‘Shoulders to the wheel to push the Yorkshire brand’ (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

‘Shoulders to the wheel to push the Yorkshire brand’

8:34am Wednesday 10th November 2010 in Business By Jim Greenhalf

Less than two years after Welcome to Yorkshire was launched, the tourism promotion agency has been voted the best in the world.

Winning the World Travel Awards accolade on Sunday night is bound to make the organisation’s second annual conference, on November 29, extra special.

Up to 200 people are expected at the Royal Armouries, Leeds, to hear about the big successes of this year and what’s in store for 2011.

While the organisation’s chief executive, Gary Verity, is not about to disclose everything he’ll be saying, he is keen to send out what amounts to an SOS to business people in the region.

He said: “Although business tourism is doing very well, with more than £2m-worth of conferences coming to the region next year, including a big one at the National Media Museum, funding will be a big challenge.

“We are in discussion with Yorkshire Forward about whether they will be able to honour the contract we have with them worth £12 million. We have offered a large cut. The support of Bradford Council will be imperative.

“We are at a crossroads. Yorkshire Forward, which will be going out of business soon, have to decide what they want their legacy to be. Welcome to Yorkshire is one of its successes.

“Business generally has to decide if it wants to get behind the Yorkshire brand or sit back and let us get on with it. Andrew Mason in Bradford (head of Newmason Properties and chairman of the Bradford Property Forum) has gone out of his way to be supportive; but it requires everybody to put their shoulder to the wheel at this key juncture.”

Under Gary’s leadership, the tourism agency’s ‘A long weekend in Yorkshire is not enough’ advertising campaign also won the title of Europe’s Leading Marketing Campaign at the World Travel Awards.

That might seem a bit academic to some, but in practical terms, that national advertising campaign on billboards and on television helped the region to buck the national trend in tourism.

“Nationally, it was down three per cent on last year; but in Yorkshire it was up by seven per cent. Parts of the county have had a very strong year – the rural areas around York, for example.

“We have done a lot of work around Bradford City of Film and put out a joint leaflet to link the two world heritage sites of Fountains Abbey and Saltaire, to get people to go from one to the other.

“We are working up a Yorkshire Film Trail that will include Bradford. But if we don’t get the support for that, we will have to look again at it,” he added.

The message implicit to corporate Bradford is clear enough: don’t wait for us to help you, help us to help you.

Earlier this year more than 1,000 people went to Welcome to Yorkshire’s ritzy, glitzy spring conference. This event at Harrogate International Conference Centre included an on-stage cook-off between chefs at award-winning Yorkshire establishments.

Gary said: “One of the things we are passionate about is Yorkshire food – Timothy Taylor’s beer, Morrisons and Seabrook Crisps. We push them at events wherever we go. When we were in New York at a reception for 85 travel writers we gave out Yorkshire cakes and cheeses.”

Gary is an optimist by inclination, believing that troubles and difficulties are to be overcome, not used as pretexts or excuses for failure.

This time next year he will be in a position to say whether Yorkshire’s politicians, bureaucrats and business leaders responded to his SOS.