Requests for postponements, cancellations of events: after a clear upturn from last summer onwards, La Rochelle has not escaped the new difficult period experienced by the events sector since mid-December. " From September to December, our business was equivalent to what it was in 2019and without that it would probably even have been superior" says Nicolas Martin, Director of La Rochelle Tourisme & Événements. All the more so as the number of events hosted by La Rochelle was at its worst " a slight drop, or even almost the same as before" he stresses.
Festive get-togethers at the end of the year, New Year ceremonies in January: all these events, which by their very nature cannot be postponed, have been written off. " For the rest, the events scheduled for January have been postponedexplains Nicolas Martin. As for February, cancellations are still marginal. You can feel the desire not to put them offWhether for a month or a year. "
With all the current upheavals, there is a risk that the following will emerge a traffic jam of events should the current situation drag on. "It's going to be complicated to find space in the first half of the year, as our order book for 2022 is based on higher figures than in 2019.says Nicolas Martin. It's more than a catch-up: there's a carry-over effect, as well as new events on top of recurring ones. "
The destination, which is positioned for conferences of 1000 to 2000 peopleWith its compact facilities, the city has everything to appeal to event organisers. Train stations, event venues, hotels, restaurants and activities are all just a few minutes away on foot. There are still a number of handicaps - no international airport nearby, distance from major cities - which mean that La Rochelle is essentially confined to the French market. These handicaps, combined with the consequences of the pandemic, could now make La Rochelle an even more attractive proposition for the French market. turn into advantages with the growing trend towards local events. " In the future, the major international events could be replaced by a number of local events aimed at a French or European target audience. My hunch is that La Rochelle has a card to play in this segment." underlines the director of La Rochelle Tourisme & Événements.
A pioneer in urban ecology under the impetus of its former mayor Michel Crépeau, La Rochelle intends to continue to play in this buoyant niche, with the aim of regaining its lead in all these areas to which organisers are increasingly attentive. " All French convention centres are committed to a CSR approach and ISO 20121 certification. We want to go further" says Nicolas Martin. So it goes further than optimising energy or waste management, which have become classics, by looking at the overall impact of an event.
" For example, many organisers are now asking us to design hybrid events. When you think about it, with digital technology, a hybrid event a a higher 50 % carbon footprintbut you can't see itstresses the director of La Rochelle Tourisme & Événements. In the same vein, to make the event go viral, participants are invited to post messages on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Again, this has an impact. It's not logical to say to participants 'come by bike and eat organic food and encourage them to make 20 posts a day'. "
Should all the plenary sessions be streamed? Should they offer buffets with less food, but with local and organic products, which are often more expensive? La Rochelle Tourisme & Événements wants to encourage organisers to ask themselves some questions and make some choices. " We're going to be in this sobriety logicbut also quality" explains Nicolas Martin. Over the course of the year, La Rochelle Tourisme & Événements will be formalising a range of services in line with these changes, and putting them into practice around a number of test events.
Events in La Rochelle will be highlighted by the closure of the exhibition centreThis long-announced closure will take effect next summer. The shutdown will limit the town's capacity to host major concerts and a number of public events, such as the Atlantica trade fair for the open-air hotel industry, which will be held in Niort next year, and the La Rochelle trade fair, with discussions underway to find an alternative venue.
Corporate events, however, will not be affected. La Rochelle's event venues will even benefit from an investment programme planned for late 2022 and 2023. The programme includes the extension of the Espace Encan hallThis will enable the venue to host larger events or several events at the same time. By 2023-2024, and in line with our CSR policy, the layout of the space will be redesigned to make it both more energy-efficient and more comfortable.
