• This research has found that one of the biggest constraints facing the Irish events tourism industry is the location of events – with consumers citing proximity to events as being the most preventative factor to visiting events in the past.

  • Moving forward, as the economy picks up, we find that consumer confidence is also on the rise and with it consumer spending in the events tourism industry. The all-Ireland events tourism market is projected to see continued growth in 2015 as consumer confidence continues to build, with both the events market and the external economy (ie hospitality industry) set to benefit.

  • This report examines the events sector and how this sector impacts the overall economy and tourism industry in Ireland. Highlighted in this report are the types of events that Irish consumers are attending and the factors that would encourage or prohibit them from attending events taking place in Ireland.

Key themes of the report

  • How is the Irish events tourism market expected to perform in 2015? – How did the events market perform in 2014? What is the economic impact of events on IoI? Will the events tourism market grow further in 2015?

  • How has the recent economic climate impacted the events tourism market? – With improving macroeconomic indicators such as GDP boosting consumer confidence, how does this translate into the events tourism market?

  • What are the types of events that Irish consumers are attending? – What are the most popular events consumers have attended in the last 12 months? Do consumers show an interest in attending particular events in the future more so than in the last two years?

  • What are the main factors prohibiting consumers from attending events? – Excluding price, what factors have prevented consumers from attending events in the past? What are the factors encouraging more activity in this market?

  • Other Mintel reports of relevance include:

  • Online and Mobile Retailing – Ireland, March 2015

  • Golf Tourism – Ireland, January 2015

  • Live Entertainment – US, December 2014

  • Domestic vs Overseas Tourism – Ireland, November 2014

  • Music Concerts and Festivals – UK, October 2014

  • Events Tourism – Ireland, August 2014.

Definition

  • This report examines the events sector of the Irish tourism industry. The term ‘events’ includes all types of concerts, festivals and shows taking place in Ireland, including:

  • Music

  • Food

  • Arts and theatre

  • Film

  • Countryside and traditional events

  • And family- and children-based events.

  • This report excludes exhibitions, such as those taking place at museums for example and cultural attractions such as the Guinness Storehouse Museum. Furthermore, while spectator sports are examined within this report, they are not included in market size information.

  • Although many events throughout Ireland are free of charge, the Market Size and Forecast section of this report only considers fee-paying events such as music concerts and theatre festivals for example, to determine the value of the events industry in Ireland.

Consumer data

  • For the purpose of this report, Mintel commissioned exclusive online research into the types of events that Irish consumers have attended in the last 12 months, the factors that would encourage them to attend more events in the future and the barriers that have prevented them from attending events in the past. The research was carried out by Toluna on behalf of Mintel in May 2015.

  • A total of 650 internet users aged 16+ in NI and 1,350 internet users aged 16+ in RoI were asked the following questions:

“Which of the following types of events have you attended in Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland in the past 2 years? And which would consider visiting in the future?”

“Excluding the cost of tickets/entry, which of the following factors would help encourage you to attend more events/concerts/festivals?”

“Still thinking about events, which, if any, of the following reasons have stopped you attending events in the past aside from the cost of ticket/entry?”

  • The results from this survey are discussed in The Consumer sections of this report.

  • Please note that the results presented in The Consumer sections of this report relate to the usage and habits of Irish internet users only, and do not account for the behaviours of non-internet users. Eurostat (January 2015) highlights that 80% of RoI consumers have used the internet in the last 12 months, while the ONS (May 2014) highlights that 79% of NI consumers have used the internet.

Data sources

  • In the Market Size and Forecast section, Mintel uses economic data collected on inflation, population, exchange rate and GDP to run a multivariate linear regression and trend function. With this function Mintel is able to forecast future market sizes and interpret the results based on the above variables including other independent factors the analyst interprets could change the future market. (Economic data is collected from NISRA, ONS, CSO and other statistical sources.)

  • In compiling this report, Mintel has gathered data from separate NI and RoI sources (eg NISRA, CSO). In some cases, therefore, it has not been possible to provide comparable data for each region. For the purpose of this report:

  • IoI refers to the island of Ireland.

  • NI refers to Northern Ireland.

  • RoI refers to the Republic of Ireland.

  • Therefore, ‘Irish consumers’ refers to both NI and RoI consumers.

Abbreviations

CSO Central Statistics Office
DETINI Department of Trade, Enterprise and Investment Northern Ireland
ECC European Consumer Centre
GDP Gross Domestic Product
IoI Island of Ireland
KBC Kredietbank ABB Insurance CERA Bank
MTV EMA Music Television European Music Awards
NFIB National Fraud Intelligence Bureau
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