Memorandum submitted by Barry Cole
In the submissions that I heard no reference
was made to the issue of Business Tourism. In addition there were
some issues that I felt might be worth drawing out from what was
discussed at the hearing and I do hope it is not presumptuous
of me to raise these especially as they the points may well have
come up at other times.
Each witness was asked what might they aspire
to for the future of the destination and I have included my own
thoughts on this.
THE ENGLISH
RIVIERA AS
A TOURIST
DESTINATION.
There is some passion in political circles and
within the community to "diversify" and not be reliant
on tourism. I have some difficulty in diverting our efforts away
from our core business.
There are numerous destinations around the world
whose existence relies solely on tourism. They remain proud of
this and concentrate their efforts on being the best at this.
There is no shame in understanding where your USP lies. We do
not have the infrastructure that will allow us to major on any
other business sector that can contribute as much to the wellbeing
and lifestyle of the indigenous population as tourism.
The South Devon by-pass, which though not mentioned
last night MUST surely have been raised elsewhere as an imperative,
can assist the traffic flow and can help build some businesses
but will not be a panacea for the creation of any major clustering
of new sectors other than home based working.
As a destination we should be focused on tourism
and us that a a tool for the economic wellbeing of the area.
This means that the approach to investment by
government should be no different than it would be if the area
where reliant on say car manufacturing that was going through
a tough time.
Funding should be weighted to give consideration
to the influx ofvisitors numbers so that the build and environment
infrastructure is enhanced, the destination become more attractive
and the tourist spend retained in the UK.
BUSINESS TOURISM
With the development of Exeter airport and the
Flybe routes, the RICC has for the first time participated in
EIBTM in Barcelona and next month will be attending IMEX in Frankfurt.
(These are exhibitions for attracting conference business similar
to the UK's Confex)
As a business that, from our UK clients alone,currently
generates anything between £9 million and £12 million
into the local economy we see great opportunities for further
growth and while marketing budgets are critical, the development
of a rounded destination is critical.
We will therefore welcomea Casino and any other
regeneration that adds an international competitive flavour to
the English Riviera offer.
HOTEL STOCK
There is a place for small hotels and guest
houses in every destination whether a major City (Paris/London)
or a seaside town (Torquay/Cannes)
However, their ability to make profit is greatly
challenged by red tape, legislation and regulation whether in
relation to employment or H & S. While larger operators and
groups have the financial ability to deal with these issues, smaller
operators do not. This is no different to the Tesco/corner shop
conflict other than in one respect. The hospitality industry needs
to continually invest in refurbishment, and product review in
a way the corner shop does not.
The publics confidence in the standards offered
at a destination is critical and the approach to achieving this
across a destination in its entirety from taxi to hotel to traffic
warden and shop attendant requires some lateral thinking. Here
is a government opportunity.
The investment in the destination could be linked
to a contract with government to delivera destination-wide quality
assurance scheme.
The concept should be piloted on the English
Riviera.
This would drive out sub-standard properties,
those who merely tinker at being in the hospitality industry but
have actually chosen a lifestyle after a previous career, enhance
the wellbeing of the indigenous population and set standards for
the whole UK tourist product to which to aspire.
In turn the destination would be focused on
value for money, in other words being able to charge sufficient
to re-invest in thebusiness
March 2008
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