Pride weekend provides £20.5 million windfall to local businesses

Independent research reveals Brighton and Hove benefits by more than £20.5 million over Pride weekend.

NEW independent research by TSE Research, the commercial research arm of Tourism South East, commissioned by Brighton Pride CIC, shows that visitors to Brighton and Hove over Pride weekend boost the local economy by more than £20.5 million.

TSE Research evaluated the economic impact of the Brighton Pride Festival 2018 on the local visitor economy based on the expenditure of non-local visitors attending the event. It also considers the economic spill-over into the wider regional economy as a result of the multiplier impact. This is when businesses receiving income from visitors through the purchase of their goods and services, in turn re-spend.

It is estimated that the Brighton Pride Festival generated a gross economic impact of £26.8 million for businesses in the city and that a further £5 million was generated for businesses across the region through multiplier effects, providing a total gross impact of £31.7 million.

The net impact is defined as the additional expenditure which arises in the local area and in the region as a direct result of the event. The likely level of additionality related to different types of events has been derived from studies of events carried out across the UK.

These numbers are mirrored by Brighton & Hove Pride’s annual survey which this year showed 84% of ticket purchasers had been to a previous Brighton & Hove Pride and 65% came from outside the Brighton & Hove city area. Of those visiting the city, 57% arrived by train and 32% stayed overnight in either hotel or B&B accommodation.

Paul Kemp, managing director of Brighton & Hove Pride said: “Tourism and events in our City are the lifeblood of our City’s economy and what makes Brighton and Hove stand out as a visitor destination. Many small local businesses reply on the annual income from Pride and other events to stay in business all year round. With the additional £250,000 in fundraising for local good causes announced last week, I’m pleased that Pride can have such a huge impact on the city ‘s economy and help support a wide range of community projects across our City”
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