Event Safety Alliance adds a festival partner to help guide small events to a safe restart, while Stay22 sees an uptick in sales for its ticketing partners…
Event Safety Alliance
Event Safety Alliance (ESA) has teamed up with festival authority Everfest, a division of Qcue, to provide guidance to entertainment organisations looking to relaunch events as part of the COVID-19 recovery process.
The partnership will provide access to guidance and support to small festivals who ESA chairman Jim Digby said would become the “litmus test” for the industry at large
The Qcue-owned company maintains an event-discovery site and festival guide with over 20,000 festivals listed worldwide. It also supports thousands of vendors that service the festival space through its B2B product, Everfest Pro.
Barry Kahn, chief executive of Qcue, said: “With concerns around travel, small, hyper-local festivals are likely to be the first events to come back. These festivals, and the vendors that work them, are Everfest’s partners.
“We believe that it is our responsibility to these festivals, our larger partners, and the entire live entertainment ecosystem to make sure that when these festivals happen, they are safe for everyone involved and provide a replicable template for larger events, festivals, and mass gatherings.”
The ESA’s Reopening Guide, released by the US non-profit organisation promoting safety throughout the event domain, addresses health and sanitary issues that event and venue professionals need to consider in order to protect both patrons and workers.
The first edition is tailored to be especially useful for event professionals reopening the smallest events with the fewest resources available to mitigate their risks, since in every municipal reopening plan these will be allowed to reopen first.
Digby added: “We highly value the Everfest relationship with a firm belief that small festivals will be leading the way back to a sustainable future and will become the litmus test for the industry at large.
“We look forward to working with Everfest to be in a position to help ensure that these first events are successful, both in their own safety, and in the manner in which they pave the way for the reopening of larger events.”
Rangers
Scottish Premiership football club Rangers has reported 32,000 season tickets have been renewed with the hope to see supporters return to stadia in “late August.”
The 2020-21 season will kick off behind closed doors on August 1, with season ticket holders only able to watch matches on TV via the league’s partnership with Sky.
Rangers said in a statement that they “are working hard to facilitate supporters back into Ibrox, as quickly and safely as possible.
“The club understands that a gradual increase of supporters within the stadium may begin in late August, subject to the appropriate government guidance.”
Event and travel technology firm Stay22 has reported a five-times increase on the volume of clicks of its maps placed on ticket confirmation pages.
Frederic Aouad, sales leader for Stay22, said on Linkedin that while “it’s a far cry from pre-COVID numbers, patrons are “bullish on restarting to plan travel for events.”
He added that across the firm’s ticketing partners there has been a solid uptick in sales.
Stay22 is a venue-centric accommodation map that displays hotel and Airbnb listings side by side.
The company features almost 32 million bookable listings in over 220 countries and territories, highlighting the lowest available prices for customers purchasing tickets.
PRO14 rugby union club the Scarlets has said that “everyone who possibly could” has donated their refunded ticket costs back to the club.
The Welsh club offered fans three ticketing options including a refund, gifting the money back to Scarlets or putting the money as credit towards future purchases.
Jo Daniels, director and general manager of Rugby at Scarlets, said: “It’s been a very proud and humbling day. We offered our Scarlets family a refund for what they have missed out on due to Covid-19 and everyone who possibly could, in very difficult times, have donated the refund back to the club.”
One fan said: “We are all with you and the boys, Jon. At different times you carry us. And we carry you. It’s a family thing. It isn’t about money and generosity. Some are luckier than others, of course. But for all of us it’s about belonging. And we will all find our way back to PYS and the team.”
The refunded money will help fund the club’s academy and the Community Foundation, the charity arm of the Scarlets.
In light of the continued uncertainty over when fans will be allowed into grounds, the club said it has decided to delay the launch of its 2020-21 season ticket packages.
The club plays its home games at the 14,870-capacity Parc y Scarlets stadium.
Image: OrnaW
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