JUNE | COVER FEATURE |
||||
|
“ VE day , for example , and this year ’ s Centenary of RAF on 12 July . The latter will be a huge celebration and will feature one of the biggest fly pasts ever .”
Regents Park also comes with its own unique challenges , with residents situated very close by , necessitating strict restrictions on live music . Richmond Park , meanwhile , has deer and areas of scientific special interest .
“ The events in the parks really have a significant impact on London ‘ s economy , and people come from overseas . Around 3.4m people attend , and these people use the local transport , hotels , and eat out and that ’ s true for sports events and concerts too ,” says Mainwaring .
The Parks generate around 70 % of their own income , and 40 % of that comes from events . The rest is made up from catering , licenses , and the rental of a series of park buildings .
Meanwhile , as a charity , estates are often left to the Parks .
|
Above : The legendary Great Oak Stage
“ I can ’ t turn around and say ‘ by the way I ’ ll put in another concert ’. We must work to the dedicated event strategy ”
– Alun Mainwaring
|
“ But it ’ s not just the economy . People ’ s lives are improved buy these events ,” adds Mainwairing , “ That ’ s why we always have nice price point , and a family offering to give a public aspect to the events . We try to attract people to parks who might not come here . Winter Wonderland is a good example of this .
“ However , it ’ s clear that the economic impact message is not getting out . More needs to be done to publicise how valuable events are .”
Given that the Parks are restricted in terms of numbers , the team has to do more to make the events it does run more profitable .
” I can ’ t turn around and say ‘ by the way I ’ ll put in another concert ’. We must work to the event strategy . This means we must think creatively to get more commercial income but not from having more actual events .”
One area the team looks at is introducing more highend experiences . “ We look at where we can improve on each event afterwards , in addition to the operational issues . In terms of the commerciality , there ’ s
|
always creative ways of doing that . It ’ s about improving what we have on site , the scope of the tender . “ I think it ’ s taken a while but the mid week is a success story , incredible catering , free cinema , Major League Baseball , activations , attractions , and low level music are good fun , and not so intrusive . People are free to walk in , and enjoy the park , and summer in London with high quality attractions . Improved commerciality of the event is also important , and all the caterers and bars are working which drives revenue .
“ We always look at what the other parks in London are up to . We work with Steve Edwards ( see boxout ) who ’ s been here for 40 years . He ’ s seen it all .”
One area that has gained an increase in budgeting allocation is crowd management . “ All our events have security sub groups , including the Metropolitan Police . All parties are aware vehicle barriers , closed roads , and the various routes in and out of the park . Importantly though , we make sure the rest of the park is working as it should do .”
Whether you ’ re royalty , a Rolling Stones or a weekend wanderer , the Parks ’ events strategy is designed around you .
|