The activities of Te Pae Christchurch have also supported the equivalent of 693 jobs in New Zealand.
“The government committed to building a convention centre in Christchurch to help reinvigorate the central city economy post-earthquakes, and we’re now seeing that forward-thinking pay off,” said Crown Infrastructure Delivery’s Kirstie McNulty, who manages the relationship between the centre’s operator, ASM Global, and its owners, the New Zealand Government via its subsidiary Crown Infrastructure Delivery.
“In the year to November 2024, Te Pae and its convention attendees alone contributed an estimated $63 million to the economy of Canterbury, supporting 631 FTE jobs in the region.
“This includes both the direct economic impact of Te Pae’s operations and the broader effects of spending by convention visitors.
“The convention centre is not only stimulating local economic activity but also attracting visitors from around the world, with an estimated 80,200 guests attending 217 events in the year to November 2024,” said McNulty
“Visitor spending alone has contributed an estimated $37.8 million to Canterbury’s GDP, with international guests from Australia, North America and Asia making a significant impact.
“The convention centre has also had a major effect on industries such as accommodation, food services and arts and recreation, contributing to job creation in these sectors.”
In late 2024, Te Pae Christchurch’s general manager, Ross Steele, told micenet that business at the centre had remained consistent since the venue’s strong start upon opening in May 2022.
“We opened with a book that was bigger than we thought it was going to be because everything was compressed and it hasn’t really let up for us, which is great. So we’re still seeing a good level of business,” he said.
Meanwhile ChristchurchNZ’s head of visitor economy, Kath Low, said the latest figures demonstrated the value of business events.
“Aside from the stunning aesthetics of the building and the breadth of conference spaces the venue offers, tangible data is clearly illustrating the depth of benefit conferences bring the city – reaching well beyond economics,” she said.
“Business events visitors are among the highest spenders and even better, they reduce seasonality by visiting and spending in shoulder seasons and midweek.
“Recent research has also shown that 20 per cent of conference attendees to Christchurch would consider relocating to the city.”
