Summer concerts boost Auckland economy by $17m

The summer concert season boosted Auckland’s economy by almost NZ$17 million.

Regional Facilities Auckland, a council-controlled organisation (CCO) which through its Auckland Live and Auckland Stadiums subsidiaries operates and programmes many of the city’s major music venues, revealed today that over 171,000 people attended its summer line-up – including concerts by Fleetwood Mac, Ed Sheeran and AC/DC at Western Springs Stadium, and Our:House festival, with Major Lazer and DJ Snake, at Mount (Mt) Smart Stadium – bolstering the city’s finances to the tune of $16.8m (£7.9m).

Summer in New Zealand roughly spans December, January and February.

“Securing major international music acts for Auckland brings tremendous benefits to the city”

“Securing major international music acts for Auckland brings tremendous benefits to the city,” comments Chris Brooks, the CEO of RFA. “The Ed Sheeran and Fleetwood Mac concerts at Mt Smart Stadium were huge tourism and entertainment drawcards, generating 80,030 visitor nights [the total number of nights visitors spent while in town for the shows] in total.

“Importantly, concert-goers had a great experience, with satisfaction scores for fans attending the three outdoor concerts at over 94 per cent. RFA is helping to position Auckland as a dynamic, lively destination offering premium shows and entertainment on par with any other big city.”

Other popular RFA events included four concerts at Auckland Zoo – by Fly My Pretties, Stan Walker, Bic Runga and Tiny Ruins and Hear Them Roar – in February.

The city will host its first festival, Auckland City Limits – a spin-off of Texas’s Austin City Limits – at Western Springs Stadium in March. Headliners are Kendrick Lamar, The National and Modest Mouse.