Liverpool BID Company has announced a series of events throughout 2019 that will throw the spotlight on some of the city’s most loved streets showcasing Liverpool at its best.
Capitalising on the success of last year, Celebrating Castle Street returns for a second year on Friday, May 31, bringing a day-long celebration of this popular foodie hub to the heart of the Commercial District. Visitors will witness a street takeover by some of the city’s best restaurants, cafés and bars, who will venture out onto the pavements to showcase the impressive and growing food offering of Castle Street. The event will be flanked by a week-long culinary extravaganza – Food & Drink Week (May 27-June 2) – which will include offers, masterclasses and events showcasing the best of hospitality in time for the return of Bordeaux Wine Festival.
Also back by popular demand is Celebrating Bold Street (Sunday, July 7) – a huge street party on this beloved thoroughfare which in the past has included a farmers’ market, art and crafts stalls, street entertainment and long-established restaurants such as Mowgli, Maray and LEAF hitting the streets to serve up an array of tasty delights for visitors. The event will be the culmination of Independents’ Week (July 1-7), a week-long campaign to engage local independent businesses, employees and visitors in celebrating the entrepreneurial spirit of Liverpool’s growing independent business community.
Both events form part of Liverpool BID Company’s destination marketing strategy – creating quality, public events that aim to profile keys areas and businesses within the BID to drive an increase in footfall, sales and repeat visits.
Bill Addy, chief executive, Liverpool BID Company, and chair of the Liverpool Visitor Economy Network (LVEN), said:
“While Bold Street and Castle Street are two very different streets, both with their own unique identities, history and stories to tell, both have experienced remarkable growth in recent years as a hub for independent businesses and restaurants, and have come to symbolise the city region’s burgeoning visitor economy.
“It is part of our pledge to promote areas within both BIDs and raise their profile as exciting destinations to shop, relax and dine, with the key objective to increase footfall, spend and repeat visits to these vibrant locations for the benefit of our levy payers. Both streets and surrounding areas are growing and evolving. Our ‘Celebrating’ events create a fantastic opportunity for first-time and regular visitors to experience the best that they have to offer.
“Our levy payers also value the sense of community created between themselves and the general public at these events – everyone involved working together for the long-term growth and sustainability of their neighbourhoods.
“It is also important that the overarching destination marketing strategy for Liverpool City Region includes the views and needs of our levy paying businesses along with the wider business community and showcases the different assets of the city region, which is one of my main responsibilities as chair of LVEN.”
Natalie Haywood, founder and managing director of LEAF on Bold Street, welcomed the news that Celebrating Bold Street is returning in 2019, saying:
“Celebrating Bold Street has become a firm favourite for us at LEAF; something we really look forward to each year and a great focal point for the summer period. Our customers love it! It brings a huge number of people to the area, including to our business, and works brilliantly to raise Bold Street’s profile, highlighting our unique community identity in the city, as well as providing a showcase for our individual offer. We’re excited to get planning and can’t wait to see what this year holds.”
Ahead of its opening on Castle Street last year, Liverpool Gin Distillery introduced themselves to the city’s gin aficionados with a street stall during the inaugural Celebrating Castle Street event.
Emily Kelly, general manager, said the event helped to raise the venue’s profile, commenting:
“We sold numerous tickets for our venue which helped bring sales right up before we had opened. There was such a great ambiance on Castle Street and to be part of this event was such fun all round, for the staff, the numerous businesses and of course our general public. We gave out plenty of samples which of course led to bottle sales.
“We cannot thank the BID enough for giving us their support and keeping us in the know of what is happening around Castle Street and the city. We really cannot wait for this year now we have opened our doors at the Liverpool Gin Distillery.”
The BID’s destination marketing strategy includes close work with partners across the city region such as Marketing Liverpool, with whom the BID is developing the way Liverpool and the distinctive destinations within the BID are promoted locally, nationally and internationally, attracting visitors and inward investment as a direct result. This includes the annual ‘Christmas in Liverpool’ destination marketing campaign.
Along with this, the BID continues to strengthen the relationship with local and national arts organisations, for example LightNight, to throw the spotlight on key locations within the BID and provide a platform for artists to showcase their work. Only recently the BID announced that it is once again collaborating with Liverpool Parish Church and city gallery and art organisation, dot-art, to bring an exciting new piece of art to The Liverpool Plinth. The project forms part of one of the pledges in the BID’s business plan for Commercial District BID – to create a Public Art Strategy that serves to enrich the experience of those visiting and working in the area.
The BID also continues to work with Liverpool City Council to facilitate the delivery of a coordinated strategy for the Cavern Quarter and Williamson Square areas, to improve the visitor experience and maximise their iconic status.
To find out more about what Liverpool BID Company does please visit www.liverpoolbidcompany.com
