20 Jan Life after Brexit
With Article 50 about to be triggered, 9 months have passed since the EU Referendum, and a cloud of uncertainty has hung over the events industry, but like it or loathe it, Brexit is happening and we are asking – what will the events industry look like post-Brexit?
Immediately following the referendum, levels of event enquiries either stood still or declined as a rule. The worry was that clients may postpone or not even invest in events until there was further clarity on Brexit policy.
There is no doubt that uncertainty in the economy could mean discretionary spend is frozen which could have a detrimental impact on the amount of client briefs we receive as an industry. Whilst the decision to leave the EU most certainly brings uncertainty, there is also the feeling that it could bring opportunity.
The weaker pound will make the UK a more attractive proposition economically, and will make this country a more attractive option from overseas. The weaker pound could also mean that more UK companies keep their events in the UK. Purple Dog Solutions have noticed that corporates are welcoming more proposals based in the UK, rather than overseas because their pound simply goes further.
The UK cannot expect consumer confidence to return immediately post-Brexit, instead organisations need to re-evaluate their business plans and actively encourage cross-border relations and inbound international business tourism.
It is possible that the UK could even end up with two land borders should the proposed Scottish Referendum return an out vote, which could leave us with even more uncertainty and affect doing business with Scotland.
As the PM says, the UK is open to doing business with the rest of the world – this must be our strongest message. It is important for the events industry to make opportunities out of Brexit. Now is the time to communicate that the UK is a great place to do business, and most importantly to make some real noise about the skills and creativity our agencies have here in the UK.
