Published earlier this year, Walpole’s tourism manifesto, What it’s Worth: Enabling the Return of the £30bn High-End Tourism Sector, identified the UK as having been Europe’s number one high-end tourism destination pre-pandemic. Given that affluent international visitors to the UK spend 14 times that of mass tourists – making a powerful contribution not only to the country’s world-leading hotels, but to the whole high-end ecosystem of culture, entertainment, and retail – and with the knowledge that our high-end tourism offer generated more than 30% more revenue than France, Italy or Spain, and two thirds more than either Germany or Switzerland, we see high-end tourism as a crucial growth driver for this country. In the light of the Chancellor’s recent decision to reverse the decision to reintroduce tax-free shopping, Walpole asked its members to share their thoughts on the value of the high-end visitor, and to let us know what they were doing in their own businesses to drive the appeal for this important customer group.
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“This isn’t about bringing posh people to London but generating jobs for a large numbers of UK residents. Ask any London taxi driver to name their favourite store; and chances are, they’ll say Harrods. It’s because they regularly take wealthy (and generously tipping) customers there: just one example of the ripple effect Harrods has on the local economy.
"Pre-pandemic, Harrods represented 50% of the Middle Eastern spend in the UK. But our footfall is now 30% below 2019 levels; it’ll probably take us two-three years to fully recover. There’s no point whinging: we’ve had to work harder instead.
"With many high-value tourists now shopping in the EU, we’ve had to make our boutiques different to those in Paris, such as our Prada Chalet pop-up or Gucci x Balenciaga collaboration. Today, if a HNWI purchases a handbag at London Harrods, it might not be tax-free, but they’ll buy it because they know it doesn’t exist elsewhere.
"We’ve also repositioned Harrods stock at airport terminals around holiday pick-me-ups. Travellers are no longer buying £1,000 handbags when flying from Heathrow because of £200 VAT savings, but they will buy a pair of swimming trunks or £200 polo-shirt instead. Harrods has also upped our experiential and wellness offerings: opening restaurants by Michelin-starred chefs (Jason Atherton, Tom Kerridge, Gordon Ramsay), a cocktail bar, one of Europe’s best hairdressing salons, lecture theatre, even challenging customers’ perceptions with a skateboarding pop-up.
"The government should recognise many people visit the UK to shop. And this isn’t about bringing posh people to London, but generating jobs for large numbers of UK residents. The reintroduction of tax free shopping, on top of the innovative steps we’ve taken in recent years would put the UK in a prime position to take advantage of the resurgence in post-pandemic shopping.”
