How can Chesterfield capitalise on the area’s regeneration to strengthen the local visitor economy?

The town will look to build on its heritage, retail and leisure offering as well as its proximity to the Peak District National Park, to increase the number of overnight stays in the area.

Alongside this bold strategy, work to revitalise Chesterfield’s historic town centre continues at pace, after the Borough Council secured £20 million in levelling up funding from the government.

Destination Chesterfield is launching the Summer in Chesterfield campaign in partnership with Chesterfield Borough Council to highlight the wide range of events and activities taking place across the town throughout the season. Find out more about the campaign at: https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/summer/

This month’s Round Table, hosted by Destination Chesterfield in conjunction with the Derbyshire Times, asked leaders in the town’s leisure and tourism sectors how Chesterfield can capitalise on the area’s regeneration to strengthen the local visitor economy.

DS - Dom Stevens – Manager, Destination Chesterfield

AS - Alexa Stott – Marketing Manager, Barrow Hill Roundhouse

PS - Paul Stuart – Head of Enterprise, East Midlands Chamber

AN - Amy Noton – PR and Digital Content Manager – Visit Peak District & Derbyshire

SB - Shaun Brown – Centre Manager, Vicar Lane Shopping Centre

DR - Daniel Rich – General Manager, DoubleTree by Hilton Sheffield Park Hotel

Chesterfield’s growth strategy aims to increase the value of its visitor economy by 20% by 2030 – how can the town achieve this?

SB - With the regeneration of the town centre taking place over the coming years, in particular the market areas and the main routes in the town centre, I feel we need to concentrate on what we have in relation to the history of Chesterfield. The redevelopment of existing market and New Square should start to attract more niche type trade. This has already been done with the introduction of the Peddler Market.

DS - We want every town and destination in the area to have its own distinctiveness, so they all work together as part of the wider Peak District offer.

AN - I think it's about capitalising on what Chesterfield has already got. We can all do our bit to encourage residents to enjoy Chesterfield and spend their money here. It’s also about encouraging more tourists to come here, getting people to stay for longer and spend their money in the town’s local restaurants, cafes, and local attractions.

AN - Extending the visitor season and promoting Chesterfield as a year-round tourism destination is crucial for visitor economy growth, and there's obviously lots of exciting developments planned over the coming years.

PS - I think it's also about supporting the smaller businesses to benefit from the town’s regeneration as well. The key challenge is to make businesses step up alongside the visitor numbers. There are some good opportunities to continue the work which has already been done on this front, such as the successful Digital High Street project.

DR - One way to increase visitor economy in the Chesterfield area is to celebrate some of the filming that's taken place locally, which people may not be aware of. There’s a real market for people visiting movie locations, where people will look at the scenery from a film they love, before going for a meal or a drink at an independent business.

AN - It's an interesting point about film tourism, because it's a big driver for international visitors as well. It's got massive longevity once a film or TV show has been popular. Some Game of Thrones scenes were filmed in Castleton, and there are so many more great examples of it in Derbyshire.

SB - At Vicar Lane, we have got the big screen, which we offer to Destination Chesterfield, Chesterfield Borough Council, and Visit Peak District to help promote local initiatives. We also do screenings of major events as well. This helps to bring the community together and gives people a reason to use local shops and cafes.

DR - I think there's an opportunity in Chesterfield to start with some smaller festivals, which would then bring extra footfall to the town centre.

AS - We are right in the centre of the country, so by car the town is easily accessible. But if we're going to look at the green agenda, we must get people to be more sustainable in their journeys, especially if they're going on into the Peak District. So, I would like to see more promotion of public transport in the area.

How can the town capitalise on its proximity to the Peak District as a major selling point for visitors?

PS - From my point of view, it’s all about cross selling. My wife and I went to Hardwick to the ‘Shine a Light’ display just before Christmas. We also went to Chatsworth for the Christmas market. It’s picking up and packaging those one or two things that people are going to come to.

DR - I think in our gateways off the motorway to Chesterfield and Chatsworth, there's an opportunity to do some real simple marketing using signage. We can tell people how far they are from the town and other local landmarks, giving them a flavour of what there is to do in the area. It is done very successfully in other parts of the country, such as Blackpool and the Lake District.

AN - As a visitor economy industry, our strength together is greater than the sum of our parts. It is that collaborative work, such as itinerary and content sharing. In today’s digital age, we have a chance to serve people content based on what their interests are.

AS - We have got good cycle network in and around Chesterfield as well as the Peak District. That is another part of the economy that we perhaps need to look at a little more. It’s a small thing, but making sure visitors who are cycling through have facilities could make a huge difference.

DR - We had cycling groups last summer of 40 or 50 people, and they would come and stay for two or three nights. In the Peak District, there are some iconic rides that people want to do as a kind of ‘bucket list’ thing. I think there is definitely an opportunity there.

SB - You’ve got the infrastructure already. Take a look at Old Ship Lane car park in Chesterfield town centre. You've got secure bike racks there which can be promoted further. I think it’s all about utilising what you've got.

This summer, Chesterfield has an exciting programme of events coming up... Why is it so important for people to support these?

DS - I think there's been a desire from people and businesses for more events to happen, and it's exciting to see this year that more things are happening. A Chesterfield version of the Peddler Market is coming in June which is exciting, and that should hopefully happen two or three times this year with a view to becoming more regular next year.

PS - It is about having key events and publicising them well. People have busy lives, and a bit of good planning and publicity encourages people to put things in their diary and commit to going to events.

AS - Some organisations don't have a huge marketing budget, and many rely on word of mouth and free social media promotion. For us, it’s all about making any key pieces of information that people need easily accessible.

DS - We know that if we can work in partnership and get the campaigns right, they will be successful. One example is the Christmas in Chesterfield campaign, which reached a million people.

AN - One good thing that we can all do as organisations is capitalise on our existing successful events. If you have some great imagery from it, you can feed that into promotion for the next year, which then encourages more people to come. Businesses can do simple things, like using their social channels to say what a great weekend it was, or to save the date for next year's event. I think that really creates a buzz around events, when people can see that it looked like a good time.

DR - My suggestion is working with someone like Chesterfield College to take a group of students and ask them how they would improve the town’s event promotion on Facebook. I think that we could strengthen the online presence better, so that there's more information about events.

How can people and businesses champion the town’s main tourism assets to increase visitor numbers in our area?

PS - It’s all about harnessing and championing the power of all the businesses we've got and being proud of what’s on our doorstep. There is lots of great countryside and heritage around Chesterfield, and I think that can tie in with some of the other offers in the town, such as the great places to eat.

AN - I think a lot of it is encouraging businesses to work together and to cross promote each other. I think it's a simple thing, but it's something that everyone can get on board with.

PS -There's a lot of things Chesterfield can shout about. Maybe it's slightly cheaper to stay here than it is in other parts of the Peak District, for example. You can still get anywhere and can travel quite easily between different locations.

AN - We can really promote Chesterfield as a base for visiting, and not just somewhere that you pass through. It’s a place that's got the best of both worlds. The town has a great nightlife, a great high street, and a unique independent retail offer.

DS - Chesterfield has a day visitor audience at the moment; but converting just 5% of those into a staying audience would have a fundamental impact on the town. There's a huge opportunity with the regeneration that's planned, as well as the products that exist already.