Sydney Lures MICE Travellers
Lyn Lewis-Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Business Events Sydney for MICE India, reveals how Sydney is an apt destination for MICE.
What makes Sydney an ideal city for business events?
Sydney is Australia’s number one destination for both business and leisure travellers. Our reputation as a host city for leading business events is hard to beat – the city’s unique natural beauty and fabulous climate combined with world-class venues and hotels, a variety of fantastic team-building activities, an innovative business environment, and dynamic communities make it unlike any city in the world.
There are also many exciting developments on the drawing board, underway, or recently completed that will ensure Sydney’s offering remains worldclass and competitive. This includes the new Sydney International Convention, Exhibition and Entertainment Precinct, the Barangaroo waterfront development, the spectacular refurbishment of The Star (formerly Star City) and other great projects.
We are particularly looking forward to the development of the Sydney International Convention, Exhibition and Entertainment Precinct. When complete, we will have a 12-hectare, cutting-edge multi-function facility in the heart of the city and within walking distance of many of the city’s main attractions and hotels.
Can you share with us the number of meetings/conventions facilities in the city?
Sydney boasts an array of venues that can cater to all event sizes, budgets or themes. Large venues include the award-winning Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre and of course the world-renowned Sydney Olympic Park, which played host to the 2000 Olympic Games. Sydney Olympic Park is an all encompassing
business precinct with 10 venues, including 22,000 sqm exhibition space and over 100 different function spaces. Smaller venues also abound and can cater for difference experiences. The city also offers a vast portfolio of high quality venues within hotels and as stand-alone facilities that all have outstanding technological capabilities and atmosphere to meet diverse client needs.
To give your meeting a creative edge, Sydney also delivers meeting and venue options that can inspire new ideas and innovative thinking. Why not think about a private dinner in the Australian Museum, get hearts started on an America’s Cup yacht on the harbour, welcome guests to your own private harbour island, or feel the sand between your toes for a creative brainstorm on the iconic Bondi Beach.
Business Events Sydney acts as a one-stop-shop for anyone in search of assistance planning, or considering holding a conference, convention, incentive trip or corporate meeting in the harbour city. For clients in India, you will have the full support of our dedicated Asia team throughout the event life cycle – from initial enquiry, presentation development, supplier connections and marketing collateral. The team acts as the central connection between clients and a broad network of suppliers, so they are the people to ask about making the ‘impossible’ possible when it comes to venues!
Are the venues supported by hotels in the vicinity? Are there enough rooms available for groups of 100-150 people?
Sydney’s hotels are diverse and offer varied locations and room rates. Greater Sydney is home to over 32,500 rooms, which are found in many large, as well as boutique, quality hotel options. Over 5,000 of these rooms are within walking distance of the popular CBD and Darling Harbour conference facilities and attractions. Sydney also prides itself on the on-going rejuvenation, renovation and excellence in its hotel offering.
Late last year, the popular Sheraton on the Park was named ‘Australasia’s Leading Hotel’ at the World Travel Awards 2011 and the Shangri-la Sydney hotel guestrooms recently received a $200 million refurbishment. The iconic Park Hyatt Sydney has also undergone the largest renovation in the hotel’s 20-year history to include three luxury rooftop suites; a complete redesign of the hotel’s guests rooms; and a revitalisation of all its dining and recreational facilities.
Other hotel developments going on around the city include a spate of new contemporary hotel refurbishments at properties such as the PARKROYAL Darling Harbour, Novotel Rockford Darling Harbour and Sydney Harbour Marriot.
Is Business Events Sydney looking at India as a market for its inbound MICE visitors?
BESydney has a dedicated South Asia team that oversees event opportunities in the Indian market. This resource will be boosted in the coming months with the appointment of a Destination NSW team member in Mumbai. In addition to their role for Destination NSW, this new recruit’s role also includes business event opportunities. There are obvious synergies and it makes sense for Destination NSW and Business Events Sydney to work together to maximise the opportunities in the Indian market present for the state.
We have seen the benefits of having an in-market presence through our Shanghai and Hong Kong offices – in fact we were the first Australian bureau to open an Asia office. So we understand the value of in-market presence in a relationship-driven market such as India and eagerly anticipate our newest international team member working with us.
We have been monitoring and analysing the growth and trends in business travel for Indian visitors for a number of years. We certainly see
opportunity here for business between our markets. We see India’s exceptional growth and development as a key contributor to a rise in Indian professionals attending international and Asia-Pacific events hosted in Australia, as well as an increased number of Sydney incentive programs led by Indian companies.
Has BESydney assisted a group from India for MICE? Can you recollect doing anything special for them?
To date the majority of events that we welcome to our city from India are corporate incentive programs, particularly in the manufacturing, direct-selling and pharmaceutical industries. Recent examples of Indian incentive groups who have travelled, or are set to travel here in coming months include Orient Fans India Incentive 2011, Logitech India Incentive 2012 and the Nokia India Incentive 2012.
Beyond incentive travel programmes, we also see numerous opportunities for Indian delegates to attend professional and association events that will help to fuel collaboration, innovation, and trade and investment. We are increasingly seeing Asia-Pacific offshoots of international association events taking place in Sydney and the proximity, networking opportunities and regional focus have great allure for the talented professionals and industry leaders from India. As a full service convention bureau, BESydney actively assists event organisers to provide the best service.
What percentage of MICE visitors to Sydney would be from India?
This is a hard number to discern, but what I can provide is the number of business travellers that visited Australia last year from India: 29,124 business travellers from India visited our shores year ended 31 December 2011. Of these, 6,597 arrivals were here for conferences and conventions. Current statistics indicate that just under half of these business arrivals travel to New South Wales, so I’d feel confident in saying that a large portion of these business event arrivals visited Australia’s global city, Sydney. We hope to substantially grow more opportunities from the Indian market.
Is the organisation currently working towards facilitating any association from India?
BESydney has an equal focus on securing association events and corporate meetings and incentive programs for Sydney and NSW.
We do indeed have a number of leads for Indian association meetings that we are working on (for business reasons I’ll keep these confidential!), and we would welcome the opportunity to talk to anyone interested in hosting an event in Sydney.
Can groups coming into Sydney avail of special privileges, like a common ticket for transport to see the city’s various attractions?
BESydney works with a wide range of stakeholders to provide special experiences for groups. And we are continually exploring innovative options to add to the city’s suite of business events offerings.
Sydney has a sophisticated public transport system and the NSW Government is working to introduce coordinated ticketing and other options to improve this already great service.
Destination NSW also has a number of tools that delegates can use to make their planning easier – there is of course the ‘Official Sydney Guide’ that includes comprehensive information about the city, maps and special deals for a raft of attractions, restaurants and
events. The guide is also available as a smartphone and tablet app.
What are the various post event activities possible in Sydney, apart from sightseeing?
There are so many things to do in Sydney and New South Wales! Being Australia’s iconic face to the world, sightseeing is a clear favourite, with Sydney Harbour, the Sydney Opera House, Bondi Beach and Luna Park. No trip to Sydney would be complete without at least visiting these spots and experiencing the aweinspiring climb to the peak of the Harbour Bridge with BridgeClimb Sydney.
Sightseeing aside, visitors to Sydney will never be short on options. Whether you’re a bargain hunter, a luxury loyalist or a local designer guru, Sydney has impressive shopping credentials to cater for all tastes and budgets. Recent additions such as Westfield Sydney and the stores at Sydney’s new entertainment property, The Star (formerly Star City), have given Sydney some impressive premium shopping destinations, while the Queen Victoria Building and precincts through Paddington and Surry Hills are hotspots for fashionistas and homeware lovers. Birkenhead Point, Paddy’s Markets and DFO Homebush are ideal for bargains and souvenir shopping.
The vibrant food scene in Sydney also attracts international travellers, with its brilliant fresh produce and infamous seafood, array of multicultural options and serious fine dining credentials. Sydney’s harbourside location also means that you can easily satisfy your tastebuds and eyes in one sitting!
Sydney is also sport-mad, much like a lot of the Indian nationals I have met. Our city plays host to some of the world’s best tennis, golf, rugby, and of course our beloved cricket matches. The atmosphere is electric.
Speaking of passions that Indian travellers often remark about, we have recently witnessed a number of Bollywood films being shot in our city. Late last year, we had Bidita Bag here filming From Sydney…. with Love – so you may even be able to catch a Bollywood star on the steps of the Opera House or on Bondi Beach!
Sydney’s proximity to over 300 regional destinations dotted throughout the state of New South Wales also dramatically adds to the city’s allure. With wine country, pristine beaches, the Blue Mountains and country NSW all accessible in just two hours from the CBD, visitors can spend a few days pre or post event bushwalking, wine-tasting, whale-watching, learning to surf or having a ‘true-blue’ Aussie farm stay – the options are endless.
What are special initiatives being taken by Business Events Sydney to attract more MICE groups into the country?
BESydney provides assistance throughout the event lifecycle ensuring a dedicated manager assists planners with everything from initial enquiry, bid documentation and strategy, supplier and government connection, site inspections and event marketing. We have more than 40 years’ experience and our global team is expert when it comes to maximising your event’s success in Sydney.
We don’t have a ‘one-size-fits-all’ way of doing business. We treat each event individually and tailor strategies to ensure that Sydney is the most attractive destination for your event. This approach often sees our team assisting with a comprehensive range of marketing collateral to excite delegates about their upcoming trip to Sydney.
By working closely with our vast network of over 250 suppliers, BESydney ensures that the event experience is exemplary. We have adopted an ‘educate, collaborate, innovate’ approach to assist stakeholders in catering for the Asia market, particularly the discerning Indian traveller. Sinead Yeo, our Director of Business Development in Asia, attends International Market Briefings and assists our local hotels, venues, attraction operators and event suppliers learn about the market expectations and the way business is done. They, in turn, modify their offering or processes to enhance business event opportunities.
We also actively support Business Event Australia’s familiarisation programs, which most recently saw a group of Indian buyers visit our harbour city in early February.
Is it true that the Sydney Convention Centre is about to go in for major renovation? What are the new additions being planned? Since the venue supports most of the MICE traffic coming into the city, what alternatives will business travellers have during this ‘renovation’ period?
A new state-of-the-art 12-hectare Sydney International Convention, Exhibition and Entertainment Precinct has been confirmed for Sydney and is due to open late 2016. The precinct will combine world-class entertainment, convention and exhibition facilities in a development that will further enhance Darling Harbour as a central entertainment and meeting place. The project will deliver improved, unified convention, exhibition and entertainment space at Darling Harbour that befits Australia’s global city.
To date, the Government has undertaken industry consultation and shortlisted two consortia to build and operate the facilities. A Request for Proposals is expected to be issued in the coming weeks, with the preferred tenderer selected by the end of 2012.
Sydney has been consistently voted the world’s best festival and events city and this has been undoubtedly contributed to the fact that we have a diversity of venue options that can stand-alone or be used as part of a combined solution for large events. When you look back to events such as the Annual Lions International Convention 2010, World Youth Day in 2008 or the 2000 Sydney Olympics, you’ll see it was not just one or two venues in the harbour city that made these events spectacular, but a number of venues and a ‘whole city approach’ that always ensures the Sydney event experience is like no other. We are a multi-faceted and flexible city and event planners are always surprised by the variety of options for all tastes, budgets and event sizes.