New research released shows that £45 million of business revenue was generated in Cornwall by visitors attending Boardmasters 2017; £22 million of which was directly attributable to the event providing a major boost to the local economy. The independent study by the South West Research Company highlights the extent of spend by consumers on food and drink, accommodation, shopping, entertainment and transport in Newquay town centre and surrounding areas, as well as associated direct business spend on contractors and suppliers by Vision Nine, organisers of Boardmasters.
Taking place over five days, across Fistral Beach and Watergate Bay each August, the festival sees over 80,000 unique visitors attend either one or both festival sites. 240,000 visitor days in Cornwall are generated across this time period.
In addition to the overall £45 million of revenue created by the events, Vision Nine contracted over £1.5m directly with Cornish suppliers. The figures show this additional expenditure plus supplier spend supports the equivalent of 335 full time jobs within Cornwall.
More than half of 2017 festival goers said this was their first time at the festival, 78% said the event was their main reason for visiting Cornwall and 77% of the attendees also visited Newquay town centre.
Newquay’s Mayor, Councillor Andy Hannan said: “At £45 million, the economic impact of Boardmasters for all kinds of businesses across our town, and the surrounding areas, is significant and with current financial uncertainties, this is vital boosted income for our local economy in a host of different ways. The Fistral Beach site draws visitors from all over the country to stay in and around Newquay with the huge choice of hotels, B&Bs, lodges and camping and caravan providers, and whilst they’re here they spend in our shops, bars, restaurants and with our activity providers.”
Councillor Hannan continued: “Boardmasters also brings those who are staying elsewhere in Cornwall into our town to witness the highest levels of surfing and action sports. And it’s evident that even if festivalgoers are staying on site at the Watergate Bay area, they also travel across the town during their stay and head out along the coastline to explore, bringing additional spend to businesses across Newquay, Watergate Bay, Mawgan Porth and beyond. What’s also critical is that lots of these visitors will return to the Newquay time and time again, highlighting the importance of this event in our annual lifestyle destination calendar.”
Vision Nine CEO, Andrew Topham, said; “We’re delighted to see the positive economical impact Boardmasters brings to Cornwall. We work alongside many members of the local community from performers, to Cornish contractors and many business owners to deliver a first-class festival. We’re extremely excited to bring so many visitors to Cornwall and showcase the stunning coastline and beaches that Newquay and Cornwall have to offer and looking forward to doing so into 2019 and beyond.”
