BusinessIn Wales

Tourism & Travel, Transport & Infrastructure

Swansea: Let’s be proud of our city

Swansea: Let’s be proud of our city Swansea: Let’s be proud of our city Andrew Douglas – BID Manager, Swansea Thursday mornings are breakfast mornings. Every Thursday, I pop along to a local café and have breakfast with my friend and business partner. We shoot the breeze and sort out any issues we have with the small side business we run. Last week, while waiting for him to arrive, I overheard the café owner talking to a Canadian tourist who was visiting the area. The conversation was essentially about how Canada was better than Swansea — but the one arguing for Canada was the café owner! I’m firmly of the opinion that one of the worst things to happen to this city was the phrase “Pretty, S***** City.” Don’t get me wrong, Twin Town is a great film, and it was fantastic to see our city on the big screen playing itself. Usually, when we see Swansea on screen, it’s masquerading as the backdrop for Doctor Who’s latest escapade (Doctor Who can travel anywhere in time and space — just as long as it looks like South Wales). But that phrase seems to have seeped into the consciousness of the city. You only have to look at social media. Any announcement made by the council or developers regarding new projects in the regeneration of the city is met by a barrage of negativity. Subscribe to the Businessin Wales daily newsletter for FREE here.  Swansea isn’t perfect, but sometimes we forget how lucky we are. There aren’t many cities in the UK where an office worker in the city centre can walk to the beach for lunch. Swansea Bay itself is beautiful — just head to Altitude 28 if you really want proof — and we have Gower right on our doorstep. The economic impact of tourism in the City and County of Swansea is £658 million, with 1.6 million people staying here, so obviously our visitors love it. Business-wise, we have some amazing companies based here doing incredible things. We have an internationally renowned flag manufacturer, a global vodka brand, investors pouring millions into new buildings and regeneration, one of the best hotels in Wales, a distillery exporting whisky internationally, two sports teams with a global following, a multi-award-winning indoor market, a vibrant and ever-changing city centre, and a queue of national and international brands considering our city as part of their expansion plans. And that’s before we even mention the host of SMEs and sole traders producing outstanding products and services. The business innovation, talent, and ambition in this city are staggering. It’s easy to become blasé about the wonderful things around you. We see the seafront every day, for example, and sometimes we forget to stop, take it all in, and appreciate it. When we stop seeing the things that make our city special, we just start to see the negatives. If we concentrate on those negatives and shout about them for all to hear, we reinforce them and then people don’t return, move here, or invest here. Swansea BID and Swansea Council, amongst others, are working together to encourage investors and visitors to come here. We can attend conferences, trade shows, pay for advertising, and do everything possible to put “Brand Swansea” in front of those we want to attract. But our greatest marketing tool is one we can’t really control: you, the business owner and resident of Swansea. Swansea has money pouring into it thanks to the City Deal, and that is just the start. Together, we can make that money count and attract more by each and every one of us becoming an advocate for our city. So, tonight, once you’ve finished reading this, spend some time looking at the positives of our fair city and begin to love it, like I do. Want more from Businessin Wales? Why not follow us on our socials Linkedin X Instagram TikTok Listen to the Businessin Wales podcast YouTube Spotify Apple Podcasts Audible Uncategorised Glide secures NatWest funding to accelerate UK broadband expansion Residential Property, Technology & Innovation, Uncategorised Principality Stadium set to host opening ceremony of EURO 2028 Tourism & Travel, Uncategorised Swansea: A city on the up! Finance, Public Sector & Government, Residential Property, Tourism & Travel, Uncategorised

Finance, Public Sector & Government, Residential Property, Tourism & Travel, Uncategorised

Swansea: A city on the up!

Swansea: A city on the up! Swansea: A city on the up! Andrew Douglas – Swansea BID Manager I’ve been knocking on doors of businesses in this city for the last 25 years. I worked in welfare to work helping people find jobs and I’ve worked in radio (RIP Swansea Sound/The Wave) before my time with BID. All three jobs involved me walking into businesses and chatting with them about their issues and how I could help. Now I’m leading the BID, and getting involved with the nitty gritty of Swansea’s development plans, the past 25 years are giving me a unique perspective on how the city has changed for businesses and what changes are still needed. Swansea is going places. The Times recently listed Swansea as one of best places to invest in Wales, and we’ve been credited with being the 7th fastest growing city in the UK. The developments across the city have been brilliant, and there is still more to come. Obviously, my focus is very much on the city centre. The arena has been transformational, attracting over 750,000 people to the city since it opened. The Albert Hall and Palace Theatre redevelopment has brought these buildings back into use whilst preserving our heritage. There’s more to come with 71/72 The Kingsway and Princess quarter finished and about to be occupied. This year we’ll see Y Storfa, the Biophilic building, the Cupid Way car park and retail units finished and open. Along with the completion of the refurbishment of the units on Oxford Street and the top shop unit. Work will begin on Castle Square and the McDonald’s building, too.  It’s a lot, and there is a lot more to come in the city centre and the city as a whole too! Swansea Council have done an excellent job in securing the funding from the City Deal and, more importantly, private investment, and that’s the key. Council and government money is great but private investors only get involved when they see potential, and they can obviously see loads of it! So, why is this important to the smaller businesses of Swansea, and in particular Swansea city centre? Well, we all need to eat. By the end of the year, when all those buildings are finished and open, there will be a minimum of 1000 extra people working in the city centre. Even if only half of those people wander into the shops for lunch, based on an average spend of £7 a day, that’s an additional £910,000 into the tills of our food businesses. To get to those eateries, they’ll have to walk past record shops, clothes shops, jewellers etc. Footfall in the city will increase, and therefore so will trade. Swansea is also increasing its city centre residents. Currently, 19% of our population is city centre-based and that is set to increase dramatically. All using local services. Footflow will increase again. Now add in those extra 750,000 that the arena has brought in and will continue to bring in, and the reason for the confidence investors have in our fine city becomes self-evident. It’s exciting times for the city at the moment, and BID will continue to be involved in giving our city centre businesses a voice in all that is to come. Hang on to your hats, people, it’s going to be an exciting ride! Want more from Businessin Wales? Why not follow us on our socials Linkedin X Instagram TikTok Listen to the Businessin Wales podcast YouTube Spotify Apple Podcasts Audible Calendar Columnists Commercial Property Construction Energy Farming Finance Food & Drink HR & Culture Legal Manufacturing Marketing Mergers & Acquisitions Public Sector & Government Recruitment Residential Property Skills & Training Sustainability & Environment Technology & Innovation Tourism & Travel Transport & Infrastructure Uncategorised Admiral Money appoints Emma Powell as new CEO as Scott Cargill to move to group’s UK Insurance business ‘Shocked’, ‘Worrying’, ‘Wrong’: Reaction as Cardiff Rugby goes into administration Potential job losses as WRU announces ‘One Wales’ programme UK pension funds urged to remain calm amid Trump’s US tariff chaos

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