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CEO Letter

The UK's exceptional allure for a luxury traveller

Summer holiday season has arrived, and the UK has more to offer the international tourist than ever before – as showcased in Robb Report's superb latest issue. Read more in the latest missive from our Chief Executive Officer, Helen Brocklebank...
4th Jul 2022
CEO Letter The UK's exceptional allure for a luxury traveller

Dear Members,

 

As the summer holiday season fast approaches, I’m surely not alone in wondering where the first six months of the year have gone to – time seems to go past at warp speed, and perhaps this is because, post-covid, we’ve all been determined to seize the day, and pack as much in as possible whilst also navigating the most challenging business conditions for a generation. If you’re feeling in sore need of your summer break, I hear you.

At last month’s British Luxury Summit, Walpole launched an important piece of work, ‘What it’s Worth: Enabling the Return of the £30b High-End Tourism Sector’. Conducted in partnership with our sister luxury associations across Europe, and conducted by Bain & Co., the study looks at why fewer, higher spending international visitors can help accelerate economic recovery, and in it there were some eye-opening figures for the UK, not least that high-end visitors to Britain spend 14 times the amount spent by average tourists, and for every £1 high-end visitors spend on their accommodation, a further £8 is spent in the luxury ecosystem of culture, retail, entertainment and dining. London, in particular, is a major driver, feeding into the whole UK economy and as our report shows, has a particular appeal for affluent, discerning visitors from the Middle East and America.

The exceptional allure of the UK is something that the latest edition of Robb Report – one of the most powerful, as well as the most elegant, publications for global luxury consumers, not least in the USA, its home country – brilliantly brings to life.

As Nick Scott, Editor-in-Chief of Robb Report’s UK edition told me, “Britain, here in 2022, is one of the world's major hotspots when it comes to fine living. France's wine regions, the scotch whisky and Swiss watchmaking scenes, some of the finest luxury car marques in the world - all of these sit in close proximity to a major metropolis, London, whose premium culinary and hospitality scene seems to improve with every passing month. The prospect of delivering local readers updates on all these life-enriching subjects, alongside the creative might of the USA team, is a thrilling one.”

Walpole members can read the latest edition here – and, if you're looking for further reading matter, there's also a superb article that's just gone live on site exploring our new Brands of Tomorrow too (read it here). I am hugely grateful to Robb Report for putting such an evocative and beautiful edition together at a time when Walpole members are so focused in doing all they can to bring international visitors to experience all the UK has to offer.

On Friday, I’m off on the annual digital detox with a suitcase full of novels to read whilst boosting Greece’s tourist economy. I will see you on my return, but in the meantime, do enjoy this edition of the Robb Report, it’s a wonderful read. I know you’ll enjoy it as much as I have.  

Best wishes,

Helen Brocklebank

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