Taylor Swift performing onstage in Nashville, Tennessee.
John Shearer/tas23 | Getty Photographs Leisure | Getty Photographs
Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, and now Taylor Swift. Singapore is eyeing live performance economics as its new development driver, which is ready so as to add tons of of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in tourism receipts.
“The Lion Metropolis has historically been extra a magnet for enterprise journey, however these large-scale international music occasions are a boon for Singapore’s travel-related companies that may add as much as 10% of its GDP,” HSBC’s ASEAN economist Yun Liu wrote in a current word.
In January, British band Coldplay carried out six exhibits at Singapore’s Nationwide Stadium. Followers purchased 200,000 tickets because the exhibits bought out inside hours, breaking the city-state’s file for essentially the most tickets bought by an artist in a single day. Singapore was Asia’s foremost cease for Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres World Tour — boosting the nation’s tourism business.
Asia-Pacific journey platform Agoda recorded a “huge surge” in search site visitors for lodging in Singapore spanning Coldplay’s live performance dates. The corporate mentioned curiosity for these dates was 8.7 occasions increased after the band started ticket gross sales in June. Agoda mentioned the rise was pushed largely by neighboring nations Malaysia and Indonesia.
And beginning this weekend, Singapore will host American popstar Taylor Swift, whose Eras Tour within the U.S. final 12 months was estimated to generate round $4.6 billion in shopper spending.
“Taylor Swift can be broadly anticipated to generate a large financial increase, given her previous file,” Liu added.
If she didn’t have Singapore as a cease, I may not purchase a ticket.
Mavis Mook
22-year-old Singaporean pupil
Shortly after the singer introduced her live performance dates within the city-state, Singapore lodge bookings for March 2024 surged 10%, information from lodge analytics firm Smith Journey Analysis confirmed. Swift is scheduled to carry out six exhibits in early March and the month is on monitor to hit the highest occupancy ranges out of the primary eight months in 2024, in line with STR information.
Demand for flights into Singapore additionally soared. Swift’s blockbuster tour is barely touring to a few nations in Asia-Pacific: Japan, Australia and Singapore. Final week, the Singapore Tourism Board mentioned it offered a grant to deliver Swift’s Eras Tour to the nation.
Each the nation’s flagship service Singapore Airways and finances airline Scoot advised CNBC that demand for flights to Singapore in March has jumped, significantly from Southeast Asia. Jetstar Asia additionally confirmed it noticed demand surge roughly 20% for routes connecting locations like Bangkok, Manila, Jakarta to Singapore.
Coldplay carry out onstage throughout the 2015 American Music Awards.
Kevin Mazur | WireImage | Getty Photographs
Swift’s live shows are anticipated to generate about 350 million to 500 million Singaporean {dollars} ($260.3 million to $371.9 million) in tourism receipts — assuming that round 70% of concertgoers are flying in from abroad — mentioned Erica Tay, director of macro analysis at Maybank.
“If she didn’t have Singapore as a cease, I may not purchase a ticket,” mentioned 22-year-old Singaporean pupil Mavis Mook, who spent virtually SG$300 ($223.38) for a Taylor Swift live performance ticket.
“I wish to expertise this with the buddies who’ve additionally grown up with me. It will be so onerous to fly over collectively only for one live performance,” she added. Mook advised CNBC she spent a further SG$150 on a live performance outfit and beads for friendship bracelets, which concertgoers have swapped at each tour cease. She’s additionally put aside funds to purchase tour merchandise.
Singapore’s repute period
Singapore has additionally attracted the likes of Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, Blackpink and different marquee performers. A star-studded live performance slate grants Singapore a brand new shine as a tourism vacation spot.
“Historically it has been a MICE sector – conferences, incentives, conferences and exhibitions – which tended to draw prosperous enterprise vacationers,” mentioned HSBC’s Liu.
Singapore has heavy publicity to tech manufacturing and finance, however travel-related companies make up 10% of the nation’s GDP, she mentioned.
Occasion tourism is reshaping the journey business post-pandemic as extra individuals are keen to fly to attend live shows or sporting occasions, Maybank’s Tay noticed.
Past the direct live performance income, A-listers might additionally deliver longer-lasting reputational boosts by endorsing host nations.
“Scenes of her having fun with herself in Singapore – whether or not it is attempting iconic dishes or testing heritage structure – will go a good distance,” mentioned Tay.
“If she falls in love with hen rice, it will possibly put the dish, and Singapore, on the map for a brand new viewers globally.”
