WEBVTT - Holiday Visits Boost the Big Apple

0:00:00.480 --> 0:00:22.840
<v Speaker 1>Um, that is just a classic song. Well, it's no

0:00:23.000 --> 0:00:25.160
<v Speaker 1>question if you've been in New York over the past

0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:28.680
<v Speaker 1>few months that the city is back. NYC and Company

0:00:28.680 --> 0:00:32.440
<v Speaker 1>it's the professional organization that handles marketing for New York City.

0:00:32.760 --> 0:00:35.519
<v Speaker 1>It says that this year, the city is expected to

0:00:35.560 --> 0:00:39.200
<v Speaker 1>host fifty six point four million visitors. That's up from

0:00:39.200 --> 0:00:43.320
<v Speaker 1>thirty two point nine million in which of course saw

0:00:43.360 --> 0:00:46.920
<v Speaker 1>the onset of the pandemic and a huge decline in

0:00:46.920 --> 0:00:50.720
<v Speaker 1>international visitors as well as domestic ones as well. Next year,

0:00:50.760 --> 0:00:54.400
<v Speaker 1>the organization, though, expects visitors to surpass those twenty nineteen levels,

0:00:54.640 --> 0:00:58.160
<v Speaker 1>officially declaring New York on the rise once again. We've

0:00:58.200 --> 0:01:00.600
<v Speaker 1>got with us, Tiffany Townsend exact. You have a vice

0:01:00.640 --> 0:01:04.800
<v Speaker 1>president for global communications at New York and Company joining

0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:08.840
<v Speaker 1>us this afternoon via zoom from New York City. Of course, Tiffany,

0:01:08.840 --> 0:01:11.760
<v Speaker 1>how are you. I'm doing well, that's right, joining you

0:01:11.800 --> 0:01:13.800
<v Speaker 1>live from New York City. It's good to be with you, guys.

0:01:13.840 --> 0:01:16.000
<v Speaker 1>Thanks for having us. It's good to have you with

0:01:16.080 --> 0:01:18.240
<v Speaker 1>us this afternoon. So talk to me a little bit

0:01:18.280 --> 0:01:20.320
<v Speaker 1>about what you're seeing when it comes to the data.

0:01:20.360 --> 0:01:23.600
<v Speaker 1>Because I was on New York and Company website earlier,

0:01:23.640 --> 0:01:27.800
<v Speaker 1>and you have a host of just fantastic data about tourism, visitors,

0:01:27.880 --> 0:01:30.640
<v Speaker 1>how much people are spending, how important this is to

0:01:30.680 --> 0:01:33.880
<v Speaker 1>the overall economy. What makes you think that twenty three

0:01:33.920 --> 0:01:36.080
<v Speaker 1>is going to bring us back to levels that surpassed

0:01:37.800 --> 0:01:39.720
<v Speaker 1>It's really just the activity that we're seeing. I think

0:01:39.800 --> 0:01:42.080
<v Speaker 1>there's there's been a lot of pent up demand for

0:01:42.160 --> 0:01:45.320
<v Speaker 1>travel ever since, you know, the borders had started open,

0:01:45.400 --> 0:01:47.920
<v Speaker 1>and really even before the border started opening, I think

0:01:48.240 --> 0:01:50.200
<v Speaker 1>you will hear people talk about things like sort of

0:01:50.280 --> 0:01:53.080
<v Speaker 1>revenge travel, wanting to compensate and make up for lost time,

0:01:53.080 --> 0:01:54.960
<v Speaker 1>and I think that's really what we're seeing. I think

0:01:55.760 --> 0:01:58.000
<v Speaker 1>there's always been a desire for people to come to

0:01:58.040 --> 0:02:00.320
<v Speaker 1>New York. It's sort of an aspirational destin Asian, So

0:02:00.360 --> 0:02:02.240
<v Speaker 1>people want to make their first trip and then they

0:02:02.280 --> 0:02:04.840
<v Speaker 1>come back and they want to come back again. New

0:02:04.880 --> 0:02:07.600
<v Speaker 1>York is a very dynamic place. It's always changing, and

0:02:07.640 --> 0:02:10.160
<v Speaker 1>so we like to ruin people that even if you've

0:02:10.200 --> 0:02:12.320
<v Speaker 1>been here five times, that that next time you're gonna

0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:14.280
<v Speaker 1>New Calm is going to be very very different. And

0:02:14.320 --> 0:02:16.760
<v Speaker 1>so I think the numbers are really beginning to bear

0:02:16.840 --> 0:02:19.080
<v Speaker 1>that out right now we're expecting that by the end

0:02:19.120 --> 0:02:22.160
<v Speaker 1>of two we'll see about eighty five percent of our

0:02:22.240 --> 0:02:26.880
<v Speaker 1>visitation return and that's eighty five of what our record

0:02:27.040 --> 0:02:30.320
<v Speaker 1>high was of sixty six point six million in twenty nineteen,

0:02:30.360 --> 0:02:32.920
<v Speaker 1>just before everything closed, and so we're still on track

0:02:33.000 --> 0:02:35.519
<v Speaker 1>to see that. We like to sort of leave, uh,

0:02:35.680 --> 0:02:37.520
<v Speaker 1>we leave leave a little space at the end of

0:02:37.520 --> 0:02:41.799
<v Speaker 1>the year because the holiday season between Thanksgiving and um

0:02:41.919 --> 0:02:44.600
<v Speaker 1>and and and New Year's even New Year's is really

0:02:44.600 --> 0:02:46.600
<v Speaker 1>a time when we tend to see about thirty percent

0:02:46.680 --> 0:02:49.560
<v Speaker 1>of our incoming visitations. So there's a huge influx of

0:02:49.560 --> 0:02:51.639
<v Speaker 1>travelers to New York City at this time of year.

0:02:51.680 --> 0:02:54.480
<v Speaker 1>And so by by all the indicators that we're seeing,

0:02:54.480 --> 0:02:56.239
<v Speaker 1>we're going to see about eighty five percent of that

0:02:56.320 --> 0:02:58.960
<v Speaker 1>visitation return for this year, and that really puts us

0:02:58.960 --> 0:03:02.240
<v Speaker 1>in a great position and uh to go into three

0:03:02.280 --> 0:03:05.360
<v Speaker 1>with even higher numbers. It's really interesting, Tiffany. It sounds

0:03:05.400 --> 0:03:08.200
<v Speaker 1>like you're not having any sort of negative impact from

0:03:08.440 --> 0:03:12.000
<v Speaker 1>arising COVID cases flu cases. We're still seeing a lot

0:03:12.040 --> 0:03:16.160
<v Speaker 1>of visitors this year. We're certainly seeing a lot of visitors.

0:03:16.200 --> 0:03:18.880
<v Speaker 1>You're in between in this holiday period, we can expect

0:03:18.880 --> 0:03:21.400
<v Speaker 1>to see about six point five million people, and that's

0:03:21.440 --> 0:03:24.720
<v Speaker 1>across both domestic and international, and certainly the city has

0:03:24.760 --> 0:03:29.000
<v Speaker 1>taken um I think, a very proactive approach to providing

0:03:29.080 --> 0:03:32.200
<v Speaker 1>both protocols and information for both residents and visitors in

0:03:32.320 --> 0:03:35.040
<v Speaker 1>terms of any concerns or hesitations that they may have

0:03:35.160 --> 0:03:38.520
<v Speaker 1>about traveling to New York City. With with COVID cases

0:03:38.560 --> 0:03:41.800
<v Speaker 1>still still being something that's top of mind for everybody,

0:03:41.920 --> 0:03:44.200
<v Speaker 1>what about the holidays right in these next couple of

0:03:44.200 --> 0:03:46.680
<v Speaker 1>weeks and what to what extent we're actually seeing a

0:03:46.680 --> 0:03:49.480
<v Speaker 1>return to levels or what you predict now I mean

0:03:49.840 --> 0:03:53.880
<v Speaker 1>are back. We're not back, but we're getting there. In

0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:56.640
<v Speaker 1>New York it's it certainly has has returned. So we

0:03:56.680 --> 0:03:59.920
<v Speaker 1>will see roughly six point five million visitors between now

0:04:00.000 --> 0:04:03.160
<v Speaker 1>out and and New Year's even so, that really does

0:04:03.240 --> 0:04:06.000
<v Speaker 1>put us on a continued upward trend which we have

0:04:06.080 --> 0:04:08.440
<v Speaker 1>seen throughout this year and we also saw it in

0:04:09.480 --> 0:04:12.360
<v Speaker 1>You will remember that the borders open for a number

0:04:12.440 --> 0:04:16.080
<v Speaker 1>of countries or uh right around just a little bit

0:04:16.080 --> 0:04:18.600
<v Speaker 1>over a year ago. It's probably about November, so and

0:04:18.640 --> 0:04:23.240
<v Speaker 1>so you know, as restrictions continue to ease globally, that

0:04:23.279 --> 0:04:27.480
<v Speaker 1>will only continue to bolster UM and and help create

0:04:27.839 --> 0:04:30.039
<v Speaker 1>that continued influx that's going to get us back to

0:04:30.080 --> 0:04:33.160
<v Speaker 1>that full recovery. I've got a question for you, Tiffany,

0:04:33.200 --> 0:04:35.760
<v Speaker 1>as we sit here in Midtown, UM, which is also

0:04:35.800 --> 0:04:38.360
<v Speaker 1>the neighborhood I choose to live in UM. Nobody really

0:04:38.400 --> 0:04:41.920
<v Speaker 1>understands why myself included, but because because I can walk

0:04:41.960 --> 0:04:44.360
<v Speaker 1>to me, because I can walk to work, because we've

0:04:44.360 --> 0:04:47.040
<v Speaker 1>got a Trader Joe's here. But I wonder if the

0:04:47.120 --> 0:04:52.920
<v Speaker 1>death of Midtown quote unquote is impacting holiday activities towards

0:04:53.320 --> 0:04:55.080
<v Speaker 1>talk about what you mean by that medicine for people

0:04:55.080 --> 0:04:56.520
<v Speaker 1>who don't spend a lot of time here. I mean,

0:04:56.520 --> 0:04:58.640
<v Speaker 1>you do walk around the you know, you walk around

0:04:58.680 --> 0:05:00.560
<v Speaker 1>this part of the city and doesn't look like it

0:05:00.560 --> 0:05:02.719
<v Speaker 1>looked back in. It's a ghost town. I mean I

0:05:02.800 --> 0:05:06.839
<v Speaker 1>used to thoroughly enjoy my afternoon shopping breaks at the

0:05:06.920 --> 0:05:09.400
<v Speaker 1>Zara and American Eagle across the street that have now

0:05:09.560 --> 0:05:13.560
<v Speaker 1>just become these empty building mainstays of the neighborhood. But

0:05:13.720 --> 0:05:15.880
<v Speaker 1>I do think of Midtown as a really good go

0:05:16.000 --> 0:05:19.120
<v Speaker 1>to spot for a lot of these holiday activations. You've

0:05:19.160 --> 0:05:22.560
<v Speaker 1>got the Christmas Market, You've got Rockefeller Center. Of course,

0:05:22.640 --> 0:05:25.760
<v Speaker 1>are we seeing more people flocked to this neighborhood of

0:05:25.800 --> 0:05:29.200
<v Speaker 1>the city, um to enjoy those holiday activities. Or have

0:05:29.279 --> 0:05:31.600
<v Speaker 1>we seen that the business crowd working from home is

0:05:31.640 --> 0:05:34.920
<v Speaker 1>having an impact on that? Well, you are still seeing

0:05:35.000 --> 0:05:37.200
<v Speaker 1>that people are continuing to work from home. I think,

0:05:37.400 --> 0:05:39.920
<v Speaker 1>you know, sort of the office experiences, we know what

0:05:40.040 --> 0:05:42.320
<v Speaker 1>it is, forever changed by the pandemic. But I think

0:05:42.360 --> 0:05:44.320
<v Speaker 1>that is a little bit you know, there, there's a

0:05:44.320 --> 0:05:46.599
<v Speaker 1>little bit of separation between there and what we're seeing

0:05:46.640 --> 0:05:49.240
<v Speaker 1>for overall leisure travel. And we obviously do make the

0:05:49.279 --> 0:05:52.840
<v Speaker 1>distinction between how leasure travelers behave and business travelers behave.

0:05:53.040 --> 0:05:54.760
<v Speaker 1>I will tell you on a personal note, I was

0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:58.919
<v Speaker 1>in Midtown last weekend. You're I'm sorry, Tiffany. It was

0:05:59.040 --> 0:06:01.240
<v Speaker 1>quite it was quite full, which is something that I

0:06:01.640 --> 0:06:05.360
<v Speaker 1>happen to love to see and so um so I

0:06:05.360 --> 0:06:07.719
<v Speaker 1>I I. So I think that there there, we're certainly

0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:10.800
<v Speaker 1>seeing that influx. There are a lot of activations that

0:06:10.839 --> 0:06:14.000
<v Speaker 1>are taking place throughout the city, certainly on on Sundays

0:06:14.000 --> 0:06:17.159
<v Speaker 1>in December, to also help sort of manage the crowds

0:06:17.200 --> 0:06:19.320
<v Speaker 1>and and and continue to invite people in. There are

0:06:19.360 --> 0:06:21.440
<v Speaker 1>open streets. I think it's from twelve to six on

0:06:21.960 --> 0:06:23.920
<v Speaker 1>three Sundays in December, and I think that's a great

0:06:23.960 --> 0:06:26.440
<v Speaker 1>way to sort of encourage people to come back. And

0:06:26.440 --> 0:06:29.240
<v Speaker 1>then you have that space along Fifth Avenue to roam

0:06:29.320 --> 0:06:30.960
<v Speaker 1>and to shop and to see the tree and to

0:06:31.080 --> 0:06:33.000
<v Speaker 1>see the windows and to see the lights. So it's

0:06:33.080 --> 0:06:35.760
<v Speaker 1>just really sort of the magic that is New York

0:06:35.800 --> 0:06:38.560
<v Speaker 1>City at this time of year. Okay, So I was

0:06:38.600 --> 0:06:41.640
<v Speaker 1>digging into New York and Company, New York and Co.

0:06:42.040 --> 0:06:45.479
<v Speaker 1>Uh doing some research ahead of this interview. Tiffany and

0:06:46.400 --> 0:06:49.720
<v Speaker 1>I had a hard time understanding who exactly funds the organization.

0:06:50.080 --> 0:06:54.920
<v Speaker 1>Two thousand member organizations I know funded. Are those member organizations?

0:06:55.240 --> 0:06:58.760
<v Speaker 1>Are they businesses? Is this an association that is supported

0:06:59.200 --> 0:07:02.159
<v Speaker 1>by businesses within the city. Is it taxpay or funded

0:07:02.160 --> 0:07:04.279
<v Speaker 1>at all? Because of the economic impact that tourism has

0:07:04.279 --> 0:07:08.200
<v Speaker 1>on New York. Well, we're a not for profit organization,

0:07:08.279 --> 0:07:10.480
<v Speaker 1>and part of it is that we are a membership organizations.

0:07:10.520 --> 0:07:12.880
<v Speaker 1>So to your point, all of the cities, all all

0:07:12.920 --> 0:07:15.400
<v Speaker 1>of the businesses, and sort of everything that makes up

0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:17.960
<v Speaker 1>tourism is a part of who is our our membership.

0:07:18.040 --> 0:07:21.320
<v Speaker 1>So it's the hotels, it's the museums, it's the attractions,

0:07:21.600 --> 0:07:24.400
<v Speaker 1>the tour operators, et cetera. So it is a wide variety.

0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:26.760
<v Speaker 1>But the best way to sort of, UM, help you

0:07:26.840 --> 0:07:29.200
<v Speaker 1>think about that and give it perspective. It is really

0:07:29.240 --> 0:07:32.200
<v Speaker 1>all of those all of those businesses and all those

0:07:32.240 --> 0:07:35.880
<v Speaker 1>organizations that make your your travel experience what it is

0:07:35.920 --> 0:07:38.040
<v Speaker 1>and sort of contribute to that. But is there any

0:07:38.160 --> 0:07:40.440
<v Speaker 1>is there any public funding? Is there any partnership with

0:07:40.680 --> 0:07:43.880
<v Speaker 1>the City of New York Mayor's office? Yes, we do

0:07:43.960 --> 0:07:46.600
<v Speaker 1>receive We do receive some some some public funds as well.

0:07:46.720 --> 0:07:49.080
<v Speaker 1>Is that from the city or from the state? Um?

0:07:49.120 --> 0:07:52.560
<v Speaker 1>From from from the city primarily cool? Makes sense. Thank

0:07:52.560 --> 0:07:53.920
<v Speaker 1>you for clearing that up for me. Kind of hard

0:07:53.960 --> 0:07:56.560
<v Speaker 1>for me to no problem. Have happy to know. It's

0:07:56.560 --> 0:07:59.360
<v Speaker 1>really interesting. I think, Um, Tim is asking the hard

0:07:59.440 --> 0:08:01.520
<v Speaker 1>hitting question here. I just want to know how Tim

0:08:01.520 --> 0:08:03.480
<v Speaker 1>and I where do you get your money? I just

0:08:03.520 --> 0:08:05.440
<v Speaker 1>want to know where to spend my time in this

0:08:05.720 --> 0:08:09.040
<v Speaker 1>incredible city that I love so much. Uh, Tiffany, Tim

0:08:09.040 --> 0:08:10.800
<v Speaker 1>and I are both going to be working the entire

0:08:10.840 --> 0:08:13.679
<v Speaker 1>week between Christmas and the New Year. UM, I'm starting

0:08:13.680 --> 0:08:17.240
<v Speaker 1>to hear that any big fun events that you think

0:08:16.640 --> 0:08:19.400
<v Speaker 1>we should keep our eyes on, that we should that

0:08:19.480 --> 0:08:22.360
<v Speaker 1>we should try to play hookey from the chair here

0:08:22.440 --> 0:08:25.640
<v Speaker 1>and and experience. Well, I would say, I mean, if

0:08:25.680 --> 0:08:28.080
<v Speaker 1>you're in midtown and you haven't done the tree and

0:08:28.160 --> 0:08:31.160
<v Speaker 1>fifth Avenue in the windows, like do do that? That

0:08:31.320 --> 0:08:34.160
<v Speaker 1>is like the easiest thing. You can run downstairs right

0:08:34.280 --> 0:08:37.720
<v Speaker 1>right between between segments or you know, before before your

0:08:37.760 --> 0:08:41.240
<v Speaker 1>show starts, and and and and see the windows and

0:08:41.240 --> 0:08:43.280
<v Speaker 1>and and see the tree and see all the lights.

0:08:43.400 --> 0:08:45.480
<v Speaker 1>But there are a lot of you know, there's always

0:08:45.520 --> 0:08:47.640
<v Speaker 1>a lot of uh, pop up activations. I think you

0:08:47.679 --> 0:08:51.200
<v Speaker 1>alluded to this before. Flat Iron, the Flat Iron area

0:08:51.200 --> 0:08:54.000
<v Speaker 1>and sort of Medicine Square Park has that out in Queens.

0:08:54.000 --> 0:08:57.800
<v Speaker 1>There's a new amazing light exhibit over city Field. Um,

0:08:57.840 --> 0:09:00.480
<v Speaker 1>so that that's really exciting. You have the class citics

0:09:00.559 --> 0:09:03.280
<v Speaker 1>you have up at the Bronx Botanical Garden. You have

0:09:03.360 --> 0:09:05.400
<v Speaker 1>the Trained show that's you know through I already have

0:09:05.480 --> 0:09:09.400
<v Speaker 1>tickets for that. Tiffany for January taking the Toddler. They're

0:09:09.400 --> 0:09:11.720
<v Speaker 1>hard to get tickets. You gotta get them early. The

0:09:11.760 --> 0:09:15.079
<v Speaker 1>thing is so popular. Tiffany Townsend, executive vice president for

0:09:15.120 --> 0:09:18.040
<v Speaker 1>Global Communications at New York and Code, joining us via

0:09:18.120 --> 0:09:21.240
<v Speaker 1>zoom from of course New York City. You're listening and

0:09:21.280 --> 0:09:22.960
<v Speaker 1>watching to a Berg Business Week