The Impact of Giants Spectacle has been revealed and it’s HUGE!

An independent report has revealed that the finale of the Giants trilogy is officially the biggest free event EVER to be staged in Liverpool and Wirral.

Liverpool’s Dream took place from 4-7 October and brought in 1.3million visitors to the city and Wirral, and generated a massive £60.6m for the local economies. Broken down, this equates to around 1,220,000 visitors to Liverpool bringing in £58m, and 80,000 to Wirral, bringing in £2.2m.

It smashes previous records held by 2014’s Giants event Memories of August 1914 which had an economic impact of £46m, and 2015’s Three Queens event which welcomed 1.2million visitors to both Liverpool and Wirral. Many of the city’s most famous attractions also saw a 100% rise in attendance.

The Guide Liverpool proudly supported the event being official video partner and we seen 2 million people from all over the world visiting our platforms during the Giants weekend and between 4th and 8th October we had a staggering 680,000 Liverpool Giants video views.

The report also found:

• 75% of visitors were from the Liverpool City Region and the wider North West, with 22% travelling from elsewhere around the UK and 3% were overseas tourists.
• The average length of stay in the city region was 2.7 nights.
• Visitors staying over spent on average £138.99 per person, with day visitors spending £30 per person.
• Of the non-residents interviewed, 97% were likely to return to Liverpool in the future.
• When asked how they found out about the event, 75% found out from coverage in the media.
• More than half of those interviewed said they would be eating out as part of their trip to see the Giants.
• The majority of people, 90%, said that the Giants event was their sole reason for heading to Liverpool or Wirral.
• Just over half of the respondents had attended a previous Giants event in either 2012 or 2014.
• More than two thirds of visitors arrived at the event on foot.
• High satisfaction rates were given for the event organisation, the quality of the content, the easy access to eating and drinking facilities and overall enjoyment of the experience.

When it came to social media, the official Giants accounts proved massively popular with #LiverpoolGiants trending each day (4-7 October) and tweets, Facebook and Instagram posts reached 12.4 million people. There was interaction with followers from across the globe including Australia, New Zealand, China, Columbia, South Africa and Canada.

The interactive map which showed exactly where the Giants were, was visited 542,326 times.

Other Liverpool institutions and attractions felt the benefit of the unforgettable event when they compared the figures from the Giants weekend, with the same weekend in 2017.

• It was the busiest weekend of the year for Tate Liverpool, with 8,534 visitors, compared to 5,581 during the same weekend last year – an increase of 53%.
• Royal Albert Dock Liverpool saw a 65% increase in footfall. Tapas restaurant Lunyalita saw a 45% uplift in sales with their special the ‘Giant Deli Plank’ selling out. Puffle Waffle experienced its busiest retail day since opening a year before, with hot beverage sales at an all-time high.
• National Museum Liverpool’s waterfront venues welcomed 54,092 visitors across the four days – a massive 108% increase on 2017. TheMuseum of Liverpool alone experienced a 181% increase in visitors across the four days, with Merseyside Maritime Museum welcoming 63% more people, 5,445 visitors spent time at Pier Master’s House (a 175% increase) and the International Slavery Museum saw 23% more people through its doors.
• 322,000 people headed to Liverpool ONE – 25% busier than the previous year and 9% busier than the 2014 Giants event. And the Giant chasing clearly built up an appetite as from the 5-7 October 126,000 dined at Liverpool ONE, a 45% increase on a normal October weekend.
• Catering sales at Wirral’s Floral Pavilion were up by 73% and they welcomed 350 visitors on the Friday.
• At one point over the four days, Liverpool BID Company saw a 109.7% increase in footfall in one of its areas (Clayton Square/Elliot Street), with overall figures showing that from the 5-7 October there were crowds of 594,843 people – making it one of the retail area’s busiest dates of the year.

Following the event, responses to an online survey which asked for feedback included:

“It was magical.”

“It had the incredible ability to unite people and communities, bringing everyone together to witness the magic.”

“Seeing such beauty and talent against the backdrop of my home city, best city in the world.”

“Loved seeing the Giants but the general atmosphere was amazing. Great to see everyone enjoying the event and all coming together. And it was free!”

The event was one of the major highlights of the Liverpool 2018 programme – a year-long celebration which marked a decade since the city held the game-changing title of European Capital of Culture. The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority supported several highlight Liverpool 2018 events, including Liverpool’s Dream, with £5 million from the Single Investment Fund (SIF).

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said: “These incredible figures won’t come as a surprise to anyone who witnessed the visit of the Giants.

“This is a city used to staging major, outdoor events, but October’s event took it to the next level. The iconic image of the Giants on The Strand surrounded by people as far as the eye can see captured it perfectly.

“The creative brilliance of Royal de Luxe attracted people not only from across the region, but from all over the globe who came here specifically to see Wirral and Liverpool become a stage on which these Giant characters would perform.

“In these tough financial times, economic boosts of this nature are invaluable. But it’s not just about the money. The pride the Giants engendered is priceless. Events like this aren’t commonplace – very few cities in the world have the creative ambitions to push boundaries, so I am proud that Liverpool and Wirral stand out from the crowd.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the team involved in making Liverpool’s Dream such a success – partners across the city, from the police and transport networks right though to volunteers and sponsors, worked together tirelessly to make sure our city shone during this Giant extravaganza.”

Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of Liverpool City Region, said: “This third and final visit of the Giants has exceeded all expectations.  It provided a huge boost for the local economy and the inclusion of the Wirral this time round has helped to showcase what the wider city region has to offer as a visitor destination.  That’s why we were proud to invest £5million into the 2018 cultural programme.”

The report was produced by the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership.

A limited edition souvenir book chronicling the journey of the Giants is in shops now. To find out where you can buy a copy of In the Hearts of Giants or to order it online, visit www.giantspectacular.com/online-shop.