NEWS IN DEPTH | SPECIAL REPORT Going places
Deirdre Wells moved from UKinbound to become chief executive of Go To Places – the company which runs Visit Kent and Visit Herts. She spoke to Samantha Mayling
Q: Why did you join Go To Places in September?
A: I thoroughly enjoyed my time at UKinbound. We increased membership by a third, took on a new international exhibition at Arabian Travel Market, and became an authoritative voice for inbound tourism. I can now put my knowledge
and experience to work at the destination level. These are challenging times for destinations as local authority funding diminishes. I am privileged to have accumulated quite the ‘little black book’ over my career which I can maximise for the good of Kent and Hertfordshire.
Q: What are your priorities?
A: My focus will be Discover England Fund (DEF) projects and maximising the impact of major events. We lead on two DEF projects: Garden and Gourmet Trails, and Creative Coast, and will launch itineraries at WTM London, with businesses across Hertfordshire, Kent, Essex, Cheshire, Sussex and the Peak District. We are hosting the Turner
Prize in 2019 and the Open Golf in 2020 and Visit Kent will deliver the tourism development plans. I want to increase inbound tourism and overnight stays, and develop business tourism.
Q: How many a year visit Kent and Hertfordshire?
A: Kent receives more 60 million and Hertfordshire has 25 million visitors. VisitBritain forecast a 4.4% increase nationally for inbound visits in 2018, so the future looks bright.
10 TravelGBI | November 2018 Q: What does Go To Places do?
A: Go To Places is an exciting new business model providing the opportunity for an experienced destination management organisation (DMO) to support destinations. From providing expertise on planning, visitor insights and website development, we have the capacity and experience to offer a range of services to destinations across the country. We can offer thematic support, building on our experience leading projects such as the DEF programmes, the Wine Garden of England and the Golf group.
Q: How can you measure its success?
A: Repeat business: many destinations which asked us for advice on destination planning have asked for further support. The most important indicator is the growth of interest in destinations we have supported – we have seen exponential growth on social media channels and website traffic.
Q: What are the main challenges facing Kent and Hertfordshire?
A: Many people are feeling the pinch as the economy faces uncertain times. Many attractions reported a difficult year, particularly in the family market. Our challenge will be to champion the excellent value which our businesses offer and ensure that we maximise revenue. Brexit offers a particular challenge for Kent businesses as we will be in the frontline of any
disruption at ports. We are developing a campaign
to build business resilience and restore visitor numbers post-Brexit.
Q: What are the opportunities?
A: Research shows many customers are seeking experiences, a more bespoke and personalised itinerary, and the opportunity to ‘live like a local’. Our heritage offer is second
to none and will always be a huge draw but there can be a complacency that something which has stood for 900 years will always be there, so I will visit it ‘at some point’. Providing Instagram-able
experiences is also critical – we have found that our visitors can be our best marketeers, if you give them the opportunity to find those hidden gems.
Q: What are the highlights for next year?
A: Hosting the Turner Prize in 2019 will be a huge boost to Kent, bringing an estimated extra 250,000 visitors. I am also excited about the £90 million expansion to the McArthur Glen Designer Outlet at Ashford and the £180 million re-development of Watford’s shopping area.
Q: The Discover England Fund comes to an end next year – how has it benefited tourism?
A: DEF has been a huge boost at a time of real decline in public sector support for tourism at a local level.
Deirdre Wells
Worked at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for 20 years, on projects including the Millennium Dome, Liverpool Capital of Culture and 2012 Olympic Games. She led the team that organised memorial services for UK victims of 9/11, the Asian Tsunami, Bali Bombings and London 7/7 attacks, and she received an OBE for this work in 2007.
Her final post at DCMS was head of tourism, overseeing VisitEngland and VisitBritain. In 2014 she became chief executive of UKinbound.
A strength of the fund has been
the focus on partnership working and a visitor-first approach. DEF enabled us to develop new
products: we hope our Gardens and Gourmet trails will change forever international perceptions of our fabulous food and stunning countryside. Creative Coast allows us to align our world-class culture with our stunning landscape.
Q: What funding would you like to see when DEF ends?
A: A DEF mark 2! These projects prove there’s an appetite from businesses, customers and tour operators for this type of activity. It is a great model and one which we need to continue.
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FIND OUT MORE
gotoplaces.co.uk
travelgbi.com
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