“We’ve secured $600 million worth of business in that first eight months,” says Kitto, CEO of Business Events Adelaide.
“I’m hoping, this is very ambitious, but I’m hoping we can actually push three quarters of a billion dollars of business being secured in this financial year,” he told micenet.
The bureau’s original revenue target was $320 million.
Fresh from its largest annual business exchange and famil event, Destination South Australia (DSA), Kitto is bullish not only about the national business he expects to attract from the east coast down to Adelaide.
For the first time Business Events Adelaide has brought Indian incentive agents to DSA to determine their interest in a range of incentive programs around the city and the state.
Previously Adelaide had been regarded largely as an association conference destination, but since hosting Tourism Australia’s incentive showcase Dreamtime – now called Australia Next – the city has been targeting the incentive space more heavily.
Last week marked the 21st staging of DSA and about 150 attended, including 40 local suppliers, 38 event organisers – mostly from Sydney and Melbourne – media, including micenet, plus 12 incentive agents from India.
Kitto explained that India is “a market that Business Events Adelaide is really pushing into, that we see lots of opportunities” adding that South Australia’s Premier, Peter Malinauskas, was in India this week and Kitto was flying there in two weeks to meet with prospective corporate incentive clients.
“It’s fair to say that the Indian market in general for the business events sector, and particularly the incentive programs, traditionally go to the east coast of Australia, and what we’re really trying to do is position Adelaide as the next destination once they’ve been to Australia,” Kitto said.
Part of the DSA program involved a visit to the inner sanctum of Adelaide Oval with its famous Sir Donald Bradman stand, the players’ rooms, the historic scoreboard and a chat with former test player Greg Blewett.
Many of the Indian delegation to DSA were in Adelaide for the first time, but Kitto said the city was now on their radar particularly for experiences such as the Adelaide Oval and Monarto Safari Park, the largest safari park outside of Africa. He said they were also enthused about doing a hot lap on a nearby race circuit.
“You jump into a Mustang, do 250km an hour in a hot lap with a racing car driver, or do some fast laps on go-karting or go-forward driving there at the bend, which is only an hour and a quarter out of Adelaide. The Indians really see those three products as the standout,” Kitto said, adding that the Indian delegates were also blown away by Adelaide food given that the city has a large Indian diaspora and many Indian chefs.
And while he says the Indian market traditionally drinks whisky and gin, and they were provided with some of those experiences while in Adelaide, there were also local wine tastings that they were interested to try.
