Peter Heath, founder, Venue Performance, looks forward to a strong 2025 once the sector has passed the Budget hurdle
“We are currently seeing signs of a little bit of a wobble, most likely due to the government not really giving anybody a hint of what's coming at the end of October. People are cautious. They fear the unknown. They don’t know anything about what is approaching - if they did, they might be able to make decisions. As it is, they are in stasis.
“We haven’t seen a complete end to booking, just a slight dampening. Events are easy to cut; they're just a date in the diary that you're going to have to pay a deposit for. That's no big deal. People are also wary of having an event where they have to express an opinion. In this case, you can’t say anything reassuring about the Budget, so better you say nothing at all.
“At the moment we are being told to carry on as normal, but all the time in the back of the mind is the fear that taxes are going to go up. Don't do anything and don't spend anything, but go about your business. Schmooze clients, spend money, develop product.
“So corporates are being cautious. Everybody's being a little bit cautious. There's a little bit of a dampening down. The good news is that, no matter what Sir Keir does, we all expect 2025 to be good. He can't do that much damage; he can’t be as bad as Liz Truss for the economy.
“It’s the same process we see during an election. Everything slows down and you don’t know what’s going to happen. In the event, we get a government and the world continues to turn. It’s just a pity for the sector that we have had a Budget and an election in a short space of time, but then 2025 will appear and say, ‘Don't worry, I'm here. Everything's going to be okay’.
“We are, broadly speaking, all right. The economy is getting better. We’re all going back into the office. The only box left to tick is the US election and surely Trump won’t get in, right?”
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