The fourth annual Australasian Hotel Industry Conference (AHICE) in Melbourne has been labeled the best yet by attendees and sponsors alike.

Over 300 leading Hoteliers, owners, investors, fund and asset managers, suppliers and consultants (up almost 100 on last year) converged on Sofitel Melbourne on Collins yesterday (May 16) to hear from over 30 speakers that discussed the greater accommodation industry, as well and hearing tips from those outside the industry.

AHICE 2013, hosted by HM magazine and held in Melbourne for the first time, kicked-off with a well-attended welcome reception at The Windsor hotel on Wednesday night (May 15), hosted by the hotel’s Chief Executive Officer David Perry and sponsored by Schweppes, Crush Fine Wines, Asahi beer and Somersby Cider.

Over 140 turned up for what proved to be one of the most successful networking events of the year and one that is now set to be a starring event at AHICE on an annual basis.

The main conference – emceed by leading asset manager Howard Kemball and has themed ‘Leadership Matters… the Leaders of Today and the Future’ – then got underway at 8:45am on May 16 with a welcome from HM magazine’s Editor-In-Chief James Wilkinson, followed by a series of panels and keynote speakers.

Leading off was Carolyn Creswell, founder of Carman’s muesli bars and recent recipient of the prestigious 2012 Telstra Business Woman of the Year Award, who inspired hoteliers with her rags-to-riches story and how the company has become a household name.

From operating her business out of a study to now at home in a large warehouse, Creswell spoke about how Carman’s have found a home onboard leading airlines Qantas and Virgin Australia, and how the brand is now digging its heels into the lucrative UK supermarket business.

A panel then followed, looking at opportunities arising from the ‘Asian Century’ and it identified how Australia and New Zealand can best target the rapidly growing outbound markets of China and Indonesia.

Panelist Simon McGrath, Accor’s chief operating officer for the Pacific, said it wasn’t just the hotel product that had to suit the rapidly growing markets.

“It’s about our service,” he said. “Especially the way we welcome the Chinese, Indian and Indonesian visitor.”

Fellow panelist Craig Bond, Pan Pacific Hotels Group’s Area General Manager for Oceania, said airlines were also a key to success.

“We need to make sure we get the seat capacity into Australia,” he said.

Former Qantas Chief Economist Tony Webber then gave a fantastic presentation on the accommodation industry, in particular how hotels are and aren’t maximizing yield at the right times of the year.

He showed how properties aren’t maximizing rate opportunities during peak seasons of the year.

Webber was followed by the always popular ‘What Owners Want’ session, moderated by Howard Kemball.

Will Deague (Asian Pacific Group), Julian Clark (Lancemore Group), James Hines (Hines Property Group), Jerry Schwartz (Schwartz Family Company) and Lucia Grambalova (Ascendas) all enlightened the crowd of mainly hotel General Mangers with what owners really want.

One of the key comments during the session came from Clark who said: “Brand standards are on overdose in our industry”.

STR Global’s Bryon Merzeo presented a wrap-up of the Australian market and interestingly, Melbourne had 120 nights above 90% occupancy during 2012, however ADR fluctuated in every month.

Merzeo also revealed there are currently 458,000 hotel rooms in the development pipeline at present and 47% of those are currently under construction.

Accor Asia Pacific’s Chairman and CEO Michael Issenberg followed after lunch, with an insightful one-on-one interview with Wilkinson where he revealed the company’s growth plans in Asia and hot spots in Australia.

When asked by Wilkinson whether 2013 would be the year of free WiFi, he said he believes WiFi should not be entirely free due to the extensive cost to owners and hotel management companies.

WiFi was a hot topic of debate on the Industry Leaders Forum panel that followed, with hoteliers – Bob East (Mantra Group), Paul Constantinou (Quest), Robert Dawson (Hyatt), Barry Robinson (Wyndham), Paul Fischmann (8Hotels) and Rob Anderson (Best Western Australasia) – in general agreement that WiFi should not necessarily be free across the board.

The panel also looked at how to capture more Chinese outbound travellers, performance across market segments and marketing through sporting celebrities such as Pat Rafter (Mantra) and Layne Beachley (Wyndham).

The Melbourne Convention Bureau’s Edwina San then gave a presentation about the booming conventions and meetings business Melbourne has been winning.

Advantage Point Business Advisors’ Bruce McDonald then gave a speech on ‘announcing the cure for attitude sickness’ one that drew significant applause from the audience.

Development was then in the spotlight, where several leading hoteliers – including Phil Kasselis (IHG), Lindsay Leeser (Accor), Michael Moret-Lalli (Mantra), Andrew Taylor (Starwood) and Barry Fleischmann (Best Western) – were questioned on the hot development spots in Australasia and what models developers and owners are seeking at present by moderator Robert Williams from Ryan Law.

Journalist Bruce Guthrie then closed out the day. Guthrie has been editor of The Sunday Age, The Age, Who Weekly, the Weekend Australian Magazine and Wish. His most recent appointment, in 2007, was as editor-in-chief of the Herald-Sun – a role he filled until his dramatic and unexpected exit in November 2008, which is documented in his recent book ‘Man Bites Murdoch’.

Guthrie’s insight into the world of newspaper publishing was one of the real highlights of the conference and provided an exceptional finish to a successful conference.

Praise for the success of the day came quickly from the industry, including Pan Pacific’s Bond who said it was “the best yet” and Brett Patterson from ISIS who said he was more than impressed with the line up of “great quality speakers”.

A boutique exhibition featuring some of the leading brands in the industry was the place to be during morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea.

Sponsor and exhibitor Melissa Starbuck from Sealy said it was the most successful AHICE for the company yet from an exhibition point of view and they were “thrilled” with the result.

Sealy was one of 14 sponsors of AHICE this year, including: gold sponsors Schweppes and Reward Hotel Projects; and silver sponsors AH Beard, DE Master Blenders, Dometic; Empire Hospitality, Innova Group, Meiko, Miele, Nespresso, Next Gen Services, Sealy, Sico and Sleepmaker.

“To say we have had industry support would be an understatement and I want to take this opportunity to thank Australia’s leading hoteliers, chains and suppliers for getting behind AHICE and ensuring its ongoing success,” Wilkinson said.

A dozen chains and leading hotels threw their support behind the conference in 2013, including: platinum supporter Accor; gold supporters Choice Hotels Australasia, IHG, Mantra Group and Quest; silver supporters the Accommodation Association of Australia, Best Western Australasia, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, Pan Pacific Hotels Group, Toga Hotels, The Windsor Melbourne and Wyndham Hotel Group.

Alongside the support from the Accommodation Association of Australia, industry support also came from Tourism Accommodation Australia, TTF Australia and the Victoria Tourism Industry Council.

Crown Limited has announced Wilkinson Eyre Architects as the winning design firm for the proposed Crown Sydney Hotel Resort.

The project at Barangaroo South on the Sydney Harbour foreshore is still subject to the New South Wales Government issuing Crown a gaming license, as a casino is proposed to be a component of the development.

A second casino license is available from 2019, but Crown is facing competition from Echo, operators of The Star casino in Sydney, which also wants access to that license.

Should Crown proceed, the design that has been selected has been praised by Crown Limited’s Chairman James Packer, who said the building would become an icon of the city.

“When completed, Crown Sydney will be instantly recognisable around the world,” Packer said.

“Its iconic curves and fine lines celebrate the harbour and create an architectural ‘postcard’ that will help attract international tourists and assist Sydney to compete with other global destinations.”

The joint judging panel unanimously recommended the Wilkinson Eyre design to Crown, following an extended competition to design the Crown Sydney Hotel Resort.

The final three designs by internationally renowned architects Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill, Kohn Pedersen Fox, and Wilkinson Eyre Architects were judged by a panel consisting of representatives from Crown Resorts, Lend Lease, the Barangaroo Delivery Authority and the NSW Department of Planning.

The firms presented their designs to the judges last week, and the panel made a formal recommendation to Crown on the suitability of each design and its ability to achieve the desired vision and outcomes for Barangaroo and Crown.

Packer, thanked the judging panel and congratulated Wilkinson Eyre and its key architects Chris Wilkinson and Paul Baker.

“Wilkinson Eyre have an incredible record of achievement and I am certain they will deliver Sydney an iconic building we can all be proud of,” Packer said.

“This great city deserves a building that is truly special and Wilkinson Eyre’s design delivers it. It’s a wonderful moment for Crown.”

The hotel is expected to have around 350 rooms and suites, including several villas that Crown says will “rival the best in Asia”.

There will also be four restaurants, a café, high-end ‘ultra lounge’ bar, day spa, rooftop pool and luxury retail outlets.

Wilkinson Eyre Architects is an internationally renowned design company. The firm is twice winners of the prestigious RIBA Stirling Prize and is one of the UK’s leading architecture practices.

The company has a prized portfolio of bold, beautiful, intelligent architecture including the giant, sustainably-cooled conservatories for the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, the new Mary Rose Museum in the UK, the acclaimed temporary structure of the London 2012 Basketball Arena and the Guangzhou International Finance Center – the eighth tallest building in the world.

“Sydney is one of the most beautiful cities in the world and it is a great privilege to design such a significant building on the waterfront,” said Wilkinson.

“The challenge for this important waterfront site was to design an elegant sculptural form that will enhance the skyline and create a lively public realm at ground level.

“The special relationship that Sydney has with the water and the effect it has on the light is really very attractive to me and raises my spirits.

“My ambition is to create a sculptural form that will rise up on the skyline like an inhabited artwork, with differing levels of transparency, striking a clear new image against the sky.”

Baker added: “Twenty-five years ago I spent two months staying with friends in Balmain, and my frequent ferry trips took me past the Barangaroo site almost daily.

“Many years later I became aware of the development potential of the site and now consider it to be one of the best sites in the world. I am thrilled and delighted to be involved in creating a new destination for this unique waterfront.

“The architecture takes its inspiration from nature, composed of organic forms that provide an abstract, sculptural shape; it does not try to mimic any particular plant or flower but is derived from the specificity of the site and the client brief.

“Its curved geometry emanates from three petal forms which twist and rise together. The first petal peels off, spreading outward to form the main hotel room accommodation, with the remaining two twisting together toward the sky.”

For a video of the new project, click on the YouTube image below.

Former Australian Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson has thanked the hotel industry for its support during his five years in office.

Ferguson exclusively penned a letter to HM magazine, which was handed out to delegates at yesterday’s Australasian Hotel Industry Conference and Exhibition (AHICE) in Melbourne.

Here is what Ferguson said:

Friends,
During my five and a half years as Minister for Tourism, and two years as Shadow Minister, I got to know many of you exceptionally well, both professionally and personally. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the portfolio and am very proud of what was achieved, both by my former Department, the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism and Tourism Australia. These achievements would not have been possible without the support and assistance of the tourism industry, including many from the hotels sector, and I thank each and every one of you for your contribution.

Some of the many achievements in the industry include the development of Tourism 2020; a whole of government approach to working with the tourism industry to achieve Australia’s tourism potential. The Tourism 2020 strategy has lead us to a focus on the key issues of labour and skills, especially shortages and the importance of Indigenous employment in tourism. We are also aware of the need to seek out large scale investment and streamline regulatory processes for developments in tourism product, including in hotels.

For the first time, Tourism Australia actively started marketing Australia as an investment destination for tourism products including hotels. Under this government, tourism is now one of Austrade’s investment priorities, which will help grow the sector and improve the quality of product and ensure that Australia remains a competitive holiday and business events destination in this Asian Century. Tourism Australia’s highly successful campaign, ‘There’s nothing like Australia’ aims to turn international travellers desire to travel to Australia into a reality. The results speak for themselves with over 6 million visitors to Australia in the last twelve months, including significant growth from Asian countries such as China – which is now our biggest spending market. While there have been challenges, the tourism industry is notoriously resilient. It is the hard work and dedication of those working within the industry and alongside that will ensure the tourism industry will thrive in the future.

I would like to thank all of the agencies, associations, businesses – both large and small – that I worked with while Minister for Tourism and Shadow Minister.

These achievements would not have been possible without you. Your support, dedication and professionalism to such an important industry in the Australian economy are invaluable.

I wish you every success with your conference.

Martin Ferguson AM MP

The Australian accommodation industry and federal opposition have expressed concerns over the effect on tourism from this year’s budget.

Speaking exclusively to HM, Shadow Tourism Minister Bob Baldwin said the budget “doesn’t deliver”.

“Budget 2013 delivers more debt, more deficits, more taxes, more broken promises and more uncertainty from an incompetent Labor Government that can’t be trusted,” he said.

“Like so many of Labor’s promises, the Gillard Government has broken their 2010 election commitment to spend AUD$10 million annually, and AUD$40 million in total, on the TQUAL Grants Program.

“Tourism operators couldn’t trust what Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan promised last year and this year is no different,” Baldwin said.

The Accommodation Association of Australia’s CEO Richard Munro also has concerns with the budget.

“A major challenge confronting both the Federal Government and the accommodation industry is that revenue is not keeping pace with costs,” he said.

“Company profits are reportedly down for five consecutive years which translates to lower revenue from taxation.

“Given that labour costs are the largest expense for employers in our industry, the Fair Work Commission must take this into consideration as part of its review of the minimum wage.

“Initiatives in the Budget which will benefit the accommodation industry include the increase in the Asia Marketing Fund, provision for TQUAL and TIRF grants, funding for hosting the 2015 Cricket World Cup and funding for apprenticeship programs.

“The industry is concerned that the increase in 457 visa costs could result in even lower availability of labour than already exists,” Munro said.

Crown Chairman James Packer has signed up restaurateurs Neil Perry and Guillaume Brahimi as Crown Melbourne’s new culinary directors.

In their newly formed role of Culinary Directors, a post they will hold for the next three years, Perry and Brahimi will combine their expertise and culinary greatness to influence all menus across Crown Hotels, Events and Conferencing, as well as overseeing some of Crown’s restaurants such as Rockpool Bar and Grill, Bistro Guillaume, Rosetta, Spice Temple and Silks.

“With over 1.5 million meals served each year, across Crown Melbourne’s 14 premium restaurants and extensive events and conferencing space, the Culinary Directors’ expertise will be an invaluable resource for the Crown Food and Beverage team,” Packer said.

Ensuring all guests to Crown have a world-class dining experience, Perry and Brahimi will work with the company to support training and mentoring of the culinary team working across all Crown Melbourne venues, comprising approximately 510 employees.

The pair will also provide guidance in all culinary appointments, personally train and develop Crown’s apprentices, and mentor and coach Crown’s leading chefs in all premium outlets.

“I’m very excited to be working with Crown, the very best hotels in Australia to ensure that the room service and banquet offering is as world-class as the hotels. Working with and in the culinary training institute is going to be another wonderful opportunity to help support our great industry,” Perry said.

Similarly Brahimi said he is thrilled with the appointment.

“Crown has become one of the most exciting restaurant destinations in Australia and the Crown Hotels are the benchmark for all leading hotels in Asia Pacific,” he said.

The company’s Group Executive General Manager Crown Hotels, Retail and Food and Beverage, Peter Crinis, said: “This is extremely exciting news for the company and hospitality industry alike.

“This partnership will result in my team delivering a truly memorable food and beverage experience, when guests are dining in their suites, at a gala dinner, or in one of our award-winning restaurants.”

Crinis said full details on the roll out of the offerings would be announced soon.

In a boost for Queensland tourism, Emirates is upgrading its Brisbane flights to Airbus A380 superjumbos.

Adding the Airbus A380-800 to one of Emirates’ two daily Brisbane services from October 2, 2013 will see an increase in capacity of 132 seats for sale per flight and 1,848 week, reinforcing Emirates’ commitment to Queensland.

The double-daily service is currently operated by Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, offering 354 seats.

“On the back of growing passenger demand on the route as well as demand for the aircraft, we will become the first airline to bring the state-of-the-art A380 to Brisbane, offering Queenslanders the chance to experience this revolutionary aircraft and the best service in the sky first-hand,” said Salem Obaidalla, Emirates Senior Vice President Commercial Operations, Far East and Australasia.

“The Auckland-Brisbane-Dubai route is a popular choice among business and leisure travellers alike and the new Emirates A380 service will be instrumental in helping Emirates meet this growing passenger demand as well as deliver considerable economic benefits through inbound seats and travel connections.

“Australia represents an important market for Emirates and ranks in the top three countries on Emirates’ global network. Central to this relationship is the ongoing support for tourism and trade provided by adding larger capacity aircraft between our two countries, and a fourth A380 for Australia will further complement our partnership with Qantas,” Obaidalla said.

Together with Qantas, from October a total of six daily A380 services will operate to Dubai, offering a seamless A380 experience through Dubai International Airport’s Concourse A, the world’s first purpose built A380 terminal, to 21 A380 serviced destinations on the network including London Heathrow, Manchester, Paris and Rome.

The announcement caps off a range of recent upgrades to Emirates’ Australian services, including the introduction of a daily Melbourne A380, a daily Adelaide service and a three times daily Perth service. A second A380 for Sydney from June has also been announced.

Emirates is the world’s largest operator of A380s, with 31 in the fleet and 59 on order.

The Emirates A380 is set in a three-class configuration, with 399 seats in Economy Class on the lower level and 76 fully flat bed, mini-pods in Business Class and 14 First Class Private Suites on the upper level.

The Australian Government has committed AUD$180 million in this year’s Federal Budget to the tourism industry.

Australian Tourism Minister Gary Gray said this funding would promote Australia as a destination of choice and provide local firms with tools to grow their business and support jobs, innovation and quality.

“Tourists spend $107 billion a year in Australia, contributing $41 billion to national gross domestic product and directly generating more than half a million jobs,” Gray said.

“Through the national long-term tourism strategy, Tourism 2020, the Gillard Government is committed to growing the industry and is making this investment to increase visitors and give firms the confidence to develop new, world class tourism products.”

Tourism Australia will receive AUD$130 million to continue to market Australia as a tourism destination to international and domestic audiences, and AUD$12.5 million from the Asian Marketing Fund to boost its ability to attract Asian visitors.

“By making Australia the destination of choice for holiday makers, we can boost our economy, support jobs and attract investment,” Gray said.

Minister Assisting for Tourism, Senator Don Farrell, said tourism firms would be able to access AUD$18.7 million in matched funding in 2013-14 to develop quality tourism products through T-QUAL Grants and the Tourism Industry Regional Development Fund.

“The T-QUAL accreditation program will lift product quality and reward businesses who commit to higher customer service standards,” Senator Farrell said.

“And industry investment and innovation will be enhanced through the continuation of Tourism Research Australia’s research agenda, providing industry focused research to support operators make better informed commercial decisions.”

Gray said the Government was also helping tourism firms to save time and money when they developed new products through the continuation of the Tourism Major Project Facilitation Service.

“This funding is in addition to the industry’s access to programs like Enterprise Connect, the Export Market Development Grants and the Workforce Futures program that provide tourism firms with the funds to increase productivity, enter new export markets and address skills shortages and workforce planning issues,” Gray said.

“This year the Gillard Government is investing in industries like tourism to prepare for the future, putting jobs and economic growth first and protecting the important services that Australians rely on.

“We’re doing this to keep our economy one of the most resilient in the world – we have low unemployment, solid growth, contained inflation and low interest rates.”

According to the Australia Tourism Export Council (ATEC), the 2013/14 Federal Budget has “delivered a stable outcome for tourism which has largely protected Tourism Australia’s (TA) core funding”.

“While the base appropriation for TA maintains a level of around $130-135 million over the forward estimates, there is a significant increase to the marketing capacity available to TA through the Asia Marketing Fund (AMF) – which is tied to revenues collected via the Passenger Movement Charge(PMC),” said ATEC Managing Director, Felicia Mariani.

“In 2012/13 the PMC delivered $8.5 million for the AMF and this has been forecast to increase to around $12.5 million in the next financial year.

“In support of the tourism industry, the AMF provides additional marketing funds to TA while allowing dedicated research to better understand the Asian markets via Tourism Research Australia. The total funding via the AMF is projected to increase to around $54 million through to the 2016/17 forward estimates.

“Another PMC deliverable is the Tourism Industry Regional Development Fund (TIRF) which will increase to $11.1M this year, up by some $4 million over the current year, and will provide up to $48 million over 4 years in the forward estimates period.

“This must all be kept in context, however, as the PMC collection out to 2016/17 is projected to raise some $1.1 billion for the Government and the tourism industry will receive a mere 10% of that tax to benefit the source that fuels its performance.

“In the 2007/08 Financial Year, the Government collected $412M through the PMC, a tax that was originally applied to all departures to cover the cost of passenger facilitation by the Customs and Border Protection Services. The cost of delivering these services was around $192 million in 2007/08.

“In the 2013/14 budget year, the PMC will generate some $862 million to the Government coffers while the cost of passenger facilitation in the same period will be a cost of just $220 million.

“Clearly, while the cost of servicing our international departures has increased marginally, the fund has more than doubled in its revenue raising capacity delivering the Government an enormous windfall to its bottom line,” she said.

New Zealand’s Economic Development Minister, Steven Joyce, has announced the Government and SkyCity have signed a Heads of Agreement to build a NZD$402 million international-standard convention centre in Auckland.

The New Zealand International Convention Centre will cater for 3500 international conference delegates at any one time. It will be built for a total estimated project cost of NZD$402 million, made up of NZD$315 million in construction and fit-out costs and NZD$87 million in land costs.

Joyce was joined by SkyCity Chief Executive Nigel Morrison and Auckland Mayor Len Brown at SkyCity in Auckland for the announcement. Construction of the New Zealand International Convention Centre is expected to begin in 2014 with the facility to be open in 2017.

“An international convention centre in Auckland will be a major asset for New Zealand and will generate significant spin-off benefits including a projected $90 million annual injection into the economy; an estimated 1000 jobs during construction; and 800 jobs once it is up and running,” Joyce said.

“It’s estimated this new facility will attract around 33,000 more conference delegates each year.”

Under the agreement, SkyCity will meet the full project costs of the convention centre – estimated at $402 million – in return for the following:
-An extension of SkyCity’s Auckland casino licence, due to expire in 2021, out to 30 June 2048, and an amendment to cover all of SkyCity’s properties in Federal Street;
-An additional 230 ‘pokie’ machines on the casino floor;
-An additional 40 gaming tables;
-A further 12 gaming tables that can be substituted for automated table game player stations (but not ‘pokie’ machines);
-Up to 17 per cent of pokie machines and automatic table games (in restricted areas only) being able to accept banknotes of denominations greater than $20; and
-Introducing TITO and card-based cashless gaming technology on all pokie machines and automatic table games at Auckland casino.
SkyCity will operate the convention centre for at least 35 years.

SkyCity will have enhanced measures to deter problem gambling and money laundering including:

-A predictive modelling tool that analyses data to identify players at risk of problem gambling
-A voluntary pre-commitment system where players can elect to restrict the amount of time they play or the amount they spend
-Doubling the number of Host Responsibility specialists to deliver 24-hour, seven-days-a-week coverage.
-Introduction of player identification requirements when amounts over $500 are being put onto, or cashed from, TITO tickets in non-restricted areas.

An independent assessment by financial advisory firm KordaMentha has described the value of the concessions made to SkyCity in exchange for the construction and operation of the International Convention Centre as reasonable for both parties.

The 230 new ‘pokie’ machines is the same number granted to SkyCity under the previous Government in 2001 for the development of the existing, and much smaller, Auckland Convention Centre.

The Heads of Agreement is a legally binding document which settles the key principles on which a full agreement will be based. SkyCity and the Government are required to complete a full agreement, based on the Heads of Agreement, by 14 June 2013.

Legislation will be required to give effect to the final agreement.

The Government will have the right to approve the design of the Convention Centre, which will be designed and built to contemporary international standards.

“This agreement to build a world-class convention centre is a good deal for New Zealand that will create jobs, boost tourism, and bring significant benefits both to Auckland and to the New Zealand economy,” Joyce said.

“For years the tourism industry and business sector have been asking for an international-sized convention centre to be built in New Zealand to ensure we compete with Australia and Asia by tapping into the growing market of high-value business visitors.”

All corners of New Zealand’s tourism industry have welcomed the approval of the new national convention centre in Auckland.

The new international convention centre in Auckland will create substantial economic benefits for the whole country, the Tourism Industry Association New Zealand (TIA) says.

Welcoming the announcement of a deal between the Government and SKYCITY, TIA Chief Executive Martin Snedden says the new international-scale convention centre will benefit both the tourism industry and the wider New Zealand economy.

“This will allow New Zealand to target a new and lucrative market, for large international conferences which we do not currently have the ability to host. We have lagged behind Australia and other international destinations which have major convention facilities,” he says.

“This is a completely untapped market segment for New Zealand, and will help us boost shoulder and low season travel.”

It is estimated a national convention centre will boost New Zealand’s economy by more than NZD$90 million a year. It is expected to create 1000 jobs during construction and another 800 positions when it is operational.

It will also support many more jobs across the economy, including in the accommodation, catering, transport and retail sectors.

“Many conference delegates will travel around New Zealand before or after their events, while others will choose to return with their families for private holidays,” Snedden says.

The Government has recognised the value of business events, with Prime Minister and Tourism Minister John Key recently announcing new spending of NZD$34 million over four years to attract conferences, conventions and exhibitions.

Conference delegates are high-spending visitors, spending an average ofNZD$318 a night, compared to an international leisure visitor who spends around NZD$208 a night.

“While we acknowledge that there are genuine concerns about issues related to problem gambling, we are confident that the legislative process will provide an opportunity for a thorough examination of the issues.”

TIA has long been advocating for an international convention centre, supported by a network of regional convention centres. The new convention centres planned for Christchurch and Queenstown will support the growth of New Zealand’s business tourism market.

Conventions and Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) says the international convention centre is desperately needed and long overdue.

The business tourism advocacy group is welcoming news the government has signed a Heads of Agreement with SkyCity to build a new international convention centre in Auckland.

“This is great news for Auckland and for the country as a whole,” says CINZ chief executive Alan Trotter.

“An international convention centre is something we’ve sorely needed for many years and it is fantastic that finally we’re making headway. What we need to do now is keep the foot on the accelerator and get this facility built as soon as possible.

“An international convention centre will have a positive economic impact that extends far beyond the boundaries of Auckland City. Many of the delegates who will attend conferences and conventions at the international convention centre will also take the opportunity to travel to other parts of New Zealand so the spin-offs will be felt across the country.

“Convention delegates spend more than other international visitors to New Zealand, typically around NZD$400 a day, which is about twice as much as leisure visitors. They also come at a time of year when tourism tends to be quiet so they are very important to our industry.”

Trotter says the convention delegates are also valuable to New Zealand because of the knowledge and expertise they bring to the country.

“The types of international conferences we will be able to host in the new convention centre tend to attract the best and the brightest in their fields. Those people will bring a wealth of knowledge with them, which we will be able to tap into. You can’t put a dollar value on that but it’s something that will bring us benefits in the long-term,” he says.

“I really applaud the government for their innovative and pragmatic approach to the challenge of building an international convention centre in these tough economic times. It’s going to be great for our country and for our economy so the fact they have managed to do it without imposing any extra costs on either Auckland ratepayers or the New Zealand tax-payer is truly laudable,” Trotter says.

Air New Zealand has also welcomed the announcement that an agreement has been reached between the Government and Skycity for a national convention centre to be built in Auckland, subject to the necessary legislative approvals.

Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer, Christopher Luxon, says: “The planned national convention centre, with its capacity of 3,500, will allow New Zealand to compete to host larger conferences, providing access to a new market that we are currently disadvantaged in due to a lack of appropriately sized infrastructure.

“As an airline based in New Zealand, which has relatively small volumes of business traffic, the conventions market is very important to us and one which we actively target in Australia, Asia and North America. The 33,000 extra delegates a year the centre is predicted to attract is a significant increase,” he says.

Next month Air New Zealand will fly 80 Australian conference organisers and organisations considering New Zealand as a venue for their next meeting to Auckland for the Meetings 2013 trade show, alongside buyers from Asia.

“In addition to the increased international visitors and foreign exchange earnings that are forecast to result from the development of a national convention centre, a key benefit is that conferences are held throughout the year which will help reduce seasonal variations in demand for travel to New Zealand,” Luxon says.

ATEED (Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development) says it is pleased with the potential economic growth impact for Auckland generated by a New Zealand International Convention Centre being built in the city.

As Auckland’s economic growth agency, ATEED has shown support for the development of an international scale Convention Centre in Auckland’s CBD, as part of the Council’s 10 year Visitor Plan, approved in 2011, which forecasts the sector contributing NZD$6.6 billion to the regional economy by 2021.

ATEED Chief Executive Brett O’Riley says the establishment of a world-class facility at SKYCITY is a welcome addition to the Auckland visitor economy, providing a boost to the business events sector and likely stimulating investment in new infrastructure and services, including hotels and new attractions.

“Conventions and incentives delegates are high value visitors who deliver good economic returns. They have a long length of stay, often visit during the tourism low season and have a higher spend per night,” he says.

“We are delighted with the opportunities this will bring to the region. It will allow Auckland to compete strongly against other international cities and secure major conventions that we would otherwise miss out on.”

An International Convention Centre is projected to generate NZD$85 to NZD$100 million of new foreign exchange earnings in the first year, based on a capacity of 3,500 delegates. An international convention delegate spends around $365 per night, compared to an average spend of $200 per night for international leisure visitors.

“As well as being able to showcase Auckland as a preferred destination for conventions, we will also be looking to maximise opportunities for pre and post visitor itineraries that will bring even bigger economic benefits,” O’Riley says.

“And having the leaders of global companies in our city for their conventions opens an opportunity to present Auckland as a great place to invest and to support our aim of becoming an Asia Pacific innovation hub.”

O’Riley says the International Convention Centre will be a positive signal to investors who we know are already interested in hotel development, and are analyzing future demand trends.

“Business events, and Auckland’s Major Events Strategy are changing Auckland’s visitor arrival profile, and will continue to reduce seasonal impacts on hotel demand. As an example, in April 2013 ATEED saw the combination of the ITU Triathlon, ITM 400 V8 Supercars, TRENZ and existing business events increase hotel demand in the city. The new International Convention Centre at SKYCITY will add to this trend,” he says.

“This is a major economic growth opportunity for the Auckland economy – tourism is already the largest employment sector with 54,360 employees, representing 8.7 percent of the regional workforce.”

This announcement comes shortly after the Government confirmed that it will invest NZD$34 million over four years into the international business events sector.

“Our region has so much potential and I’m looking forward to working collaboratively with SKYCITY, Tourism New Zealand and industry association CINZ (Conventions & Incentives New Zealand) to maximise the opportunities and continue to grow the important business events sector for Auckland and New Zealand,” O’Riley says.

Accor is set to increase its network in regional Victoria with the addition of a Mercure in the Murray River town of Echuca on the Victorian border.

The 62 room hotel is located in the heart of Echuca and is the historic port town’s first internationally branded hotel.

Formerly the Quality Inn Port of Echuca, the recently refurbished hotel will be re-branded to Mercure Port of Echuca from 22 May 2013.

The hotel offers excellent facilities for both business and leisure travellers, including an on-site restaurant, lobby lounge and bar, outdoor resort style swimming pool, and meeting and conference facilities that can accommodate a private meeting for 12 to a fully catered function for up to 200, with rooms starting from AUD$140 per night.

“A globally recognised brand coming to town will be very beneficial for both the hotel and whole of Echuca’s tourism industry,” said Accor’s General Manager Franchise Hotels, Dino Mezzatesta.

“The hotel will bring guests an authentic experience and a high level of comfort and service.”

Mercure Port of Echuca is part of a growing network of Accor hotels in regional Victoria. It joins other Mercure hotels in destinations such as Melbourne, Horsham, Bairnsdale, the Yarra Valley and Geelong.