Goodbye Sydney on Sale/Hello Australian Events Expo

The first 1½ hours of the opening day of the inaugural Australian Events Expo (AEE) attracted more visitors than the entire first day of last year’s Sydney on Sale, said Jon Hutchison, [pictured right], Managing Director, Sydney Convention and Visitors Bureau, during a press briefing in the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre.

The “first truly national events exhibition” attracted more than 2500 registered visitors during its initial 90 minutes, he said.

The two day AEE held at Darling Harbour last week showcased the latest products, services and creative ideas from 159 exhibitors.

Exhibitor numbers were up 22 per cent over last year’s Sydney on Sale – the long running predecessor to the Australian Events Expo – while visitor pre-registration increased by 25 per cent.

Among the exhibitors were some of top national organisations in the events sector including industry leaders with operations across Australia, products from all parts of the country and fellow convention bureaus from other states and territories, he said.

[pictured left – on the floor at AEE]

In addition, virtually every service needed to stage a successful event from professional event organisers and technology providers to caters, entertainers and activities attended.

Organised by the Sydney Convention and Visitors Bureau (SCVB) in tandem with its exhibition partner, ETF, the Australian Events Expo was designed to be a complete marketplace for anyone planning a corporate event, business meeting, product launch, community event or staff incentive program.

During his briefing, Mr Hutchison stressed the importance of the conference market to Sydney by revealing that the average expenditure is $5780 per visit or $6868 if it’s an international conference delegate.

According to the latest International Delegate Study conducted by the SCVB, “Sydney is Australia’s leading city for conferences and other business events and one of the top 10 cities in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Mr Hutchison.

On average, conference delegates spend $651 per night in Sydney compared to an average $99 per night for leisure tourists. 

Nearly two thirds of overseas delegates said they would return to Sydney for a holiday within the next five years.  And they often come back with their family and refer friends and colleagues, he said.

The survey found that Qantas was the most popular airline for international delegates.  The Australian flag carrier brought 31 per cent of visitors followed by Singapore Airlines with 13 per cent.  Among interstate delegates, 61 per cent flew QANTAS with 27 per cent taking Virgin Blue flights.

The majority of conference delegates travelled to Sydney by themselves (68 per cent) though the number of people travelling per conference delegate was an average 1.7.  Delegates from China were the most likely to bring other people with them averaging 4.1 people per delegate.

The survey found a large portion of conference delegates planned to travel elsewhere in NSW and Australia while visiting Sydney.  Queensland was the most popular interstate destination while the Blue Mountains were the number one destination in NSW for conference delegates.

In addition to sourcing product at the AEE, delegates were also able to attend a series of business seminars on a range of diverse topics that were organised in conjunction with Meeting & Events Australia.

[pictured right; The highly popular Sydney Live social event shed new ‘light’ on a multitude of funky events.]

The pros and cons of integrating a trade show with a conference or meeting was addressed by Robby Clark, Exhibitions and Trade Fairs.  Don’t just tack on a hastily planned trade expo; this could well work against you was one message of the presentation.

Leila Fiedler, Managing Director, DMS, Sydney provided practical solutions to solving “Destination Dilemma”.

Key elements of her presentation included defining objectives, understanding venue capabilities, selecting formats, keeping within budgets, working with suppliers, evaluating offsite options and examining case studies.

She said that memorable events didn’t just happen they required a systematic approach, advance planning and professional expertise.

While experts are needed to ensure a professional presentation, MICE planners should know the basics about staging and lighting said Meri Took, Staging Rentals and Construction Services, during a presentation that demystified this important aspect of many MICE events.

The embrace of the Australian Events Expo was underscored by the participation of exhibitors from throughout the country including Broome-based Danelle Jackson, Marketing Manager, Australia’s Northwest Tourism.

Ms Jackson felt that the expo was an excellent showcase to highlight her sophisticated MICE destination that is not so well known in eastern states.

Broome is gaining in popularity as a conference and incentive destination with facilities like the Cable Beach Club Resort [pictured right]  able to accommodate groups from 10 to 200 in purpose-built state-of-the-art facilities.

Exclusive Report by Thomas E. King, TravelMole’s Travel and Lifestyle Editor