Events boss hits back

THE boss of Major Events Gold Coast rejects claims the organisation is “failing” in its primary goals.

Gold Coast City Council’s events arm has come in for criticism about its ability to consistently deliver big ticket festivals and showcases.

However, CEO Jan McCormick says considering her organisation had to start from scratch in July 2020, under tight and uncertain circumstances, and only really kicked off in March this year – “I think we’ve been remarkably successful.”

“We’ve been quiet about what we do,” she said.

“We said let’s get in there, let’s settle it down and let’s get the job done and get some big results. And I’m glad we’ve done that.”

The organisation emerged from the amalgamation of Surfers Paradise Alliance, Connecting Southern Gold Coast, and Broadbeach Alliance into one mega citywide events entity in 2019.

It received a portfolio of events worth $200 million to the local economy.

Council’s aim was that it grow that portfolio to $457m by 2025, putting world-class events on “each and every available weekend”.

In 2022, Ms McCormick said, that portfolio will have grown to $300m, and is “very much on track” to $457m.

“We are building a recognised reputation as a recognised international events destination and it’s not just in Surfers and in Broadbeach, it’s spread across the city,” she said.

But events and tourism stakeholders have raised major questions of the organisation’s performance, the frequency of events, transparency, and a cluttered calendar.

An events industry insider said the calendar issues were most evident in the pileup of the GC500, Groundwater Country Music Festival, and Halloween in the same late October weekend.

“It was part of their charter not to waste money on having events clash,” he said.

“That week was a major fail. A big F.”

The insider said operators could not “maximise return on investment” because of the clashes – which also happens with Blues on Broadbeach and the Gold Coast International Boat Show.

“You have to ask, are we getting this right?

“This is a group that’s had over two-and-a-half years to get this co-ordination bit right, and from our traders’ perspective … it’s an ‘F’.”

But Ms McCormick not only defended the double-header, she “aspires” for more.

“I hope we can have major events running together and people have an opportunity to choose what they want to do and we have a diversity of crowds coming to the city,” she said.

“I hope by 2032 we’re running three or four major events per week.”

According to the organisation’s calendar, there are already 86 to 92 events per annum – “that’s two a week, on average, anyway”.

Transparency and engagement with vendors was a concern for Surfers Paradise trader Arthur De Snoo.

“I can’t even remember the last event that they did,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense that you have 50 per cent of the hotels in Surfers Paradise and none of the events.”

Ms McCormick says Surfers may seem quieter because everyone is “getting a piece” of the $15m event budget.

“We have to do what we can do with what we’ve got and we haven’t got a lot of money but we have an amazing city that has so many opportunities for people to host events in.”