Brighton & Hove is home to a highly concentrated number of event organisers, event promoters, contractors and suppliers. Working on hundreds of events in Brighton & Hove throughout the year both internal and external as well as nationally and internationally. Their work includes some of the city’s most iconic celebrations, such as Brighton & Hove Pride, The Great Escape Festival, Brighton Festival, Kemptown Carnival, Children’s Parade and Paddle Round the Pier.
These events generate tens of millions of pounds worth of revenue for the city both directly and through the hospitality and transport industries and these companies employ hundreds (sometimes thousands) of local people to deliver them.
The closure of venues and cancellations of events has resulted in a huge financial loss for these businesses which in turns leads to loss of work for freelancers and contractors. Our latest surveying of the industry in the city please the losses of contracts in the hundreds and losses to industry business in the millions.
The event industry in the city identified the danger and saw an opportunity to take their fate into their own hands whilst also uniting to help the community around them. The Brighton Event Producers Independent Committee (EPIC) was created to share knowledge and information during the lockdown and to develop ways for the events industry to help each other and the wider community through this time, ensuring a future for the businesses and guaranteeing high quality, iconic events continue to thrive in the city.
EPIC have launched a website where you can register your business – for free – and are collating information about the economic impact of the crisis for Brighton & Hove Council.
By working together we know we can survive this and come back better than ever.
If you are an event supplier, promoter or freelancer in the Brighton and Hove area and wish to register with EPIC you can register your interest at www.brightonepic.info. In addition to this Brighton EPIC can provide advice and resources to professionals and businesses who wish to establish local EPIC organisations to grow a national network of local support groups.
If you would like to complete the economic impact survey please contact – Ian Baird an BTNEPIC2020@gmail.com