Hot Box Recovery and Community Fund

WHO ARE HOT BOX?

Hot Box are a Community Interest Company, and Not for Profit Music Venue, and the only Music Venue left in Chelmsford.  Artists come from all over the world to play here, we are truly a vibrant, welcoming and safe place to be.  The onus is on us to cover all genres and musical / artistic disciplines to serve our community.

As well as our cultural output we also run educational initiatives, from which participants have gone into employment and gained transferable industry standard skills. We also offer programming for marginalised groups within our community, this is integration at it's best.

We are not for profit, and pre-lockdown used to scrape through by the skin of our teeth, but now.............

THE SITUATION WE ARE IN

Post Covid we have found ourselves saddled with large debts which have had a severe impact on the events we can put on. On top of this, price increases have added further stresses.

Nationally the music venue sector is in trouble; although grassroots music venues generate £500million of turnover annually, nationally we have £499million in costs leaving us with an average 0.2 per cent profit margin. There are 177,000 events happening, but that’s down 16.7 per cent. We used to do an average of 4.2 events per week at these venues, and we’re now down to 3.5. - Music Venue Trust 2022 Annual Report

So it is easy to see why we are in trouble, 0.2% profit does not fund our 49% increase in rateable value, 12% increase in rent, rent arrears accumulated during Lockdown, repayments of bounceback loans, and VAT debt.  

HOW WE WILL USE THE DONATIONS

To pay off some of the debt accrued during lockdown, to keep us going for the next 12 months.

Please donate what you can afford and help us survive these turbulent times, any donations are truly appreciated.  If you cannot afford to donate, then there are other ways you can help by popping down for a beer and sharing about us on social media.  If you want to see first-hand what we do and discuss the scheme with us before deciding to donate, then we would be pleased to show you around.

There are many worthy causes out there, we hope you will support ours.  However, if you decide not to then we understand, but would ask that you share this with people in your circle that may be interested in supporting a Not-for-Profit Music Venue.