San Fernando Valley realtor and media influencer, Nestor Aguilar, known to many as The 818 Insider, wanted to bring something special to the San Fernando Valley by bringing together and showcasing local businesses in one huge event. After months of planning, preparation, sweat, and maybe some tears, his idea became a reality last Saturday, August 28th. Teaming up with the Westfield Topanga and the Village, as well as collaborating with event coordinator extraordinaire, Lenny Montes of Danzone5678, Aguilar brought together some of the San Fernando Valley’s hidden gems and popular local businesses in the biggest summer event post-quarantine, The Valley Fest!

Featuring 80 plus local food vendors, artisans, entertainment from local artists, groups and bands, and a beer garden serving some local brews from 8one8 Brewing Company and the San Fernando Brewing Company, alongside the Kona Brewing Company, it was no surprise locals and out of towners alike flocked to the corner of Topanga Canyon and Victory Blvd in Woodland Hills. There were over 10,000 attendees to this event.

The event kicked off with an inaugural ribbon-cutting with Councilman Bob Blumenfield, General Manager of the Westfield Topanga and the Village, Brian Parent, and representatives from Hope of The Valley. Hosted by MC Calipso Aranda, and music provided by DJ MK, the entertainment line up included Izzy Spring, Justin Tuell, Lilo Baier, Neda, The Voltz Dance Group, and Greg in Good Company.

Even at 103 degree weather, attendees enjoyed interacting with the vendors, and purchasing from them. Vendors, in turn, didn’t get a chance to catch their breath as a steady influx of customers kept on coming in. Each stall had a line and some of the more popular vendors sold out before the event ended. As the sun started going down, more people started to pour in and enjoy the event in cooler temperatures. Needless to say, a great time was had by both attendees and vendors! It safe to say that a new San Fernando Valley tradition was born last weekend!

In a post-event message on Instagram yesterday , Nestor wrote:

“The ValleyFest, is not a pop-up, is not a market but a new San Fernando Valley tradition. This is my flag of victory. We made history on Saturday with nearly 10,000 people coming from OC, Ventura & LA County. I took the time to take it all in yesterday . Some thought I couldn’t do it or thought my expectations were too high and even some decided to no longer support me, but when you do things with a genuine heart and good intentions, nothing will get in your way. But of course, I couldn’t do this alone. HUGE shoutout to my friend & event coordinator @danzone5678 , you are a real MVP and I’m so grateful for you. Thank you to my @westfieldtopanga family @brianj818@ashleyitliong for believing in my vision and helping me make history together . Thank you to our very own Councilman @bobblumenfield and team for the honor of cutting the inaugural ribbon with us, thank you to all the organizations and sponsors that joined us and helped us make this happen @chp_westvalley@hopeofthevalley@thegr818ers@885fmsocal@convothreads@818brewing@sanfernandobrewingco & @ab_onelosangeles . Shout out to my stage and entertainment team @ab_onelosangeles@bevz_delivery@lsaudiosolutions@djmk_srla@calipsoaranda .Thank you to all the vendors for being so patient with me and for showing up to make history together. And lastly, thank you to all of YOU, My San Fernando Valley 🌴 supporters. This is only the beginning, bigger & better things are coming ✨ Get Ready!”

And this is only the beginning. Stay tuned for the next big event from The 818 Insider.