Dan Bolton, who runs a Dubai-based event planning company, is blunt when it comes to discussing the “wrecking ball” that the pandemic had on the events industry in Dubai.
But he believed the emirate’s recently relaxed restrictions is one step towards paving the way to fuller recovery, hopefully by the end of 2021.
Dubai allowed events to come back in July 2020, and since then Bolton’s agency has been busy with a slew of projects, including a number related to Expo 2020, where he said local demand to perform was through the roof.
“The demand was incredible. We physically couldn’t facilitate enough work for the people who wanted to perform,” Bolton said.
But he added that the view beyond Dubai was bleaker.
“Obviously we had the guidelines, but the reality is that until recently with the vaccination programs, and the world reopening and travel trying to restart, so far people just didn’t want to do things because they didn’t want to take the risk,” the founder of Dan Bolton Creative Management Agency said.
The new regulations provide some clarity on what can be done within the industry in the UAE, he told Arabian Business, but they also present the industry with new logistical challenges to overcome.
All performers and attendees must be vaccinated and present virtual medical records on the Al Hosn app to gain entry to events. Bolton said for a recent event all attendees also had to present a negative PCR test, translating to a need for more staff.
Dan Bolton, founder of Dan Bolton Creative Management Agency
“From a logistical standpoint, previously you may have had a ticket checker, now you have a ticket check, a temperature check, and someone checking the Al Hosn app,” he said.
Right now, global vaccination rates and travel restrictions remain the biggest barrier to bringing in talent. Even if performers can enter Dubai, they may not be able to get back to their original countries without quarantine hotel stays. Additionally, they might not be eligible to get the vaccine in their home country or may be unwilling to get the shot.
If quarantine and PCR test costs are added to event contracts, prices can easily double or triple, said Bolton.
“Yes, people want things to happen, but they’ll only happen when they become profitable. There’s a lot of uncertainty about how we can operate while making money and balancing the books with the requirements,” he said.
But he added that the new guidelines, which allow 1,500 in indoor spaces and 2,500 in outdoor spaces, alleviate some pressure, making it easier to break even on events.
Time for optimism
Barring logistical challenges, in Dubai – which is still one of the only places in the world where events are allowed – it’s a time for optimism.
Bolton said he expects that by the end of the year, financially they should recoup their losses and be fully stable and able to grow; during the last year, their staffing numbers have gone from 8 to 15.
While summers in Dubai, when the heat ratchets up, are naturally slow, by October – when Expo 2020 Dubai opens – Bolton expects things to more rapidly pick up.
He said that come winter in the Middle East “you’re going to have Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia all doing their best to attract the biggest, the best, the brightest.
“We’ll get to the point where we need [staff] and it’s going to go from 0 to 100”.
As restrictions continue to ease, Bolton said the onus is on everyone in the industry to make sure that guidelines are followed as the government issued the new regulations on a one-month trial basis that can be extended.
“It’s on us to show people that we can do this sensibly,” he said. “If people aren’t following the rules, it jeopardises it for everyone.”
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