An excellent venue is more than the sum of its parts. Unfortunately, many venue builds and refurbishments proceed along a path that eventually leads to the venue becoming a 'white elephant' – a building that looks like a venue but fails to act like one.

 

We see this regularly with underutilised venues or venues that fail to attract the kind of patronage that justifies their cost. These venues soon become an expensive headache for owners and operators.

 

The effects of the COVID-19 crisis have only exacerbated the tremendous financial strains already placed upon venue owners and operators. New and refurbished venues now have the added responsibility and duty of care to ensure the health and safety of their staff and patrons, too.

 

Having worked extensively with both private and public sector venue owners and operators over the past two decades, Venue Industry Consulting has an appreciation for the details that go into building a new venue from the ground up or refurbishing an existing one. Often that experience has taken the form of assessing venues and advising clients on how to remediate design and fit-out faults that could have been avoided.

 

Put simply: our advice is that prevention is better than the cure.

 

Revising plans and blueprints is more often than not a cheaper and better option than operating with a venue flawed from the start. Of course, venues can overcome design flaws, and they can be fixed, but it is almost always better to get things as right as possible from the start.

 

From the functional versatility of a venue space through to the practicalities of provisioning for the proper fit-out of audio-visual equipment or commercial kitchens and service areas, Venue Industry Consulting can advise on the full range of requirements for a new or refurbished venue.

 

By engaging the expertise of Venue Industry Consulting at the outset of a build or refurbishment, you draw upon the expertise of an independent, impartial and experienced set of eyes to assess the suitability of a venue's design, along with identifying potential problems as well as areas for improvement.

 

In the past, we have worked in conjunction with architectural firms in the initial design phase of venues. Involvement at this stage of a project is valuable because as venue specialists we are able to provide a unique set of insights that can truly enhance any build or refurbishment.

 

Our experience covers a wide variety of venues, from small, boutique spaces through to large, multi-purpose facilities. We understand that what works for one venue may not necessarily translate to another. We can advise you about the venue industry trends worth adopting and those that are just expensive nice-to-haves or even potentially burdensome additions.

 

Having worked with many local councils and community-based groups, we also have a strong grasp of the role good venues can play in fostering civic engagement within local communities. Properly planned and designed, a good venue can become a fulcrum for positive community building, enhancing a town or suburb's sense of unity and spirit.

 

We are also well versed in the full range of industry standards, building codes and regulations for venue building and operations, which means we can help you avoid some of the costlier mistakes that can be made during a venue build or refurbishment.

 

Building a venue is relatively straightforward. Laying the foundations for a successful, thriving venue requires a little more planning and foresight. With our vast venue and hospitality industry experience and expertise, Venue Industry Consulting can advise and guide you from the very beginning of your project right through to its successful completion.

 

Here are some of the ways in which we can help you:

 

• Review and recommendations of venue facilities and ‘civic’ characteristics and amendments

• Review of venue design and equipment including cost-benefit analysis

• Review and recommendations for venue technological and equipment requirements

• Project management and planning solutions

• Coordination of build or refurbishment timelines and sub-contractors

• Management of project teams / steering groups

• Community stakeholder relations management / end-user assessment and analysis

 

If you would like to find out more about optimising your venue build or refurbishment, please contact us on 0425 775 885 or mail@venueconsulting.com.au.