CLIENT: Watford Council
PROJECT: NightMix Economics & Cultural Strategy
What were MAKE asked to do?
Working with economists TBR we were asked to provide an analysis of the borough’s evening and night-time economy and how this could be improved to enhance the opportunities for cultural activity to flourish ‘after dark’.
How did MAKE do it?
We produced a profile of the town’s night-time economy using our own NightMix data. This segmented the borough’s economy down into key after dark subsectors such as food, drink, entertainment. In turn we broke these down further into very specific measurable niche segments such as arts venues, live music etc. We then measured these historically over a decade of performance.
We identified where Watford’s night-time subsectors had strengths and where they were weak. In particular, this meant drilling down into the town’s night-time firms’ financial, employment performance as well as forecasting their growth potential.
We put the town’s night-time economy and its lack of cultural venues in context and raised alarm bells about how the town had let too many alcohol-led venues open for the balance to be right. (We demonstrated how this was the oppositeof peer group town, regional and national trends).
What happened next?
Our work formed a key part of the new and ambitious cultural strategy – for the first time the borough had taken its night-time economy seriously, viewing its cultural and economic value proactively, rather than just in reactive regulatory terms.
The work made stakeholders sit up and take notice that their night-time economy had been going in the wrong direction (there were too many young people’s venues and not enough was being done to promote food, entertainment and culture after dark).
What unique value did MAKE bring to this project?
Even small towns benefit from our NightMix data. We were able to give Watford the basis on which to measure its cultural growth and an evidence base for those promoting culture to argue with planners and economic development for greater inclusion of arts and popular culture within the borough’s placemaking plans and policies.