The UB40 concert in Nadi this Friday is expected to give a strong boost to the local economy, with businesses already reporting increased activity as visitors begin arriving in the West.

Nadi Chamber of Commerce President Lawrence Kumar says major international events like this create business opportunities across many sectors, especially tourism and hospitality.

He says the concert is already driving demand, with hotels filling up, restaurants receiving more bookings, and transport operators reporting higher activity.
Kumar says retailers are also noticing more people coming into town.

“There’s a huge amount of movement around the township of Nadi. There’s huge movement around outside the township of Nadi. So, during the course of this week, we’ve actually seen people already moving into the township of Nadi. A lot of tourists are already travelling into the township of Nadi.”

Kumar says when people travel for a concert, they spend on accommodation, food, transport, and shopping.

He says this allows money to circulate through the community and supports both large and small businesses.

He adds that hotels, bars, restaurants, taxi operators, and tour companies are expected to benefit the most.

He says small vendors, food stalls, and market sellers will also see increased sales from the large crowds.

“I mean, if you look at it, it’s not only the bigger players that are sort of benefiting out of it. You’ve got the smaller, micro, medium enterprises who are actually benefiting out of it. When I say benefiting out of it, there’s going to be a lot of the food vendors, the restaurants are going to be benefiting out of it. There are taxi operators who are going to be benefiting out of it.”

Kumar says events like the UB40 concert help position Nadi as a destination for major entertainment events and build confidence for future investment.

The Nadi Chamber of Commerce believes more concerts of this scale can help grow the town by attracting visitors, creating jobs, and strengthening the local economy.

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