Introduction

Dragon School was Two Rivers’ first fully immersive event, taking place over 7 days during the Easter holidays.

The event attracted over 1,112 pre-bookings and more than 2,100 participants throughout its duration, driving a notable 16.8% year-on-year increase in footfall on the North side of the centre.

Importantly, it highlighted the often-overlooked retail offerings in this area to thousands of visitors. This exposure resulted in a significant year-on-year revenue boost for two key retail anchors, TK Maxx and Next, both of which were strategically positioned near the immersive installation.

Background & Challenge

A significant proportion of Two Rivers' demographic consists of young, aspirational families—nearly 30-40% according to CACI 2023—who actively seek out events and activities, particularly during holiday periods.

Engagement from our primary catchment area has consistently been strong, with 2023 seeing an excellent turnout at Two Rivers events—nearly 84% of attendees were local, according to geofence data from Darius Intelligence (DI). However, we identified an opportunity for growth in our secondary catchment. To attract visitors from further afield, we needed a compelling theme, a higher-quality event, and a longer duration to make the trip worthwhile.

The concept of a Dragon School was chosen as the central theme. Earlier in the year, we had hosted a Dragon Dance in January to celebrate Chinese New Year and support our Asian-themed tenants, including Kokoro, Chinese Buffet, itsu, and Longdan. Continuing the dragon theme felt like a strong and distinctive choice that would resonate with both local and broader audiences, driving greater footfall and visitation.

Methodology

Pre-bookable slots were set-up on Eventbrite and were 80% booked within one week of going live. This also allowed us to communicate with families who had pre-booked before and after their visit with targeted newsletters, SMS' about how they could make the most of their day & experience – as well as measure through postcode analysis secondary catchment penetration.

Results

• Footfall measured by the geofence around the scheme highlighted a 16.8% increase YOY across the 7 days of the event on the North side of the scheme. The event itself had a little over 2,100 participants – not including additional family members!
• The number of vehicles in the North car park increased by 1,612. This was a 12.8% increase YOY.
• Targeted e-zines and SMS messages were sent to pre-registered attendees – driving Next & TK Maxx products, offerings and promotions. Next highlighted a YOY sales increase for the week of nearly 12% and TK Maxx 5%. By nature, their footfall into store was also significantly increased
• We had 1,112 pre-bookings of which, 816 were NEW additions to the database, comfortably achieving target. Of the 816 new records, 386 resided in our secondary catchment.