“We had three million visitors and 900,000 overnight stays – an increase of 70 per cent – and that has raised the profile of Gloucester from being a sleeping giant to one that has awoken. “As a city, we have fantastic assets. We have the ‘holy trinity’ of the beautiful docks, the Quays and Cathedral, then the rugby of course. “We are now making the most of them to promote the city as a great place to live, work, study, play and invest. “In 2015, we had councillors from Cheltenham on BBC Radio Gloucestershire complaining that they were falling behind Gloucester, which shows a real sea- change in attitudes to the city. “By 2015 we had a product that could sell. Gloucester had become a destination.” Not that Marketing Gloucester has rested on its laurels since achieving that breakthrough. Attention has turned to developing the city centre, focussing on innovation and making Gloucester a test bed for technology. From integratedWiFi and CCTV – a UK first – to being the first city outside the US to become a Google Field Trip destination and a hotspot for Pokemon Go, the city has been keen to innovate. In 2018, the GL Card ecosystem run by Marketing Gloucester won the prestigious ATCM award for the UK’s best digital high street project.
“All of that innovation has led to investment in to the city,” Mr Smith said. “It’s one of the layers adding to that question of who are we? “Just 13 or so years after that report questioned that, we now know who we are. “More than 66 per cent of our residents are proud of our city today. It was 17 per cent in 2007. That’s a huge quantitative change. “We have people coming from all over the country and abroad to visit Gloucester and enjoying their time in our city.” Not that residents have been ignored. Marketing Gloucester is also responsible for an ever- growing list of annual events that aims to show the city off to its citizens, from summer events and fireworks in the park, to Christmas markets. But the organisation is also on the look-out for any way it can exploit Gloucester’s rich history and promote the city to a new and bigger range of visitors. “Coming up in 2020, we have the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower’s voyage to found the colony that later became the United States of America,” Mr Smith said. “We have looked into how we can develop and market a bookable product for American visitors that will be coming to the UK in 2020. “So, we’ve been working with VisitBritain to highlight Gloucester, having won part of a £500,000 fund to
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