Athena, the Art Deco Grade II-listed events venue located in Leicester’s cultural quarter, has reported a three-fold increase in the number of events for Q4 2022, compared to the same period pre-Covid in 2019.
The heritage venue welcomed a 200% increase in events in October 2022, compared to the same month three years earlier. The number of events rose 112% in November 2022, compared to November 2019.
Athena has also seen delegate numbers per event rise this year. For example, the venue hosted 12,990 delegates in 2019, whereas in 2022 the number increased to 16,145 – a 24% rise.
Interestingly, Athena has seen a new trend emerge with more companies combining their traditional annual award ceremony with Christmas celebrations. This is driven by the need to improve cost efficiencies and boost attendance and ROI.
For the first weekend of December 2022, Athena hosted a lunch and dinner for 3,215 guests over two days, showcasing its capacity and flexibility for hosting both large and smaller events.
Bookings for 2023
Bookings for 2023 are already looking strong, too. Hira Ram, Head of Events of Athena Events Venue, said: “2023 is looking very positive so far. We have 33 confirmed events in the first quarter of next year, with 14 in February alone. We will be welcoming repeat clients as well as new ones, which is fantastic.”
Events for 2023 have been booked by Krispy Crème Fever, Blue Diamond, Business in the Community, and BAPS, as well as repeat university partner events including Nottingham University, Loughborough, Leicester, and Warwick.
Other brands that Athena welcomed in 2022 included O2, Turtle Bay, JD Outdoor, NHBC, Miss Great Britain, Care in the UK Awards, Land Registry Awards, National Fitness Awards, National Club Awards, and Davidso
