Stamford Bridge reports rise in events and hospitality bookings

Stamford Bridge London, home to Chelsea Football Club, has reported an increase in enquires and bookings for events space and corporate hospitality from both UK and international clients since the EU Referendum in June.

The trend appears to be London-wide, with London’s convention bureau London & Partners this month announcing a spike in enquires by 41%.

Simon Hunter, Head of Venue & Brand at Chelsea Football Club commented: “Since the EU referendum result in June, the value of the pound has fallen by 10%, which while it cannot be considered a positive for the wider UK economy, has resulted in the ‘Brexit-Boom’, an occurrence that has been widely reported by UK media. A rise in inbound tourism, paired with an increase of staycations, means that London is busier than ever.

“This trend hasn’t just stopped at London’s high street shops and restaurants. For large businesses such as ours, we have seen a good increase in enquires and bookings over the last three months, with a 10% rise in enquiries since early July.

“Ultimately, businesses still need to meet. Meet with their team, their clients and potential new business. The requirement and need fundamentally is still here and we are still delivering the same high-quality service that clients have come to expect from us. It’s important that we continue to promote the fact that it’s ‘business as usual’ and we are very much behind London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s #LondonIsOpen campaign.

“Our Business Development Team embarked on a Sales Tour in July, visiting US cities including Los Angeles, Detroit, Minneapolis and New York, actively targeting corporate event planners in response to the sales team recording a 6% increase on growth from 2014/15 – the third consecutive year of growth. Whilst no one can predict what the future holds for the industry as the government negotiates our exit from the European Union, it’s essential that businesses aren’t panicked into making knee jerk reactions. It’s time for us to continue to consolidate our offer and take a considered and coordinated strategic approach to communicating that offer positively to the global market.”