristbands.”

Oort said his role as host afforded him to spend time with the groups, though Skiggy Rapz was “sketched out” by the coop he was living in at the time, and they ultimately decided to find a hotel instead.

“It’s a great experience.”

Some Austinites look for cash, others for a free ticket. There is a sector of locals that want neither: bloggers.

“Hits on my blog at least double during South By South West,” said David Glickman, an Austinite running an indie rock blog.

Glickman explained that if he can get his coverage up quickly enough, everyone searching for bands they saw during the festival visit his blog, which is a priceless opportunity for bloggers looking for traffic. The results do not come without extra effort. Getting coverage up on his sight the day of the performance is “near physical suicide.”

“There’s a two day delay for the coverage,” Glickman said. “My Wednesday coverage, for example, will start going up Friday.”

On a normal week, Glickman puts up 4 to 5 posts on his blog. During SXSW, he clocks in around 16, at least tripling his normal workload.

The world knows of the benefits of South by Southwest: the best of independent film, the latest in cutting edge technology, and a music scene great enough to give Austin the title of Live Music Capitol of the World.

However, only Austinites are allowed the chance to capitalize on the global attraction by simply living in the right place at the right time.

Student Reporter Podcast

Hannah Smothers is a Life and Arts reporter for the Daily Texan, the University of Austin's student newspaper.

Photo Story - West By West Campus Music Festival

Festivalgoers watch from the roof as Wiccit plays their set at the
Marjorie-Daw stage

Right about the point when a grown man from the audience donning only a blond wig prances around a small back-yard stage, it occurs to me this is no ordinary show.

West By West Campus is an annual music festival housed by various student co-operatives located just outside the University of Texas at Austin, free to the public. Hosting more than 40 local Austin bands, WXWC promises and delivers an unorthodox experience.

The stage providing space for the nude festivalgoer was stumbled upon after I took a left down an 

The 21st Street Co-op serves as home base for the festival,
welcoming all to its doorstep.

unassuming alleyway, which sums up how I went about navigating the entire festival, guided by maps drawn on dry erase boards and verbal directions provided by the staff. The venue was the Marjorie-Daw co-operative, one of the four stages located at the festival.

The 21^st Street Co-op serves as the base of operations for the festival, which makes sense as I try and contemplate the expansive estate. I find myself trying to navigate a complicated staircase that also serves as a bridge to another building, both of which stand tall. It invokes the nostalgia of climbing a tree house.

Battletoad remixes the theme to "Reading Rainbow,"
gauging the initially apprehensive crowd.

I follow the rumbling sounds of electronic music until I locate the door to a bizarre scene: a dark, club-like room where a frog-masked DJ by the name of Battletoad remixes the theme song to “Reading Rainbow,” a children’s show from the 1980’s and 90’s. The crowd seems weary at first, but ultimately succumbs to the rhythm and dances till the bitter end.

Tessa Hunt, General Director of WXWC, posted at the
21st Street Co-op's outdoor staircase.

Battletoad isn’t being paid, and neither are any of the other people involved in the festival. Their only compensation is people enjoying the experience.

“If anything, we lose money,” said Tessa Hunt, the General Director of the festival. “It’s just in the 

name of party.”

Festival sponsor, Isis, showcases a branded car.

Hunt devotes much of her unpaid time to party planning, which ranges from booking bands to gathering sponsors.

A cement lot used normally as parking space for the co-op’s residents serves as space for the sponsors of the festival. A shining purple car boasting the Isis brand screams to be looked at, and Vitamin Water is being passed around freely. The merchandise girls used the Isis app to process my payment for the WXWC t-shirt.

DJ Bass, loyal WXWC attendee, enjoying his third year of the festival.

“This year it’s way more organized,” said DJ Bass, who has experienced each of the festival’s three installments. “It’s not necessarily more money, but more forethought. They knew there was going to be a bunch of people here; they knew they were going to need a place to use the restroom, so they got Porta Potties. That’s totally something that never would have happened the first year.”

WXWC staff workers, Carlton Eide and Mariah Stevens-Ross,
help man the 21st Street Co-op info desk.

Along with Porta Potties, WXWC supplies a volunteer staff to help with production and herd around the festivalgoers to their desired locations.

“We’re like air traffic controllers,” said Carlton Eide, a staff worker manning the info desk in front of the 21^st Street Co-op.

Broken Bass Band making last minute preparations before playing
their set at the Marjorie-Daw stage.

Through the combined and volunteered effort of executive planners, artists, and event staff, West By West Campus is a truly odd treat offered to all those who simply decide to walk down 21^st Street.

Two staff workers sell WXWC merchandise at the French House s.tage.

Festivalgoer poses while swinging on a swing hanging
 in the front yard of the French House Co-operative