FOCUS ON.14 MARCH.014 The eyes of the world will be on Leeds over the summer,
with Yorkshire hosting the Grand Depart of the Tour de France in July. A television audience of 3.5bn is expected – the perfect marketing tool for this burgeoning city. When London hosted the 2007 Tour de France start, the
capital claimed it brought £88m of spend and investment to south-east England, plus valuable media coverage. Throw in the 13,500-capacity Leeds Arena, due to open
in September, and the city’s pull at MIPIM seems more compelling than ever this year. Two years ago in Cannes, officials on the Leeds stand
were quietly contemplating the way the city was presenting itself. “We need to be a bit, well, a bit more like Manchester,” one was overheard saying. “You know. A bit more in your face.” It seems like the city has taken notice – big schemes, big
investment and big ideas. Leeds is starting to show off, and it appears to be working.
“IT SEEMS TO HAVE THE CONFIDENCE TO KNOW IT CAN COMPETE WITH MANCHESTER”
TRINITY LEEDS A VIRTUAL TOUR AROUND THE 1M SQ FT MALL