Retail design and branding agency M Worldwide has won a 6-way pitch to fully redesign and refurbish The Bath Visitor Information Centre. M Worldwide was asked to pitch following its very successful redevelopment of the Roman Baths main store which saw a 9% conversion rate increase of visitors to retail customers and a 12.8% increase in spend per visitor.
The Centre has undergone only minor refurbishment since 1995. It is located on the ground floor of Abbey Chambers, a late 18th Century Grade II listed building in the heart of the city, alongside the Roman Baths and Bath Abbey. It is one of the three busiest Centres of its kind in the UK, currently welcoming over 535,000 visitors each year. It provides comprehensive visitor information on Bath, and offers accommodation bookings, ticket sales and a retail shop selling maps, books and gifts.
Fiona Humphreys, Commercial Manager at Bath Tourism Plus, says: “The Bath Visitor Centre is often the first port of call for the many visitors to our city. As such, it acts as a showcase for all that Bath and the surrounding area has to offer. Interpreting that sense of place, whilst responding to the operational needs of such a busy outlet, presents a design and planning challenge. We were impressed by M Worldwide’s retail portfolio of high profile projects, as well as their understanding and interpretation of our needs in response to our tender brief. This is a major project for us, the first full-scale refurbishment of the Centre since it opened in its current premises in 1995, and we look forward to creating a Visitor Information Centre that reflects the heritage, culture and values of the destination and extends a warm welcome to all our future visitors.”
M Worldwide will completely refurbish the centre to provide a state-of-the-art destination, commensurate with its position as one of the busiest and most successful visitor centres in the UK. The revamp will also provide a design solution which is a statement of Bath’s position as a leading world-class destination, as well as providing functionality to increase ticket and retail sales, improve visitor flow and enhance the visitor experience.
David Martin, Co-Managing Partner at M Worldwide, says: “We are delighted to have this unique opportunity to manifest the “Visit Bath” brand as a physical environment in the heart of this historic city. Our aim is to create an exemplary centre that seamlessly combines retail, visitor services and box office.”
The new Bath Visitor Information Centre is due to open in February 2012.