Inward investment on the cards as York launches tourism body
DESTINATION management firm Make it York was launched this week, with 300 people in attendance, to promote inward investment in the city.
It will bring together the work currently delivered by Visit York, Science City York (SCY) and City of York Council’s inward investment, events and festival teams into one strategic company.
Make it York is a company that the council has contracted, but remains in the private sector, with its own board with the council as a shareholder.
Jane Lady Gibson is the architect of the organisation and for two and half a years she was the driving force behind it, and along with many others worked collaboratively across the city to make it happen.
Managing director Steve Brown spoke to TheBusinessDesk.com after the launch.
Mr Brown himself has been the regional newspaper circuit, at publications in Newcastle, Teeside, Birmingham and Leeds, and during the course of his career he got involved with other private sector partnerships such as Marketing Birmingham.
On why Make it York’s launch was necessary, Mr Brown said: “It will join things up which are normally split between unwieldy, unconnected organisations, and its purpose is to create one cohesive, compelling voice to promote York, and any money we make would be ploughed back into the city.”
The new not-for-profit firm will bring 45 people together under one roof, and is now open for business after the formal launch of the new company.
When asked how to the board is envisioning bringing organisations to the city, Mr Brown said: “It’s really simple, we need to refresh the inward investment story for York. We need to create a more compelling story and put together a tool kit to help which includes online and offline materials, enabling us to sell to target business.”
They are working with former York Press managing editor Steve Hughes at York BID to orchestrate efforts and devolving powers from councils to the private entities.
Mr Brown said: “Councils across the land have a really difficult job, with major budget cuts, and therefore councils have to concentrate on the big things such as housing and social care.
“The things that Make it York will cover are things that are most important to us, so the council can concentrate on things like that.”
He said there would be a focus on strong existing industries such as tourism, food, manufacturing, rail, science and digital and IT.
Tourism in particular, Mr Brown said, was an area of focus; “We’re looking at growing our share of different types of tourism, so thatthe value of it increases. Overseas tourists would likely use hotels for a longer period of time, and business tourism would create demand for conferences and meeting spaces which we already have and can develop further.”
He said: “One of the big things we’ve got to do is become a self sustaining company. We need to fight to have a successful future and to compete with cities like Leeds and Sheffield, having a really robust organisation is majorly important.”
