Case study · Travel & Leisure
The Light is a leisure and dining destination in the heart of Leeds. It wanted more families through its doors over the school summer holidays. We brought the seaside to the city: a free City Beach on Cookridge Street, right outside, for six weeks. Centre footfall rose 11% on the year before and revenue rose by £18,000.
- +11% centre footfall, year on year
- +£18K revenue, year on year
- 2K+ City Beach visitors
- 408K press circulation
- Client The Light, Leeds
- Sector Leisure, retail and hospitality
- Services Creative campaign, experiential, press office, social media, influencers
- When 23 July to 5 September 2022
- Audience Families in Leeds and West Yorkshire
- Channels Pop-up event, regional press, organic and paid social, influencers
What did The Light need?
The Light is home to restaurants, bars, a cinema and more in Leeds city centre. It is one of our longest-standing clients. Summer holidays should be busy, but families were not thinking of The Light as a place to take the children.
- Business objective: grow footfall and tenant spend over the school summer holidays, year on year.
- Communication objective: position The Light as a family destination in Leeds, and give local families a reason to visit during the six-week break.
What was the insight?
Six weeks is a long time to fill, and not every family can get to the coast. Parents want free things to do that keep children busy, with somewhere to sit down and grab a bite.
So we took the beach to them. The idea was City Beach at The Light, back for a second year.
What did we do?
- A beach in the city. Working with Leeds City Council, we put a giant sandpit on Cookridge Street, right outside The Light, with deckchairs, beach toys and props. Entry was free.
- The whole holiday. The beach ran from 23 July to 5 September 2022, right to the end of the school holidays.
- Reasons to stay. Tenant food and drink stands, live music and scheduled activities through the run turned a quick visit into an afternoon.
- Press, social and influencers. Local press office, organic and paid social, and Leeds family influencers spread the word. Our creative team made the social assets and captured photos and video on site.
What did it achieve?
Results by stage of the AMEC evaluation framework, with the source for each figure.
| Stage | Measure | Result | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outputs | Pieces of press coverage, including Yorkshire Evening Post and LeedsLive | 8 | Prohibition coverage log |
| Outputs | Press circulation | 408K | Prohibition coverage log |
| Outputs | Social media reach | 71K+ | Prohibition social reporting |
| Outcomes | City Beach visitors | 2,000+ | The Light |
| Outcomes | Centre footfall, year on year | +11% | The Light |
| Impact | Revenue, year on year | +£18K | The Light |
What did The Light get from it?
A busier summer. Footfall across the centre was up 11% on the year before, and revenue rose by £18,000. Tenant food and drink stands on the beach gave families a reason to stay and spend.
What did we learn?
- Free beats clever. A free, simple idea gave families an easy yes.
- Put it on the doorstep. Placing the beach right outside the centre turned visitors into customers.
- What we would do differently: run a short visitor survey on site, so we can show how many beach visitors went on to spend inside the centre.
