Shaun Hinds, CEO, Manchester Central, explains why the North is leading the way for business events.
Let’s face it, the North hasn’t always been seen as the ‘go-to’ for business and London has often been the first and only choice for major events in the UK. But things are changing and interest in the region is at an all time high. Finally, the North is paving its own path as the more cost effective and cosmopolitan choice for organisers.
The past 12 months alone is testament to this. Liverpool has staged Eurovision – a global event which delivered a £54m economic boost to the city region, Bradford has been named the UK’s City of Culture for 2025 and Manchester has seen the UK’s largest investment in a national cultural project since the opening of Tate Modern with the £210m part-government funded project Factory International (Aviva Studios).
Within our own 23,000m² space we’ve recently staged the Interflora World Cup, with 200,000 flowers ‘taking over’ Manchester for several days. It was a sight to behold and attracted more than 5,000 people from far and wide. And we’re really excited to host the WOMEX International Music Convention next year. We’ll host the main conference while other venues such as Bridgewater Hall and O2 Ritz will stage live music. Based on similar events of its size hosted in the UK, it’s estimated that the total value of business generated at WOMEX 2024 will be around £28.3m, of which an estimated £5.6m will be generated by UK delegates.
Future growth
When you consider these successes and the growing strength of Northern cities overall, it’s clear that the ambition and ability isn’t waning, and as we continue to collectively excel in staging these ‘mega-events’ in the North, I have no doubt that this confidence will transcend. The desire for companies to showcase their presence beyond London will become more important than ever leading to a much more even spread for the sector across the country.
For us at Manchester Central, we have seen event after event coming to us having traditionally been hosted in the south. These organisers have made the choice to stage events outside of the M25 largely because they recognise and understand that economic growth – and business success – is no longer solely confined to the capital. It’s not just the BBC or Channel 4 making the North their stronghold, Manchester is now outperforming much larger cities on the continent in terms of investment funding and there is growing political importance in the region too with GCHQ relocating their headquarters to the city and the Cabinet Office moving over 1,000 employees up north in coming years.
I have no doubt that the North will continue to grow as a business powerhouse in coming years and the impact this will have on the events sector will parallel this growth. Having worked in Manchester for more than two decades, I’ve watched its importance on the world stage take shape, sometimes literally – since 2018, 27 skyscrapers have been built in central Manchester, with a further 20 towers currently under construction. In fact, Manchester now has more tall buildings than any other city in the UK outside London, signalling not just a population increase, both residential and corporate, but the huge investment in and the prosperity of the region itself.
So while this confidence and growth in the North continues to gain pace, it simply won’t stand up to judgement to watch the state of our national infrastructure decline. Despite the pulling of the northern leg of HS2, which will undoubtedly have ramifications on the ease and simplicity of travel across the UK, I do believe that all is far from lost and the strategic importance of northern cities and the levels of investment being seen within them, will only put pressure on successive Governments to resolve these issues.
From our point of view in events, we need to continue to lobby as a sector to see connections improved in a way that makes travel more affordable and easier, and opens up the ability of business to do deals right across the country not just in London, ultimately delivering growth. Our devolved governments, from Liverpool and Greater Manchester to South and West Yorkshire, all recognise this and continue to work with local businesses such as ours to put pressure on the national government to drive solutions forward.
We also mustn’t lose sight of the here and now. With the original HS2 plans not due to even complete until 2033 at best, it is imperative we continue to answer the problems of today rather than fixate on these future failures.
The North is surviving and thriving, and will only continue in its success – after all, if there’s one thing that can be said about Northerners, it’s that we keep striving despite the barriers thrown in our way. The HS2 debacle is just that, a barrier, but I have no doubt we will use it as a platform to keep scaling higher.
