Fridays in the City continues to evolve with support of Pokemon Go

Businesses in Brisbane's city centre can look forward to a boost in activity during the next three weeks of the Property Council's Fridays in the City campaign with Niantic Labs, who develop games such as Pokémon GO, throwing their support behind the campaign.

Players of the augmented reality games PokémonGO and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will be drawn into the city to battle other players and collect unique items at five designated Fridays in the City locations.

The Property Council's incoming Queensland Executive Director, Jen Williams, explained that the support of Niantic Labs was a novel way of increasing CBD foot traffic and would ultimately benefit CBD retailers who had been struggling since the COVID pandemic.

'We know games such as Pokémon GO can entice large crowds of people to specific locations, so why not draw them into the CBD where they can support businesses that have struggled since the pandemic?' Ms Williams said.

'Fridays in the City is all about reminding people why the city is a great place to visit, and that is exactly what this partnership with Niantic Labs will do.

'We have organised five unique game locations to be set up in the Brisbane CBD where players will be able to find rare items, battle each other, and then hopefully pause to get a bite to eat or stop off for a drink with friends.

'Niantic Labs will also be partnering with small CBD retailers via the Pokémon GO and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite app to give these businesses a much-needed boost.

'CBD retailers used to be able to rely on the steady footfall of office workers, however, with work from home now more widespread, workers are simply not coming into the office in the same kind of numbers that they did pre-pandemic- particularly on Fridays.

'The Property Council's most recent office occupancy data reveals that a lack of office workers remains the key challenge for our cities and the missing piece in our broader economic recovery.

'Brisbane's CBD office occupancy sits at just 70 per cent of where it was pre-pandemic and has remained at this level for the last six months.

'Last week the Prime Minister urged all Australians to return to work and there is broad acknowledgment from Government that we cannot embark on a fully-fledged economic recovery without restarting our cities, which have always been the engine rooms of our economy.

'Working with Niantic Labs is just one of the many ways the Property Council is looking to breathe life back into our CBD as part of our Fridays in the City campaign.

'There are also numerous food and beverage deals, retail offerings, gift vouchers, and a range of other giveaways.

'I would strongly encourage everyone to visit the Fridays in the City website to see all the offers and incentives available each Friday as there is something for everyone,' Ms Williams said.

More information- visit www.bnecity.com.au/fridays

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