Swallow Events pivots to provide pre-event rapid Covid testing facility

Events operator and supplier Swallow Events has partnered with Roche to provide a Covid-19 testing service.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency approved tests will cost from £8.80 to £13 before VAT, depending on the scale of order, and deliver results within 15 minutes.

Swallow Events Founder and MD Oli Thomas told Access that the pop-up testing facility is aimed squarely at the events market: “We are trying to keep the cost as low as possible because we really care about the events industry, we want to open it back up in a Covid-secure way and in so doing help to protect more than 570,000 full-time jobs which are rapidly disappearing.”

The tests alone can be ordered directly but the company is also offering a consultancy service, “covering critical information and advice” in line with UK government guidelines and local authority restrictions.

Thomas said the scheme has already generated a lot of interest among events operators, internationally, and that he expects the cost of the tests to be passed on to the consumer with any rise in ticket price being negligible due to the cut in VAT on ticket sales to 5%.

He said that Swallow Events will continue to monitor developments with testing and will switch to another supplier should a better option arise: “We are in talks with a supplier that is developing a 10-second Covid-19 breath test kit. We want to make sure we have the best kit possible.”

Founded in 2007 by Thomas, UK-based Swallow Events has expanded beyond its core event catering management and operations business in recent months into full event logistics and operations business offering brand sponsorships and partnerships, as well as digital marketing consulting.

It has appointed three new directors: Natalie Vincini (Brand Activations & Partnerships), Grego O’Halloran (Logistics & Operations) and Stuart Broadhurst (Digital Marketing Solutions). Among its festivals clients are Glastonbury, BBC Countryfile Live, The Times & Sunday Times Literature Festival, Goodwood Revival and Royal Ascot.