VISITORS returning to Liverpool after enjoying the Capital of Culture events are helping to maintain the momentum of last year’s culture celebrations for city retailers.
The new chief executive of Liverpool Business Improvement District, Ged Gibbons, believes the planning for Liverpool 08 – which saw partnerships forged to ensure the city worked well together – and the success that it brought are continuing to provide benefits to the city, despite the recession.
Mr Gibbons said: “Liverpool has very much joined hands in looking at this as a multi-agency approach.
“People come to places where they feel safe and where they enjoy the environment. A lot of what we are doing to make Liverpool attractive is telling people it’s a safe place to come and see – and we are now seeing a lot of repeat visitors from people who came and enjoyed the offer during Capital of Culture.
“It’s about building on the successes of 2008 and not about being complacent. While there is a recession, Liverpool is not being as hard hit as other similar-sized cities in the UK.”
Mr Gibbons spent 11 years in St Helens, where he has been the town centre manager since 2003.
He has been on secondment in Liverpool since November, 2007, first as senior events support manager – working on events including the Mathew Street Festival, Tall Ships and La Machine – before becoming acting chief executive of Liverpool BID when former head Rita Waters left for Chester Renaissance.
He took charge just after traders had voted to continue the BID scheme, which was set up in 2005, for a further five years and extended it to cover Bold Street.
Mr Gibbons said: “Most Liverpudlians would view Bold Street as being fundamental to the city centre. It’s always had that quirky Bohemian independent retail feel to it which is a massive attraction of Liverpool city centre. So, if you add that to Church Street, Lord Street, Clayton Square and Williamson Square, it gives you the diversity of offer that is going to attract people of all walks of life and different purses.
“I think the first thing that strikes you within the BID in Liverpool is the diversity and size of it. There are 650 businesses across the daytime and night-time economy.”
