Festival des Vins et Spiritueux and Festival Manger Santé draw 10,000 guests
Organizers of the Festival des Vins et Spiritueux de Laval and the inaugural Festival Manger Santé de Laval which were held in July say both festivals were an outstanding success.
The Festival des Vins et Spiritueux de Laval celebrates wine, spirits and gourmet experiences, while the Festival Manger Santé de Laval promotes healthy living through nutrition, wellness and local entrepreneurship.
Together, according to the organizers, the two summertime events are establishing themselves as part of Laval’s signature summer festival experience – a celebration where culture, commerce, community and discovery come together.
Each event featured more than 50 exhibitors and attracted over 5,000 visitors each to Centropolis Laval for two consecutive weekends.
More reason to be proud
“Our vision has always been to create festivals that celebrate people, culture and local entrepreneurship while giving residents another reason to be proud of their city,” said festival co-organizer David De Cotis, who is also the Laval city councillor for Saint-Bruno.
“Seeing more than 10,000 people attend our events confirms that Laval was ready for experiences like these,” he added. “We are building something that we believe will become a tradition for generations to come.”
Regarding the Festival Manger Santé, De Cotis agreed it’s an area of consumer interest where there is a great deal of room for growth.
With an aging population increasingly focused on personal wellness and health, in conjunction with a decline in the ready availability of public health services, it’s difficult to predict expanding interest in the sector.
A focus on wellness
“There’s a huge event like this that takes place in Montreal and we wanted to do something similar in Laval that meets the needs of the people here,” De Cotis said. “As people are aging, they are paying more and more attention to their bodies. So, this is a beautiful niche to offer these products and services in Laval.”
The organizers were able to convince at least one major sponsor, health food retailer Marchés TAU, to jump aboard and anchor the Festival Manger Santé de Laval. According to De Cotis, that crucial support encouraged smaller businesses and entrepreneurs to also sign on as exhibitors.
According to the organizers, the festivals attracted visitors from Laval, Montreal and from across the greater Montreal region, while showcasing local businesses, wineries, distilleries, food producers, health and wellness organizations, artisans and community partners.
Enthusiasm beyond expectations
Together, they say, the two festivals generated significant economic activity and strengthened Laval’s position as an exciting summer destination.
“The enthusiasm from both our exhibitors and our visitors exceeded every expectation,” said James Bissi, another festival co-organizer.
“Many exhibitors have already expressed their desire to return next year, which is the greatest compliment we could receive,” he continued. “Their confidence tells us that these festivals create real value – not only for businesses, but for the entire community.”
With more than 10,000 visitors combined and over 100 exhibitors participating across both festivals, the organizers maintain that the events are becoming strong contenders in the region’s most anticipated summer celebrations.
Planning next year’s events
They say planning is already underway for the 2027 editions, with expanded programming, new attractions and announcements on developments to come.
“From the very beginning, our objective was to create events that unite people through exceptional food, beverages, wellness and culture while showcasing everything Laval has to offer,” said Emilio Migliozzi, another co-organizer.
“The response from the public has been remarkable, and we are excited to continue growing these festivals into a signature summer tradition that attracts visitors from across Quebec,” he said.
In life as in the world of entrepreneurialism and community engagement, networking occupies a very important place.
As such, De Cotis acknowledged in an interview with The Laval News that each of the three co-organizers, who formed a committee to oversee the two festivals, is (or was at one time) affiliated with the Action Laval municipal party.
A political connection
James Bissi (who is De Cotis’s nephew, according to De Cotis) was Action Laval’s candidate in the district of Sainte-Dorothée in the 2025 municipal elections. However, Bissi has distanced himself from the party since then and is no longer a registered member, according to De Cotis.
As for Migliozzi, he served Action Laval as a political attaché as recently as 2014. Apart from that, he was an early supporter of the Mouvement lavallois, which now holds the most seats in Laval city council, although he left to join Action Laval.
In spite of the shared connection, De Cotis insisted they went to great lengths to keep politics out of the two festivals.
“This is not political at all and I don’t want Action Laval to be involved in this,” he said. “We purposely didn’t put anything related to politics. We didn’t ask any municipal councillors to be sponsors in any way.”
