Skip to content

Penti-Con organizers plan bigger, better next year

Organizers are calling Penticton’s first Comic-Con-style event over the weekend a big success
7675720_web1_copy_170708-PWN-Penti-Con1

Organizers of Penticton’s first-ever Comic-Con-style event are calling the event over the weekend a big success, with plans to go even bigger next year.

The Penti-Con featured everything from cosplay to games of Magic: The Gathering to artists’ booths to a bit of swordplay in the Penticton Lakeside Resort Saturday afternoon. Organizers Jo Scofield and Lily Wilson said they’re blown away by the attendance of the inaugural event.

“Everybody has blown us out of the water,” Scofield said.

“It hasn’t stopped,” Wilson added. “We ended up selling out of tickets on the Friday, and then tickets at the door has been a lineup most of the day.”

They estimate between 400 and 600 made their way through the event Saturday afternoon.

“We broke every number we hoped for,” Scofield said. “It’s been amazing.”

The event catered to any number of genres, with vendors selling books, plushies, fan art and more.

“We have such a variety of vendors that they’re impressed. We don’t just stick to one genre,” Wilson said. “We have different types of vendors for every type of genre.”

The event attracted a crowd beyond the Okanagan, with some making day trips from Vancouver to show off their storm trooper costumes.

“We always knew there was a secret nerd community,” Wilson said. “(It was) something to bring (tourists) to the Okanagan, something new. We have vendors from Calgary, we have vendors from Vancouver.”

Next year, Scofield and Wilson said they’re planning to go bigger and better, potentially moving to a larger venue to accommodate a bigger turnout.

“We will finalize that before we announce it, so the next couple of weeks,” Scofield said.

7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con0
7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con2
7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con4
7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con5
7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con3
7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con6
7675720_web1_170708-PWN-Penti-Con7