One of the UK’s largest event venues – has said it ‘remains extremely confident in its growth trajectory’ as quarterly figures show a strong business performance ahead of new CEO, Lori Hoinkes.
Figures from its latest Economic Index covering the first three months of the year (1st January – 31st March 2024) revealed the venue welcomed over 123,600 visitors to 41 events in the quarter (an increase of over 8,440 on the same period last year) once again signalling the region’s economic strength and organiser appetite to host large-scale events outside London.
Events held at the 10,000-capacity venue in the quarter included LEGO’s Bricktastic, the acclaimed Northern Restaurant and Bar exhibition and elite global sports event HYROX. The quarter’s events brought the total number of conferences, exhibitions and events held at the venue in the financial year to 152.
Shaun Hinds, who recently left to take up the role of Chief Executive at Newbury Racecourse, said: “I’m extremely pleased with how the venue has performed through this quarter. With an incoming change in leadership, it can be easy to assume a period of instability, however these figures not only demonstrate the strength of the venue and our ability to host large events, but also the expertise of the leadership team we have in place.
“We have put the necessary plans in place to ensure a seamless transition as Lori comes on board, and together with the team, we are confident of the strong trajectory we are on.”