aCcEsS ALl AReAs NOEA
Predictably unstable?
Andy Grove, interim president of the National Outdoor Events
Association (NOEA), has a crack at predicting the future of events
I read at the end of last year that instability is the new normal when it
comes to the global economy. With disaster after disaster, scandal after
scandal, and general unrest from political, ecological and economical
perspectives; the world seems to be just getting on with it regardless, a
kind of global ‘Keep Calm & Carry On’ t-shirt.
It’s this attitude that I continue to see across the outdoor events
industry, throughout my career, no matter what is happening. It’s our
industry that just seems to want to get on with it, and get the job done;
so it’s nice to see our attitude is exporting itself around the world as well
as our skill set.
So, with this in mind, on behalf of NOEA I wanted to have a crack
at predicting the future. Again, an endeavour that has been widely
ridiculed by most economists and seems ever more impossible as we live
in such unstable times, but if the trade association isn’t willing to stick its
neck out, then who will!?
As an association, we also spent a lot of time last year with some really
intelligent and inspirational people as part of our Futures Forum – and
we thank once again GL events, ACT National and Eventbrite for their
support here. Th rough the forum, we managed to galvanise a great deal
of opinion on what the long-term future of the industry looks like, and
I’m keen we continue to share these fi ndings to stimulate debate and
discussion.
I also want to because, and maybe this is just the nature of the people
within our industry, as a whole, projections look good.
Let’s start with the general consumer approach to outdoor events,
pretty much all of our research points towards a growing appetite for
outdoor events. People still want to meet, communities exist both
digitally and in person, and they want to congregate, locally, nationally
46 FEBRUARY 2018
and internationally. Th e millennial and centennial audiences seem
more likely to do this than previous generations not less likely; so, the
consumers are there, it’s a matter of getting them in.
Secondly, and something our Futures group continues to discuss, is
the role of digital. I’ll refer anyone looking for more detailed information
on this trend to the new NOEA website resources. However, to sum
up, the technology that works for the organiser has a better chance of
survival, the technology that brings people into the experience and not
take them out of it, can really fl ourish! As an organistion this is a trend
we’ll continue to keep a track on.
Lastly is the subject of globalisation and in general political
interference in our industry, and yes, I can’t talk about 2018 without at
least mentioning Brexit. Again, there are a number of white papers on
the NOEA website, but for now I’ll keep it brief. Th is industry often has
a lot thrown at it, we face challenges exceptionally well, we are robust
and realistic. But many see opportunities as well, and with change comes
both, it will be interesting to see how we can profi t in 2018 rather than
be at the brunt of change.
As an association, we’re committed to continuing our look towards the
future, alongside our membership, and share our fi ndings with the wider
industry. Our convention will take place in Bath again this year and
will tackle many of the issues above, but also the day to day challenges
our industry faces as well. For the last few years we’ve delivered great
programmes and I hope to see many NOEA members and non-NOEA
members back again. So, mark 21 November in pen in your diary.
Until then, keep talking to us about how you see 2018 working for the
industry, NOEA continues to be a great place to communicate and share,
we’re looking forward to hearing from you.
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