New Year - Sold out

[RobNichols]

In the early 80s I lived in Stroud, and I attended there the most memorable New Years celebrations of my life. They were fabulous. We would work our way around the pubs in the town centre, having a pint or two in each one. We'd meet, chat and laugh with different people of all ages in each pub. Then at about 23:30 we would head out of the pubs and into the streets and everyone would head for the small clock tower in front of the Subscription Rooms. Towards midnight the crowd would grow until the whole area was full of good natured people. And when midnight came everyone would celebrate together. It was brilliant. Such good spirits. Even the police joined in the celebrations. It was a time of laughter, joy and good spirits.

And then one year a couple of pubs started to charge an entrance fee on New Years eve. The next year all the pubs were doing it. And it killed the fantastic event that used to be Stroud's New Year's celebrations. With people having paid to get into the pub, they wouldn't want to leave it. It meant people didn't move between the pubs, and everyone stopped leaving the pubs to join the crowd in the town centre. New Year's Eve lost its allure. It became just another night out.

So I am saddened to hear about the New Year events about the place. All with entry fees, restricted areas for those willing to pay a premium. Security guards and movement restrictions. It all smacks of a society that doesn't trust its citizens to be able to enjoy themselves unregulated. A society that wants to squeeze money out of what used to be spontaneous social events.

New Years Eve isn't much of an event for me now. Partly that could just be me getting old. But I think the commercialisation of Christmas and New Year is a large factor. Its now just an evening in watching crap telly. It used to be the day when I most keenly felt part of my community. It's very sad to reflect on the New Year's Eves that once were to be had and the sad reflections we have now.

 

[Katomi woodsmith]

For years here, everyone in the street would come out just before midnight, tv up loud to hear Big Ben
Last year there was just the two of us,,, again sad to see the old ways die

 

[Sachakins]

We used to sequential events, Halloween, bonfire night, Christmas eve, Christmas day boxing day new yeras eve New year's day, valentines, mother's day etc etc. When one ended, shops all cha get to next event.
Today businesses are so busy trying to get you to the events after the 9nes that not yet been.

We met up with friends on 12th December at local pub grub chain, for a pre Xmas lunch. The first thing that greeted in the entrance wasn't Christmas welcome, but two advertising boards, one for valentines day, the other for mothers day..
Won't be going back there again.

 

[bp122]

Very true.

Also the point to note is that technology has a part in this result.

Before, the true entertainment was outside or only came with real interaction with real people. Nowadays, people don't even go to the toilet without their phones because they want to doom-scroll into oblivion on their tiktoks or reels where some guy gets hit in the nuts trying to wrestle a cow!

As a result, there isn't anything outside of that bubble that people find more entertaining, let alone the fact that they have to pay for everything! - As a result, they would rather sit at home for free, drink and have guaranteed mediocre fun than go outside, pay and have a sub par experience because of anti social people, potential risk of life, pick pocketing etc.

 

[Amplidyne]

In the early 80s I lived in Stroud, and I attended there the most memorable New Years celebrations of my life. They were fabulous. We would work our way around the pubs in the town centre, having a pint or two in each one. We'd meet, chat and laugh with different people of all ages in each pub. Then at about 23:30 we would head out of the pubs and into the streets and everyone would head for the small clock tower in front of the Subscription Rooms. Towards midnight the crowd would grow until the whole area was full of good natured people. And when midnight came everyone would celebrate together. It was brilliant. Such good spirits. Even the police joined in the celebrations. It was a time of laughter, joy and good spirits.

And then one year a couple of pubs started to charge an entrance fee on New Years eve. The next year all the pubs were doing it. And it killed the fantastic event that used to be Stroud's New Year's celebrations. With people having paid to get into the pub, they wouldn't want to leave it. It meant people didn't move between the pubs, and everyone stopped leaving the pubs to join the crowd in the town centre. New Year's Eve lost its allure. It became just another night out.

So I am saddened to hear about the New Year events about the place. All with entry fees, restricted areas for those willing to pay a premium. Security guards and movement restrictions. It all smacks of a society that doesn't trust its citizens to be able to enjoy themselves unregulated. A society that wants to squeeze money out of what used to be spontaneous social events.

New Years Eve isn't much of an event for me now. Partly that could just be me getting old. But I think the commercialisation of Christmas and New Year is a large factor. Its now just an evening in watching crap telly. It used to be the day when I most keenly felt part of my community. It's very sad to reflect on the New Year's Eves that once were to be had and the sad reflections we have now.

But then we were all a lot younger in the early 80s. We lived in a town as well back then, and there was plenty to do.
I've got a feeling that, as you imply, commercialisation has a lot to do with it. I remember Christmas 1971 when I had just started my apprenticeship, and was in out training school. We had Christmas day and Boxing Day off IIRC, but that was it. As Christmas was on a Saturday, we had a day or two off in lieu. That was it. It seemed special somehow.
Basically I think people were happy with a lot less in those days and expected less.

 

[Sachakins]

Businesses don't realise they are slowly killing off customer from the way they try to milk the "event".

As above where they push events before the current one gets going they have done the same with sale events. They have all but killed off the special sale event dates by sheer greed.
Most recent example was Cyber Monday, Businesses were busy extending black friday from a single super sale DAY that people would go crazy for, to a weekend event, then if became a week-long event, now it's the Black Friday MONTH. So cyber Monday is just part of the black friday month, so has dropped off for many retailers.
People no longer see these events as a chance to bag a bargain, but just part of a retailers fake sales, where discounts are against a price that we never see items sold at.
The same is true of the Boxing day sales, this has been largely destroyed by the "pre Xmas boxing day sales" and the first big sale of the year, new years day sale is dying too in all but the biggest retailers.

People have gotten wise to this trend, but the business's and retailers don't yet realise many customers are aware. Too late when they wake up and wonder why they don't have boost periods in their I come streams.

The company Advertising Directors must keep pushing the need to have sale events to the boards, just to keep their little Advertising empires going.

It really is a case of killing the goose that lays golden eggs, but while the board think they're cultivating that goose, its there own Advertising Directors that are taking a knife to that goose and slowly slitting its throat.

I think a big reason in this is the rise of the Media Consultant agency, their only income is in convincing a company of the next big "Opportunity or Trend" that they alone have invented, but pitch well to Businesses, who think these agencies have their finger on the pulse of the people.

Well, we've all seen how well that went for Budwieser, Harvey Davidson etc and the most recent one Jaguar.
Never thought the phrase "Go woke, go broke" would be such a perfect description of a self imploding, self indulgent, self deluding CEO's, whe actually believe that they decide who their customer demographic is.

Remember the phrases "Customer is King" well those days never went away, just ignored today.
These CEO's need to take that phrase more to heart now or go broke soon

They need to realise that, ", customers chose the seller not the seller choosing a customer AND...the customer is not always right but they are always the customer..."

☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠☠

 

[woodieallen]

Can be quiet back in the day, though. I remember one New Year's Eve night with some mates in their flat. Would have been very early '70's. Come midnight we thought it a grand idea to do a conga down the very quiet suburban roads. I remember there was an old guy in one of the windows hanging out to see if anything was happening and to his delight, he said,"Thank you lads. First time there's been an activity round here for years on New Year's Eve"

 

[woodieallen]

.....

Remember the phrases "Customer is King" well those days never went away, just ignored today.
These CEO's need to take that phrase more to heart now or go broke soon

...

But remember that your call 'is important to them'.

 

[Puggers]

I remember going to see Black Sabbath back in London on New Years Eve 1981 (with Ronnie James Dio having replaced Ozzy). We went up into town to Trafalgar Square afterwards and the bells from Big Ben were pretty much muffled with my ears still ringing from the show.