Adelaide Convention Bureau’s results helping South Australia to look forward

The Adelaide Convention Bureau announced its 2015/16 annual results at its AGM held 20th October which has seen an impressive 39% increase on the previous year and sets a new record for the 42-year old company.

 

In the past 12 months, the Bureau has won business for South Australia worth an incredible $210 million in economic benefit giving a huge 108:1 return on investment on total operating budget to members and, which, in bringing world experts across a variety of genres to Adelaide on a regular basis presents immense opportunities for the state’s future.

 

Adelaide will act as host city to the 120 events successfully secured by the Bureau and its Team Adelaide partners in a highly competitive market against many other extremely well resourced national and international destinations. We will see some 51,000 delegates head here for business events which will provide around 221,000 bed nights to our hotels. These delegates spending $632 per day, three times that of a leisure tourist, will create and support 2,038 jobs in the hospitality, retail, events and related industries including general tourism.  

 

Hosting these conferences puts the global spotlight on Adelaide within their industry genre. From the time Adelaide is announced as the host city through to the event date, potential delegates across the globe are targeted.  The event website and e-comms campaigns will sell not only the conference itself, but also Adelaide, South Australia as the destination – including showcasing pre and post touring opportunities to our regional areas. It’s essentially internationally target marketing South Australia to business people within an industry genre.  Although numbers are impossible to calculate, research indicates, one in two conference delegates are highly likely to return to the destination for leisure purposes with friends or family.

 

Of even greater benefit to the state are the legacies provided to these industry events for the long term benefit of the state which have huge potential in building and securing the state’s future economy.

 

Damien Kitto, CEO, Adelaide Convention Bureau said, “the calibre of delegates and keynote speakers presents a fantastic opportunity for South Australia.  On their arrival into our city, businesses and relevant Government departments within their industry genre may take full advantage of their presence – having such a delegation in town at once is not something that may ordinarily happen without the benefit of a conference.  The chance to network and showcase our local industry on ground lends itself to vital discussions on innovation, investment, export and skilled migration opportunities for the state.”

 

 

Ian Horne, CEO, Australian Hotels Association (SA) said “business events are a vital component of the hotel industry. The bed nights, food and beverage trade and the resultant jobs they support should not be underestimated. The Adelaide Convention Bureau’s work and achievements are absolutely fundamental to the success of accommodation providers in Adelaide and South Australia.  We congratulate the Bureau on their outstanding achievement and the opportunities it presents for South Australia”.