Member Article

ACC Liverpool returns record figures

ACC Liverpool has achieved its highest annual turnover since opening in 2008.

The venue, home to BT Convention Centre and Echo Arena, delivered a turnover of £14.7m, compared to just over £12.9m for the previous 12 month period. Figures are based on audited accounts for the year ended 31 March 2013.

Profit before tax saw a 23 per cent increase on last year to more than £303,000.

Highlights of the 2012-13 ACC Liverpool calendar included BBC Worldwide Showcase, the National Cancer Research Institute and the National Union of Teachers annual conferences. A total of 85,000 delegates were welcomed to 98 events in BT Convention Centre. Echo Arena hosted more than 523,000 visitors to 89 events including George Michael, One Direction, Strictly Come Dancing and the table tennis World Cup.

Bob Prattey, chief executive of ACC Liverpool, said: “These figures relate to our fifth year since opening and reflect another successful period for ACC Liverpool.

“Both the arena concert and conference markets experienced a significant upturn in the financial year 2012-13. We welcomed quality artists, sizeable national and international conferences and will continue to do so.

“Performance for the year ending March 2014 looks set to be even stronger with BBC Worldwide Showcase and NHS Confederation among returning conferences while arena highlights include Premier League Darts, Gary Barlow and Dolly Parton to name but a few. It will also herald the start of an exciting new phase for us with the start on site of Exhibition Centre Liverpool.”

Meanwhile ACC Liverpool has increased its workforce to 150 across a number of departments including marketing, commercial and box office to support its continued growth in business. An expansion into new markets has led to a steady rise in members of staff, which has more than doubled from 72 in 2008.

Mr Prattey added: “We are currently experiencing a busy Christmas period. A total of 70 events will have been held in the final two months alone with more than 180,000 visitors coming through our doors in November and December.

“We’ve welcomed acts such as Bruno Mars and JLS and conferences including the Museums Association and The British Society of Immunology. We are constantly developing new opportunities in order to provide more services and products for visitors and ultimately generate more income for the city region, which will be further enhanced with the opening of Exhibition Centre Liverpool in 2015.”

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, said: “ACC Liverpool is a major success story for the city region. It has significantly boosted the economy, attracted numerous visitors to Liverpool and increased employment opportunities. These latest figures show that is going from strength to strength and with the new Exhibition Centre on the horizon it will be an even greater asset to the city.”

An estimated £760m in economic benefit has now been generated for the city region since opening.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .