Amway takes 4000 to Melbourne
For Amway’s India Leadership Seminar 2012, Australia hosted the largest Indian MICE group ever to visit the country. Melbourne was the chosen city to conduct this and its apt infrastructure made it the most suitable option. MICEtalk has details….
How has it been hosting such a large number of people? How did you decide on an international destination and not a domestic one?
This year we have brought 4,100 Indians to Melbourne. In our first year the incentive trip was in Goa with around 100 participants. As the business is growing, the number of people who qualify for these incentive trips are also increasing. Our trips are very popular as we pay for everything. Australia’s infrastructure made it an easy choice to cater to such a large group.
Over the years, we have felt the need to find a balance between going international and remaining in India. India has a lot of potential as a major destination but at the same time when you start handling a large group you have to have the infrastructure to support it. In India we can support 200-300 people but when you start talking about 4,000 people, it gets harder.
Though we prefer to do more in India because we believe that there are some fantastic places where you can take groups but you need bigger and better infrastructure. We have taken smaller groups to Agra and Goa on multiple occasions.
Has there been sufficient change in the cost for taking such a large group abroad? What is your budget for an incentive trip?
There isn’t very much difference in the costing between India and abroad. People expect a certain standard to be met by Amway and the infrastructural challenges in India make it an expensive destination. A destination like Melbourne is considered a mega destination and gives people better incentive to work harder. These folks are our top business-owners who have been working with us for three to five years and they deserve the best.
Our budget changes trip by trip and it goes up each year because of inflation but approximately it is at least Rs. 2 lakh per person. This includes airfare, accommodation, food, gifts and shopping money that we give to all the people we bring on the trip. It’s a nice package and we feel this is a very important and worthwhile investment. For our VIP trips, usually the budget is almost unlimited.
Are incentive trips motivating?
In 1998, we started in India and within our first 12 months we did business of 100 crores. This year we will cross 2,400 crores. This gives a sense of combination of financial incentives and the trips are a major part of it. Different people work for different things. Some want money and some want to see the world. We help people to see the world at our cost. We also have a very good reputation with the embassies and in all the trips that we have had over the years, we have never had anyone not come back with us. People are more likely to get a visa through Amway because we have such a good reputation.
What are some of your basic requirements from a destination? Where are you planning to go next year?
We want a destination, which is culturally friendly to Indians. The last thing you want is to land somewhere and the people and culture are not friendly. We are very careful about the location we choose. Australia is culturally friendly to Indians and Indian food is very easily available here. Although, Indians like to travel and be global but they really do like their Indian food.
From a shopping perspective also, Indians like a destination where they get an opportunity to shop. The destination also needs to be safe. You should be able to go out in the day and feel comfortable in the city. Logistics support is also a must. We need to be able to get people in and out of the city easily. We also look at options that we can present to our qualifiers that are unique and different such as sightseeing places. Our next destination is Toronto.