ArtPrize visitors spend big

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - The numbers are in about ArtPrize's economic impact for its third year, and they show hundreds of thousands of people visited Grand Rapids and spent millions of dollars.

The survey was conducted by Anderson Economic Group (AEG), which was retained to do the survey by Experience Grand Rapids to measure economic impacts of ArtPrize 2011.

“For the past three years, we have seen first-hand the remarkable transformation of our city thanks in large part to this incredible social experiment, and it was time we understood and quantified its impact,” said Doug Small, president of Experience Grand Rapids. “The new study validates much of what we’ve known since ArtPrize launched: it has a clear and positive impact on Grand Rapids. ”

The art competition saw more than 213,000 unique visitors, which spent an average of 1.5 days at the event. The total estimated number of spectators attendee days was more than 320,000.

Once members of the media and artists were included, the number of people that visited the competition jumped to more than 322,000 visitors.

The study found that there was an average daily attendance of nearly 17,000 people.

According to the study, 73% of attendees traveled from outside the city of Grand Rapids, 31% traveled from outside Kent and Ottawa counties, and more than 5% came from outside the state.

Last year, students from GVSU's Economic and Hospitality and Tourism Management departments collected data about ArtPrize 2010 economic impact on Grand Rapids. They collected the data under the supervision of Paul Sicilian, associate professor of economics; Seohee Chang, assistant professor of hospitality and tourism management; and Experience Grand Rapids.

That study found that 400,000 people visited ArtPrize in 2010, though it did not specify if all the visitors were unique or not.

The total net new economic impact from ArtPrize 2011 is estimated to have been $15.4 million, according to the survey.

It was estimated that attendees spent on average $30.50 per day per person, in addition to what they would have spent in the Grand Rapids area if not for ArtPrize.

ArtPrize generated more than $10.1 million in net new spending by attendees plus an additional $1.9 million in local expenditures related to event operations.

According to GVSU's study, the art competition generated a $7.5 million economic impact for the city last year.

It is also estimated that the art competition generated 204 jobs with approximately $4.6 million in earnings.

Numbers also show that people who visited Grand Rapids for ArtPrize are likely to return to the city within one year. Ninety-eight percent of respondents said they were just as likely or now much more likely to return to Grand Rapids.

This year, ArtPrize was featured in a number of national media outlets including USA Today, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

ArtPrize also provides intangible benefits to Greater Grand Rapids by increasing awareness of the region, enriching the creative culture and increasing social capital, officials said.

“The economic impact of ArtPrize is considerable, especially for an event that is still in its infancy,” said Scott Watkins, a senior consultant with AEG. “By drawing people downtown and not charging an admission, our study shows locals and visitors alike spend money at area businesses that might not otherwise attract them as customers. ”

But the impact doesn't stop when the competition ends, says Small.

“While the report shows the economic benefits to our region, ArtPrize has a much broader value. For nearly three weeks, it places Grand Rapids in the national and international spotlight showcasing all that we have to offer,” added Small. “The event has helped to capture the attention of national meeting planners to consider Grand Rapids for a future convention. ”

The study estimated ArtPrize's 2011 attendance using an estimation method that utilized the actual count of voters participating in the selection of ArtPrize winners and the actual number of ArtPrize metro passes that were sold. The numbers also relied on results from online and intercept surveys that we developed and administered during the event.

The online survey attracted 2,068 respondents that answered 14 questions.

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Online:

The complete ArtPrize survey