Foreword

Dear colleagues

Welcome to the July edition of Glasgow Life’s Tourism and Events Update which provides a snapshot of recent and forthcoming activity undertaken by our destination marketing, conventions and major events teams.

We are now moving into phase 3 of the Scottish Government’s Covid-19 route map which encompasses the welcome return of Scotland’s tourism industry on 15 July. Glasgow Life has already outlined the phased approach it will take to reopening some of the city’s public buildings, including several of the city’s major museums, libraries, arts and sports facilities, in line with ongoing public health and government guidance.

Among the prioritised 61 venues and facilities that we intend to reopen across four phases between July and October are key visitor attractions: Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Riverside Museum, Tramway and the Gallery of Modern Art.

It is vital for Glasgow Life’s destination marketing, conventions and major events teams to understand which city businesses are already open, or are making plans to do so.

To this end, we have launched the Glasgow Business Reopening Register to gain an understanding of the status of our tourism and events product across the city’s neighbourhoods. This will help shape our future consumer campaigns, travel trade activity and digital content planning. If you haven’t already had the chance to complete the survey on behalf of your business, I would urge you to please do so.

To coincide with the reopening of Scottish tourism on 15 July, our destination marketing team has launched a new consumer campaign #Glasgowisopen, which is aimed at encouraging our citizens to be tourists in their own city.

Our Convention Bureau meanwhile reveals key findings from joint research undertaken with the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA) to understand the challenges facing clients and delegates in the post Covid-19 world, so we as an industry can forward plan accordingly.

Glasgow Life’s major events team report on work underway with the Glasgow Events Board and other strategic partners to drive forward an events strategy, which will be an integral component of the city’s economic recovery. They also provide updates on UEFA 2020 and the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships.

The Glasgow Tourism and Events Response Group (GTERG), which was established in June, has created an integrated and co-ordinated response from the city’s tourism and events industry in order to lobby government for sector support and emphasise its significant contribution to the city and the national economy.

As momentum across the city gathers, a continued Team Glasgow approach will be critical to the city’s economic recovery over the coming weeks and months. We want to ensure a joined-up approach to producing a compelling city narrative and inspirational digital content to demonstrate Glasgow’s credentials as an attractive destination to live, study, work and visit in the – hopefully – not too distant post Covid-19 future.

On behalf of the team here at Glasgow Life, I would like to wish all of you the very best of luck with your reopening plans and the welcome return of customers to your business.

Susan Deighan

Director of City Marketing and External Relations

Glasgow Life