COVER STORY GLASGOW LIFE
è So, events will have to have a 360o
approach, I enquire? “Tat’s a really good way of
looking at it. Tat’s why there’s a bit of a focus on the structures, the governance structures that support events. We’ve changed those over the last 18 months; there’s now a Glasgow Event Board as opposed to the old strategic major events forum,” Garrett adds. Te personnel are yet to be
revealed in full but the board will be chaired by the city council’s Depute Leader, David McDonald, who also Chairs Glasgow Life, and will also include stakeholders from EventScotland and the wider tour- ism, leisure and hotels sector. Te purpose is also create a “frictionless” approvals process around hosting events in the city, making it easier for event owners to access decision- makers.
EVENTS WILL be categorised as ‘local, signature, anchor and mega’ and part of the strategy will ar- ticulate how regularly the city will commit to hosting them. Garrett says smaller events brought into the city via investment and a new business model, like those which have proved popular at Kelvingrove Bandstand, demonstrates the way Glasgow will approach all events; there has to be a “strong busi- ness case” at the heart of them, and which “drive direct spend” on events and in the wider city. He uses the word “realistic” as if to temper expectations on what is “achievable” between now and 2030, given the financial con- straints, yet reiterates the desire for Glasgow to be “punching above its weight”. “We see ourselves as a city
that hosts mega events,” he says. “Whether that’s a future Common- wealth Games or a future European Championships, who knows, but we are in the market for mega events, we absolutely are. What’s interesting, I suppose, if you think about the European Champion- ships in 2018 and UCI (world cy- cling championships) in 2023, both of these are new events; the very first iteration has been in Glasgow and Scotland.” He adds: “And I think there’s
something interesting there for Glasgow as a host and that’s about how we develop a slightly different kind of relationship with the event owners. Tere’s the beginnings of a movement away from a reliance on the bid process on all occasions. I think there’s a recognition that
Artistic Gymnastics at the European Championships Glasgow 2018 at The SSE Hydro
a forerunner of innovation; Berlin’s intention to host all of its national championships under one banner this summer is evidence that the European Championships multi- sport event is having a lasting effect on worldwide events delivery. Garrett is also keen to stress that
the sale-leaseback of Glasgow Life estate assets such as the Emirates Arena, Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome and Glasgow Concert Hall will have absolutely no effect on costs for events operators coming to the city. “Clearly there is a cost,” says Gar- rett. “Tere will be a revenue cost to the city of that arrangement; it will be millions of pounds per annum but that’s of a council budget of £2bn. “In terms of us operating the
Emirates Arena or the Concert Hall which are Glasgow Life venues, which we operate on behalf of the council, it has no impact on how we cost those venues for events owners or rights holders. Tere is absolutely no reason for anyone thinking about bringing an event to the city to take that into consider- ation. Other than as a positive.”
“WE SEE OURSELVES AS A CITY THAT HOSTS MEGA EVENTS,WHETHER THAT’S A FUTURE COMMONWEALTH GAMES OR A FUTURE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS, WHO KNOWS, BUT WE ARE IN THE MARKET FOR MEGA EVENTS, WE ABSOLUTELY ARE.”
Billy Garrett, Director of Sport and Events, Glasgow Life
22 | EVENTSBASE | SPRING 2019
that doesn’t always quite deliver exactly what the event needs. We’re certainly finding that. Federation and event owners are more willing to enter into a dialogue and a con- versation and a partnership around how to place events and what’s important and what the priorities are around that process.”
STAGING THE Host City event in Glasgow – where international event owners and rights holders are due to gather once again in Novem- ber – is another important marker for the city’s ongoing events ambi- tion; the conference is explicitly designed to provide a platform for international events organisers and hosts to come together and discuss the latest industry developments and trends. Glasgow’s events strat- egy will be available to delegates by then and no doubt the city will use its policy approach to influ- ence conversations at the highest level. Te city can also claim to be
THERE IS indeed a lot to be positive about for events in Glasgow and the city is now firmly on the map for international events, which in- cludes the growing footprint of cul- tural events such as Celtic Connec- tions and Aye Write!. Tere’s also a real attempt to present a coherent vision for events, says Garrett, and the new strategy will present ideas around building on its People Make Glasgow brand to make sure visi- tors feel welcome while in the city. Tere is, too, a realisation that a willingess to experiment and create new events can help build a sense of place, ownership and civic pride: there are whispers of a new closed road cycling event next year, along the lines of Ride London and Vélo Birmingham & Midlands, which ties into the big UCI international professional scene but also satisfies demand from local amateur partici- pation. Tere is no fixed timescale for that event – whose route may include the Trossachs - landing in the city, but it is thought that dis- cussions are at an advanced stage and 2020 is a reasonable timescale for its launch onto the annual calendar. Presumably for Garrett, the fact
that it makes those vital policy connections to the city’s health and wellbeing aims will chime very nicely indeed with the new strategy. n
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