Nighttime economy.qxp_Layout 7 24/09/2020 11:04 Page 1
Images: Soul Media Photography
EVENING ECONOMY
Because the night... belongs to Bristol Marti Burgess, lawyer and partner at Bevan Brittan, owner of Lakota, and member of The Society of Merchant Venturers, talks Bristol in a Box – a new project intended to help prop up the evening economy while restrictions are in place
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ristolians don’t just stand about during a crisis, as evidenced by the myriad folk who have come to the aid of the community during the 2020 pandemic, in myriad ways. This trait is threaded through our history – just look at the actions of some city residents during the Blitz (see p24). Economically, the city is facing massive challenges – the likes of which it has never seen before, with certain sectors worse hit than others. Nightlife, beyond socially distanced dinners here and there, or a few drinks on the cobbles, has felt almost non-existent – there is certainly no blowing off steam while throwing shapes on a club dancefloor. Steam sharing is officially frowned upon. But there are those in the city who are thinking hard of Marti Burgess ways to help this sector survive. Enter, Marti Burgess. TBM: Tell us a little about the multifaceted project you are working on to help Bristolians continue to experience the city’s night scene Bristol @ Night, which I chair alongside Councillor Beech, was set up to support the night-time economy and ensure that developers coming to the 18 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE
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OCTOBER 2020
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No 193
city or involved in revitalisation of the city centre understood how important our night-time economy is to the city’s identity as a vibrant place where creatives flourish. We also were seeking to ensure that the NTE [night-time economy] had a voice when big decisions were being taken around things like changes to the licensing policies. The pandemic has been an unexpected shock to our system and has meant that we had to immediately focus our attention on supporting the night-time economy and ensuring that those working within it were able to access the support available and then understand the new legislation on opening up. Bristol Nights, which we are launching with the help of Mel Rodrigues [creative producer and founder of Gritty Pearl Productions which specialises in grassroots and multiplatform events and content] is an extension of that. We took part in the Bristol Business Festival where we shared some stories from operators who have opened up, or who are still closed, about how they are doing. Bristol in a Box, which will be launched soon, will be promoting the activities of the great bars, repurposed venues and restaurants that have opened up.
Bristol is full of innovative people and that creativity is not just going disappear. As soon as we are able, the scene will bounce back and all that latent creativity will be unleashed
