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Contracts
upfront, honest and be clear
about what they can and can’t
deliver with social distancing in
place. “If a venue cannot
accommodate the pre-agreed
numbers they need to accept this,
tell us and declare the contract
null and void,” states Kavanagh.
Hewick agrees: “Venue teams
need to be responsive and
address the elephant in the room
because we all need to work
together to create confidence.”
Local lockdowns pose a very
real threat, and organisers would
expect venues to be proactive,
clear and concise from the outset
about the way forward. “Venues
need to show how they will
manage this both in contractual
status and in delivery mode
through crisis management,”
comments the corporate
organiser. “I’d want a single point
of contact, who is a Covid
specialist to support managing the
process of adapting the event.
Venues also need to have a robust
crisis management plan which is
shared with us at the beginning of
the journey. Contractually, this
situation needs to be addressed
and agreed at the very beginning.”
In the event of a national or
local lockdown, Field would offer a
client alternative dates – ideally
within the Club’s current financial
year. “Agencies need to be aware
of the financial responsibilities of
booking an event because it’s just
not ethical to cancel an event on a
whim,” says Field. “Some events
failed to attract minimum numbers
in a pre-Covid world and this risk
will always be there. It would be
unethical for an organiser to
blame Covid if their event didn’t
attract the minimum number of
paying guests they were expecting
due to poor marketing.”
Hewick thinks that venue chains
need to consider changing their
T&Cs for each of their venues.
“What’s applicable to a London
venue may not be appropriate to
one in the USA. There are certain
words that need to reflect the local
situation. For example, in the UK a
contract needs to reference the
UK Government and not the WHO
(World Health Organization)
because it’s the UK Government
that would impose a lockdown.”
“This is new to everyone,” says
Kavanagh. “Many of the venues
have been shut for months with
their teams furloughed, so they
were not aware of the changing
landscape of regulations, and they
are only now starting back and
quickly getting up to speed on the
Government’s advice and the
“Each
venue’s
approach
varies as
does the
information
they are
making
available,
on the
whole they
are doing a
great job
though."
industry’s guidance. Each venue’s
approach varies as does the
information they are making
available, on the whole they are
doing a great job though.”
The Meetings Industry
Association’s (mia) Contract
Guidance, which was released in
May as part of its package of
ongoing support for the sector, has
been specifically designed to help
mitigate the impact of Covid on
future bookings for everyone.
“The guidance from the mia was
very much appreciated, but it was
published before any events
activity returned and has a
tendency to be in favour of the
organiser,” comments Field. “We
are finding that without flexibility
on both sides confidence in getting
events over the line is unlikely.”
Jane Longhurst, mia chief
executive, comments: “To ensure
that the guidance is fair to all
parties, it was developed by a
working group consisting of a
panel of leading representatives
from four venues as well as a
creative events agency.
“Prior to publication, its
feasibility was also scrutinised by
the association’s board, which is
predominantly formed of leading
venue and destination experts.”
Hewick concludes: “The only way
that we can come out of this is by
focusing on relationships, working
collaboratively and creating
confidence that we can collectively
deliver safe events.”
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