Trademark will help tell region’s story
Hawke’s Bay Tourism general manager Annie Dundas says having the region’s trademark stamped on every export will help tell our story.
“Great things Grow Here is a fantastic tagline for businesses seeking to grow their profile with the products they produce in Hawke’s Bay,” she said.
The region’s five different councils have banded together to help people wanting to invest or relocate a business here through Great Things Grow Here.
One of the successes that has benefited from the extra support has been the Havelock North Fruit Company’s Rockit Apple.
It is a miniature apple which is packed in tubes and marketed as a premium-priced snack food.
They are only slightly bigger than a golf ball and were originally developed by Plant and Food Research.
The Havelock North Fruit Company bought the global rights to the Rockit cultivator in 2010.
Ms Dundas said having Hawke’s Bay stamped on every product that came out of the region helped to tell the Bay’s story.
“Great things Grow Here is a fantastic tagline for businesses seeking to grow their profile with the products they produce in Hawke’s Bay.”
She said, however, it was not a tourism tagline and was developed to support businesses.
“We use, Get me to Hawke’s Bay.”
They targeted “completely separate audiences” so they would not be used together, she said.
“Our role is to promote and market the region to future visitors.”
At the moment, holidays are being sold in the region with the tourism tagline sitting alongside seasonal imagery with various visitor experiences.
Among other featured must-dos are the Art Deco tours, Hawke’s Bay Trails and visiting the National Aquarium.
Ms Dundas said tourism generated 7 per cent of the region’s gross domestic product, visitors spent $540 million per annum and this was 6.3 per cent up on last year. “Visitor numbers are [up] 5.1 per cent.”
The new campaign is “Hunker down in Hawke’s Bay this Winter” and showcases cycling and walking Te Mata Peak, staying at retreats, drinking Hawke’s Bay wine and taking in Napier’s new viewing platform.
“It’s aimed at couples and groups of friends seeking a weekend away.”
In terms of having both taglines in operation she said: “We all benefit from Hawke’s Bay being promoted through both business and tourism.”