« It’s definitely not Taylor Swift », says a local hotel manager in reference to the superstar’s arrival last summer in Minnesota. But the Wolves’ good run in the playoffs also has favorable economic benefits for the city of Minneapolis.
And unlike the 2018 Super Bowl, the tourism boost required no upfront investment from the city, which had paid about $50 million to host the NFL finale.
« Each new dollar is unexpected and will benefit many people: the city, which will collect taxes; to businesses, which will be able to keep their employees, perhaps more hours or even more staff. This is an opportunity to regain lost ground “, displays Melvin Tennant, CEO of Meet Minneapolis, pointing out that the city still has thousands fewer hotel and restaurant workers than before the pandemic.
From hotel room reservations to packed bars on game nights, this conference final against the Mavs, which began Wednesday night at Target Center, is a shot in the arm for downtown. But it is difficult to quantify the impact, especially since it has been twenty years since Wolves reached this stage.
Incomparable with the Super Bowl
Visit Milwaukee, for example, estimated at 14 million dollars the economic benefits of the Bucks’ participation in the Eastern Conference final in 2021. Then double as far as the NBA Finals are concerned. Nothing really compares with the organization of the Super Bowl in Minnesota which generated more than 370 million dollars for a week, with visitors spending on average… 600 dollars per day.
Beyond just the financial dimension, the marketing professor at the University of Minnesota, George John, sees good on the social level: “ These events have a positive effect, and there is some money coming in, but when you add it up, it is marginal. I think you have to look at this as something bigger, as a social event and how people feel about it. I think we should take advantage of it. »
At the beginning of May, the Wolves’ first playoff games at Target Center attracted nearly 100,000 people according to Melvin Tennant. That crowd, combined with other downtown events, including a wind power convention, generated $11.5 million in hotel room revenue from May 6-8, an increase by 41% compared to the same period last year. The 10,036 rooms occupied on May 7 constituted a historic record for the city’s hotels.
2024-05-23 15:53:03
#Wolves #journey #economic #boost #Minneapolis
