Eindhoven365: Step by step towards the “new” economy / society

What has the municipality of Eindhoven done in these turbulent times to guide the ‘Eindhovenaren’, as well as its visitors, through the coronavirus crisis and to prepare them for its aftermath? Peter Kentie, director of Eindhoven365, the city marketing organization, informs us.

“Of course, the coronavirus also caused headaches in our city. With Eindhoven365 we have a long-term vision for international and business tourism, but now we’re mostly focusing on the local situation. Behind the scenes our other ambitious projects and plans continue, but for now we provide as much clarity as possible about the way the municipality of Eindhoven manages this crisis. For this we have developed a long-term campaign, consisting of several phases, with the aim to support the city’s economy.”

Phase 1: Stay-at-home activities “In March, we started the first phase of the campaign, which has now been completed. We posted content in both Dutch and English on “This is Eindhoven”,

the official visitor website. Here we explained that our focus has shifted from primarily international to local. Simply because everyone had to stay at home and (international) tourism had come to a complete standstill. The main goal was to make the people of Eindhoven and regional visitors feel connected to the city, even though they could not visit it physically. To transmit the positive energy of the city, we have launched a video message. Very successfully, it has been viewed almost 200,000 times!”

Phase 2: Buy locally “In May, we began the ‘Keep our city strong’ campaign. We portray local entrepreneurs and we try to create awareness to buy locally as

much as possible. In order to have the widest possible reach with this campaign, we used 500 bus shelters, 400 euro panels and ten LED screens for outdoor advertising and a continuous digital reference to the database of catering and retail entrepreneurs.”

In order to make campaigns successful and to convey a clear message, it is of the utmost importance to creatively collaborate, innovate, and take decisive steps. “We noticed that Eindhoven quickly adapted to the situation, but we also hear and see the need for a longerterm vision. Moreover, that is the spearhead of our largest campaign ever: ‘keep our city strong’. The local press also plays a major role in this, as they help ensure that our message reaches as many people as possible.”

Phase 3: Come to the city Now that the limitations are gradually easing, for many people the first outing is a visit to the city center. Shops and caterers have taken measures to be prepared for the ‘oneand-a-half-meter economy’ and the highest priority now is to ensure safety when visiting Eindhoven. Peter’s team plays an important role in this: “In order to continue to boost the city’s economy, we pulled out all the stops to attract and warmly welcome visitors. Using the slogan ‘Good to have you back’, the city center is provided with bilingual signage to steer the increasing flow of visitors and there are multicolored posters everywhere.”

PSV Eindhoven City Store There are two more interesting things for visitors to the city. A few weeks ago, after the closure of Brandstore Eindhoven / VVV, the new information point in Eindhoven Central Station has opened its doors. Visitors and travelers can go there for tourist information or receive a free city map. In addition, groups can book a city tour led by an experienced city guide. The information point can be found to the left of the entrance, opposite the Jumbo, and with vibes stickers and a big red arrow in front of the door, completely in Eindhoven style.

In addition, on July 1st the PSV Eindhoven City Store will open, in cooperation with PSV. In the new store in the Marktstraat, PSV fanwear as well as ‘vibe-based’ Eindhoven merchandise will be on sale.