New three-year partnership will bring together leaders from the built environment, culture, nightlife and hospitality to explore how London can support a thriving 24-hour economy.
HOLBA and VibeLab partner to explore the future of London’s 24-hour city
New three-year partnership will bring together leaders from the built environment, culture, nightlife and hospitality to explore how London can support a thriving 24-hour economy.
Friday 16 October
Heart of London Business Alliance (HOLBA) is partnering with VibeLab to launch Creative Footprint Lab London, a new thought leadership programme exploring how culture, nightlife, hospitality, retail and the built environment can work together to shape a thriving 24-hour city.
As the London programme’s Founding and Presenting Partner, HOLBA will work with VibeLab, the leading international consultancy specialising in nightlife, culture and the nighttime economy, to bring together senior decision-makers, practitioners and international voices to examine the opportunities and challenges facing London’s nighttime economy.
The programme will combine an annual, in-person Lab in the West End with a series of online sessions throughout the year. These will create space for cross-sector discussion, drawing on international experience and local insight to identify practical recommendations and opportunities for action.
The West End’s strength lies in the mix of businesses, cultural experiences and destinations that make it distinctive. But creating a successful 24-hour city takes more than individual sectors working in isolation. Through Creative Footprint Lab London, we want to bring the right people together to explore shared challenges, learn from other cities and identify practical opportunities that support our members and the long-term success of the West End.
Mark Williams, Deputy Chief Executive, HOLBA
The initiative builds on VibeLab’s work on the Mayor of London’s Nightlife Taskforce report and HOLBA’s wider work on the future of the West End as a place to work, visit, invest and enjoy. It will also contribute to HOLBA’s wider thought leadership on the 24-hour city and its work to support the West End’s long-term growth.
Nightlife and culture are integral to how cities function, attract people and create economic value, yet the relationship between creative activity and the built environment is not always fully understood. Creative Footprint Lab London offers an opportunity to bring these worlds into closer conversation, combining international experience with the realities of London to explore new approaches and turn shared insight into practical action.
Lutz Leichsenring, Co-founder of VibeLab Network
Inaugural Creative Footprint Lab London
The first in-person Lab takes place on Wednesday 18 November 2026, bringing together around 80 senior decision-makers from real estate, culture, nightlife, hospitality and the public sector.
Through expert discussions and workshops, participants will explore issues including licensing, cultural infrastructure and investment, drawing on international experience to identify practical recommendations and opportunities for action in the West End, London and beyond.
The findings will provide a practical roadmap for London’s 24-hour economy, translating international best practice and cross-sector insight into actionable recommendations, opportunities for pilot projects, investment and policy development, and clear next steps for the West End and HOLBA’s wider programme to shape a thriving 24-hour city.
About VibeLab
VibeLab is an international consultancy working at the intersection of nightlife, culture and the urban environment. Through research, strategy and convening, it helps cities and stakeholders understand and develop their nighttime economies.
About Heart of London Business Alliance
Heart of London Business Alliance (HOLBA) is a business-led partnership representing businesses and property owners across London’s West End. It works with businesses, public bodies and other partners to support a safe, vibrant and successful destination, championing economic growth, investment and the long-term commercial and cultural well-being of the area.