LA Tourism reveals ‘record breaking’ global advertising push

A ‘record-breaking’ eight-figure global tourism push by Los Angeles will see the city promoted across a range of outlets in the UK and Ireland.

The ‘Now Playing’ campaign by the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board (LA Tourism) will see posters plus adverts on TV, social, online video and LED pitch-side sites at Premier League and FA Cup football matches.

Highlights include LA street artist Mister Cartoon designing a Los Angeles mural outside London nightclub, Village Underground in Shoreditch, and an LA takeover at Manchester Victoria station.

The activity comes as Los Angeles expects to achieve 93.8% of pre-pandemic 2019 international tourism recovery levels by the end of the year.

The city is expected to attract 370,000 visitors from the UK and Ireland in 2024, an increase of 12.1% compared to last year’s projected total of 330,000. This makes the UK and Ireland the third largest market for overseas visitors to LA after China and Australia/New Zealand.

‘Now Playing’ has generated more than $2 billion in incremental direct spending in Los Angeles since the campaign’s initial launch.

Regional vice president for Europe and the Middle East, Francine Sheridan, said: “We are thrilled to continue our investment in the UK and Ireland with the next phase of the Now Playing campaign, inspiring visitors to choose LA for their next holiday.

“I’m particularly excited to see Mister Cartoon’s larger than life mural in Shoreditch and the LA takeover at Manchester Victoria station.

“The UK and Ireland remain a key focus for LA Tourism in 2024 – the 25th anniversary year of LA Tourism’s UK office.”

Bill Karz, senior vice president of brand and digital marketing, said:“LA Tourism’s ‘Now Playing’ campaign has been the organisation’s most successful to date, and we’re proud to continue to leverage the creative to venture into new international target markets.

“The launch in overseas markets like the UK and Ireland is particularly important because international guests tend to stay longer and contribute more to the local economy.

“Our approach with the spring launch allows us to showcase our incredible destination authentically, through the eyes of Angelenos themselves.”