2011 Annual Report. To The Trustees Of. Destination Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand

Transcription

1 2011 Annual Report To The Trustees Of Destination Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand

2

3 Contents Page Chairman s Review 01 Chief Executive s Report 03 Looking Ahead Strategies for 2011/12 07 Strategies Strategic Outcome Results 12 Results by Department 16 Marketing Business Development Convention Bureau Visitor Centres Corporate Services Financial Statements 36

4 Chairman s Review Overview To say the last 12 months have been challenging would be somewhat of an understatement. Whilst we appeared to have got through the big September earthquake relatively unscathed, the aftershock in February has created an unparalled situation for Canterbury tourism and for this organisation. The June quake further set us back and created a real situation of uncertainty as to what may happen next. As it stands today we have lost a significant amount of our hotel and backpacker accommodation stocks along with much of the central city which contained many attractions, shops, restaurants and our own visitor centre. Loss of the convention centre and key sports grounds like AMI Stadium also had a huge impact. We ve also had worldwide media attention, much of which is focused on the devastation and ignored what is still open and operating. Of course many lives were also lost in February including some visitors to our city. People who had come to Christchurch on holiday seeking to explore our place and who got mixed up in this tragic happening. Our thoughts are with their friends and family. Whilst it s tempting to curse our bad luck for this event happening right here and right now, we also need to be mindful of what we still have in the region. It s a line of communication we have stuck with since shortly after the quake and one we will continue with. Thankfully the airport opened very quickly. We have most motels, holiday parks and attractions outside the city centre open. Popular visitor towns like Akaroa, Kaikoura and Hanmer Springs remain open for business. We should also acknowledge that Christchurch and NZ as a whole responded incredibly professionally to this crisis. Many of our visitors were airlifted out of the region within hours. Both the Mayor & Prime Minister fronted international media effectively. Whilst I am sure the world watched with horror at some of the images I know they also quietly admired the response from the people of this city and its leaders. If you were to be anywhere in the world when a natural disaster hit then perhaps Christchurch was the place. Looking forward we have an opportunity to rebuild and recreate a wonderful city. It s a clear and achievable goal that we will build a better city to visit than the one we had before, which was very good in the first place. CCT has been very active in making sure the tourism industry is represented in future plans for Christchurch. It will take some years to get us back to where we were before; a sector that generated over $2B per year into the region. Right now businesses in the tourism sector fall into three areas. Some are in fact thriving such as those in the accommodation sector who have good demand from the earthquake industry, and have had their competitors removed. There are those in the middle who are dealing with a lack of demand such as the many attractions and tour operators. Finally there are those primarily in accommodation whose buildings were damaged & are working through plans for rebuilds or who will walk away completely. Nothing compares to the repercussions from the quake however it s important to note that the past year has also seen its fair share of bad news from world economies. We also had disruption caused by volcanic ash and a strong kiwi dollar potentially dampening down demand. Looking back on the last decade of tourism I would probably describe those challenges as business as usual & pale into insignificance compared to quake related issues. Amongst this backdrop CCT was forced to adapt itself. I believe we acted decisively and made tough decisions in a fair way for our team. The CEO s report touches on these 1

5 changes in more detail. We also worked hard to change our plans and focus on what we think will really make a difference to this industry as we face this challenging period. We are grateful for the airport, council and government for stepping in to assist us to set up a new joint venture fund designed to keep visitors coming to the city and to do all we can to encourage airlines to continue to fly here. Financials It was appropriate to freeze a number of planned marketing activities and so this year we recorded a surplus of $333,000 compared to budget deficit of $47,000. The Company s Statement of Financial Position at year end is strong. Equity now stands at $473,000. Acknowledgements On behalf of the board I would like to thank Tim Hunter and his team for their contributions this year. This, by any measure, has not been a normal year and the strength and leadership of CCT has been admirable. Especially against the backdrop of many of the team who faced stress and strain in their personal situation. Many of the team were in the Square on the 22 nd February. We are very grateful that none were injured but acknowledge the hardships of that day. I d also like to thank Christchurch Airport for working with CCT this year and providing office space on short notice as well as a permanent home at the airport. In addition the aforementioned support by the airport of the joint venture fund. Thanks also to the Council for the ongoing funding stream and additional support. Quite simply this organisation can not exist without the council s support. My thanks also go to my fellow directors. I believe we have constantly endeavoured to challenge and support the management team. Finally on behalf of CCT I d like to acknowledge and thank all the tourism operators who have remained positive and committed despite the constant challenges and issues thrown at them this year. Looking Forward CCT has positioned itself to do everything possible to assist with the recovery of tourism in Canterbury. Our long term goal is simple; restore the health of the sector to the pre quake levels and beyond, and importantly to help create a better visitor experience than before. Short term goals will include working hard bringing in visitors to the region and addressing media and trade questions. In addition we ll be making sure tourism has a big say in the rebuild plans and ensuring the execution matches the plans. It has been a year full of challenges; we have made the necessary change to the business to deal with them. We expect more interesting times ahead but we will help build for a bright future for tourism in the region. Paul Bingham Chairman (On behalf of the Board) 2

6 Chief Executive s Report CEO s Overview September 2011 Overview The extraordinary Earthquake events of the last year and particularly the devastating 22 February 2011 earthquake had a profound impact on the capabilities of CCT and the tourism sector in Christchurch and significantly reduced visitor demand to the City and the region. This Annual Report is essentially a report on a game of two halves with the post earthquake environment in Christchurch compromising our ability to achieve the performance goals that we established at the start of the year. International visitor arrivals to New Zealand achieved no growth in the year to June 2011 compared with the prior years and the only major markets to generate a positive growth performance were China, Malaysia, Singapore and India. Prior to the September earthquake we were experiencing deterioration in global economic circumstances with subdued arrivals from the North America and Europe and the noticeably weaker demand from Australia for the first time in several years. The continuing rise of the Australian currency also resulted in a boom in demand for long haul holidays by Australians to North America, Europe and Asia. Prior to the start of the earthquake sequence in September 2010, the share of international arrivals into Christchurch was 21% of total arrivals to New Zealand. By the June 2011 quarter this share had fallen to 16% providing a clear indication of the impact on our tourism sector of the multiple seismic events. Following the February earthquake international visitor guest nights fell by 46% across Canterbury. By the financial year end in June we were still 38% behind the prior year. Overall guest nights in the province fell by 9.5% to 4,550,600 nights in the year ending June Convention Bureau Activity Prior to the February earthquake CCT was focused on growing its share of the meetings and conference market and was well on track to completing 50 major bids for the conference or convention events slated to bring more than 17,000 high yield travellers into the region. In the year to December 2010 Christchurch had enjoyed a 46% share of the conference market from Australia to New Zealand and had also secured a 25% share of New Zealand origin multi day conferences. Since February cancellations of major conference and convention events have been prolific and our multi day conference statistics are indicating a greater than 90% decline in conferencing activity in Christchurch. Whilst we moved quickly to relocate medium size conferences to other venues in Christchurch and Canterbury we have lost much of our short term confirmed conference business to Rotorua, Queenstown, Hamilton and Wellington. Major Marketing Projects Major marketing projects initiated during the year included: The Phil Keoghan led Best Kept Secrets Campaign covering spring, summer and early-bird winter promotions. Media and launch support for the new Air Asia Kuala Lumpur Christchurch services Domestic spring promotion including Cup & Show Week in outdoor and online mediums 3

7 Redevelopment of our website homepage structure including the introduction of unique country home pages of to enable us to serve up relevant content and offers to our key markets Escalated media communication initiatives following the September and February earthquakes with a key focus on our largest market Australia Other Key Projects Preparation of a new 3 year Strategic Plan to guide the recovery phase of CCT activities post the 22 February earthquake. Development of an alternative 2011/12 Cruise Season facilitation plan as a result of earthquake damage to Lyttelton and the need to make significant use of Akaroa in order to retain cruise ships in our region. Finding a location and building for an interim central city i-site operation and implementing this plan which will result in new i-site operation commencing in the Botanic Gardens from October Assisting tourism operators with access to business mentoring and recovery funding through the Recover Canterbury resource established by CDC and CECC. Escalating the hosting of international media within Canterbury to ensure that the open for business message was well broadcast internationally. Ensuring that CCT was been well represented in Tourism New Zealand overseas trade training events so that the correct message about Canterbury s tourism status was taken to major international travel sellers. In this respect CCT was represented at Kiwi Link USA, Kiwi Link Japan and on the International Marketing Alliance Road Show through the UK and Europe. Working with TNZ and Air Asia X on new television travel show initiatives in Malaysia to provide Malaysian travellers with more detailed tourism experience insights of Canterbury and the South Island. Developing a revised Convention Bureau strategy to target smaller conferences for the region in the absence of a Convention Centre and target the incentive group market more aggressively with a range of Canterbury region incentive experiences. Working with other city agencies on preparation for the Rugby World Cup This project was significantly modified in scale following the cancellation of the planned 7 Rugby World Cup games in Christchurch. Reviewing the Draft Central City Plan for Christchurch and preparing a detailed submission on the future tourism needs of the city in the context of this plan. This process involved significant liaison with our tourism sector. Earthquake Impacts on our Business The February earthquake significantly impacted on the ability of CCT to produce revenue in three important income earning areas: 1. Visitor Centre Revenue : The damage to and lack of access to the Christchurch i-site premises in Cathedral Square forced us to cease trading in this location. Temporary arrangements were made for a makeshift operation. This resulted in a net revenue reduction of $365,000 between February and June Loss of income from space rental in the i-site and display advertising was $54,000. Both of these losses are subject to an insurance claim under our business continuity cover for the i-site operation. 2. Business Partner Revenue: The physical and financial impact of the earthquakes resulted in a cessation of new revenue to our Business Partners programme and has required us to re-scale the fees for Business Partner services in the context of reduced tourism demand. 4

8 3. Visitor Guide Revenue: Less revenue has been collected from advertising in the Official Visitor Guide as many advertisers who had not paid at the time of the February earthquake defaulted on their debt. This has resulted in a loss of forecast revenue of $45,000 for the financial year. Faced with starkly compromised revenue outcomes and a reduced need for a staffing in the i-site in Christchurch our management team took early steps to reduce staffing levels and in April disestablished 18 FTE positions, 10 in the i-site operation and 8 in other areas of the business. This initiative reduced staff costs by $169,000 in the latter part of the year. Combined with new funding contributions from the Canterbury Tourism Partnership and the generous provision of office space from CIAL, these initiatives enabled CCT to stabilise its financial position and continue trading as a going concern. Canterbury Tourism Partnership (CTP) As a result of the physical and financial consequences of the February Earthquake on CCT and the need for our organisation to be a strong leader in tourism recovery, we sought external funding assistance to ensure that we could remain effective as the region s tourism marketing organisation. In early April the Canterbury Tourism Partnership was formed as a joint initiative between the Christchurch City Council, Christchurch International Airport Limited and the Ministry of Economic Development. The focus of this partnership has been to: 1. Assist CCT to stabilise its operation 2. Rebuild tourism demand to our region 3. Maximise the tourism sector contribution to Canterbury s economic recovery Each of the CTP partners has agreed to contribute $500,000 over the next 12 months to fund the marketing initiatives required to initiate our tourism recovery. Project initiated since the February earthquake have included a major communications initiative with international media and trade to get clear messages out about the tourism status of Christchurch and Canterbury and the preparation of new campaigns for the Australian and domestic markets. Future of Christchurch Tourism is a key economic driver of the Christchurch and Canterbury economy and of all the major economic sectors has been the hardest hit by the Earthquake events of 2010 and The CCT Board have recognised the importance of the tourism sector having a significant influence in the re-build plans for Christchurch City and in shaping the economic recovery plans for Greater Christchurch and the Canterbury province. CCT has endeavoured to provide strong leadership through both these processes and have instigated the following initiatives to ensure that the tourism sector is well represented in both the city re-build and economic recovery planning. This has been achieved by: 1. Completing post earthquake assessments of the region s tourism capability in the wake of each major earthquake event. These assessments provided an important reference point for both government agencies and industry sector groups to achieve common understanding of the challenges at hand and ensure a realistic response to the specific crises. 5

9 2. Preparation of reference and workshop material for a tourism workshop hosted in early July 2011 to identify key imperatives for the economic re-build of our tourism capabilities and to also inform our input into the Christchurch Central City planning process. 3. On 28 April we briefed Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister, the Hon Gerry Brownlee, on the state of our sector post the 22 February event and promoted the need for a tourism specific recovery plan. The Minister agreed that CCT should lead the development of a tourism sector recovery plan for integration into CERA s overall economic recovery plan. 4. Following completion of the 2010/11 financial year CCT has completed a detailed submission on behalf of the tourism industry on the Central City Plan (CCP) and is currently working on the first draft of the Tourism Sector Economic Recovery Plan. Acknowledgements I wish to acknowledge the excellent support we have received this very difficult year from our primary funders the Christchurch City Council and especially wish to acknowledge the assistance of Michael Theelen, Alan Bywater, Richard Stokes, Jo Blair, Di Keenan, Kevin Collier, John Revell and Elizabeth Wilson with whom we have worked with closely on key projects. I wish to thank Jim Boult and his enormously helpful team at Christchurch International Airport who came to our rescue after we lost access to our Cathedral Square building and have provided us with a dedicated office space, IT support as well as administrative assistance in a range of areas. I wish to acknowledge the fine efforts of our CCT team who have faced enormous challenges this year in both a personal and business sense. The requirement in March to halve our staffing complement was a sad time for all of us as we were forced to say goodbye to many close colleagues and friends. Through all three major earthquakes our team has provided tremendous support to tourism operators across our region. I wish to thank them for their dedication and support and the many extra hours they have worked to get the task done. Tim Hunter Chief Executive 29 September

10 Looking Ahead Strategies for 2011/12 Our 2011/12 Business Plan has been developed in the context of 8 medium term strategic imperatives that were identified after the February earthquake as essential to hasten the recovery of our tourism sector. These strategic imperatives are: 1. Bolster the international reputation of Christchurch as the preferred primary entry point to the South Island Rationale Queenstown Airport is ramping up efforts to take more Trans Tasman services directly into Queenstown to the detriment of Christchurch. Should the CAA approve night landings at Queenstown, Christchurch could lose considerably more Trans Tasman services to Queenstown. Flight cancellations due to sustained weak demand for Christchurch might leave Christchurch with limited capacity when demand starts to grow again. Christchurch must perform well as a preferred destination to ensure that Air Asia s new services are maintained and that Singapore Airlines and Emirates maintain existing frequencies. 2. Ensure all travellers and travel sellers in all key markets are kept well informed of the tourism status of Christchurch and recovery progress Rationale Misinformation about the state of Christchurch will suppress demand and/or delay travel plans for travellers to proceed with South Island holidays and or specific visits to Christchurch. 3. Support local tourism operators as they adapt to reduced demand conditions and ensure that the tourism sector is well linked to Recovery Canterbury and government assistance programmes Rationale Local tourism visitor experiences help define the Christchurch experience and enhance visitor satisfaction. If a number of our iconic tourism products cease to operate we run the risk of becoming a dormitory only gateway with weak tourism identity. If Christchurch does not retain an adequate collection of day excursion experiences it may lose a considerable share of cruise season port visits. 4. Ensure that CCT s marketing in the medium term is focused on those visitors and markets which demonstrate a higher propensity to visit Rationale We need to get the best return on investment for the limited funds we have. Our tourism operators urgently need demand improvement to prevent business failure. In 2011/12 our primary focus will be on growing visitor arrivals from Australia and South East Asia, the two origin markets where we have direct air connections and reasonable prospects for growth. 7

11 5. Acknowledge that the Christchurch accommodation supply situation will be compromised for some years and adopt visitor growth strategies that make optimal use of the total region s under-used accommodation stock and will stimulate investment in new accommodation in Christchurch City Rationale The CAM indicates that Canterbury Region average occupancy level across all accommodation types was only 39% in Spreading the visitor load across the region will assist in improving arrival growth into Christchurch due to a higher rate of fulfilled travel plans thus keeping Christchurch strong as a primary entry point to the South Island. 6. Ensure that CCT effectively facilitates and delivers the recovery activity and outcomes sought and funded by the Canterbury Tourism Partnership Rationale All CTP partners need to have confidence that CCT can effectively assess the regions long term tourism needs and deliver the solutions sought. This will maintain confidence in the ongoing investment by CTP funding partners in the region s tourism recovery. CCT needs to keep Government well informed of the status of our tourism industry and the recovery process in Canterbury; and ensure that it maintains positive and supportive relationships with key stakeholders in both central and local government. 7. Influence the Christchurch City re-build and economic recovery process so that the City creates an outstanding environment for future visitors Rationale Visitors make up a significant proportion of the inner city population especially in the summer months. Certain parts of the central city such as the Cultural Precinct have a significant influence on visitor satisfaction and the way these areas are re-built is of profound importance to visitors. The re-build process gives us the opportunity of significantly enhancing the visitor experience in Christchurch. The early return of visitor volumes will be essential to achieving the economic recovery that is needed to ensure that new building projects for accommodation and hospitality industry can proceed. 8. Provide industry leadership on key issues that will impact on our tourism outcomes across our region Rationale CCT is one of the few organisations that can influence tourism policy and outcomes at a national and local government level. Our industry sees that issues leadership is a key responsibility for CCT as a Regional Tourism Organisation. Our Strategic Plan goals are designed to optimise outcomes for the whole tourism sector and require strong advocacy to ensure that they are achieved. 8

12 Key Goals and Targets for 2011/12 Key Performance Targets Visitor Arrivals into Christchurch 2009/ / /12 Australia 313, , ,300 UK 50,327 38,412 30,700 USA 28,568 21,721 16,300 Japan 21,625 15,025 11,700 South Korea 13,528 12,508 8,900 Germany 12,855 13,460 11,300 Malaysia 3,673 9,200 21,000 China 7,904 7,783 7,800 Singapore 11,726 8,913 7,900 Total - Major Markets 463, , ,900-17% -16% Other Indices 2009/ / /12 Average Length of Stay 1.8 Nights 1.8 nights 1.5 nights Web User Sessions 455, , ,100 i-site Gross Sales $ 9,702,348 $ 6,652,617 $ 3,013,413 Cruise Ship Visits Conference & Incentive Bids

13 Strategic Priorities Growing Economic Return from Visitors Purpose Attracting more visitors, staying longer and spending more to underpin the sector s economic performance and investment return Strategic Initiatives Focus CCT resources on our primary markets of Australia & New Zealand and work with third parties e.g. CIAL & TNZ to develop longer term potential in other markets. Position Christchurch & Canterbury not only as a great touring option but also as a desirable short break destination for Australians & New Zealanders (heart of the South Island). Increase the number of conference delegate days and financial return to Christchurch & Canterbury from business visitors through developing a closer relationship with CINZ, Vbase and other City Stakeholders. Leverage the unique attractions/experiences in the region to attract more visitors to Christchurch & Canterbury, whilst recognising the key experience of the Banks Peninsula. Ensure marketing strategies are balanced between generating new visitors (first priority) and encouraging repeat visitation (secondary level). Manage website as a key tool for presenting & selling the region i.e. as a tool to encourage & convert visitation on a secondary level the site will present hot deals for booking. Ensure the i-site will be best placed for conversion and sales to optimise visitor revenue from visitors in our region. Maximise the return from the cruise market by ensuring that our region and operators are cruise ready and that the region benefits in line with the forecast increases in the sector. Focus on and communicate the regions strengths, as points of difference, as the heart of the South Island and by articulating its diversity, seasonality, hospitality, natural and built landscapes, cultural partners and environmental achievements. Leverage key city & regional events and cultural & sporting initiatives to give visitors a reason to come. Business Members & Stakeholder Collaboration Purpose Through the ongoing development of membership value and stakeholder relationships that evolve rapidly and respond to market opportunities, CCT will grow demand and maintain the capacity to deliver service excellence Strategic Initiatives Drive account management/crm system to service member needs and management of this. Engage & enhance key local & global relationships to strengthen and utilise our competitive advantages. Collaborate with partners on joint ventures and shared initiatives to maximise marketdriven opportunities and internal resources. 10

14 Work with CIAL to target appropriate airlines to grow the seat capacity into Christchurch airport. Develop optimisation strategies to increase visitor yield. Tourism Leadership & Advocacy Purpose The economic & social benefits of tourism are recognised, understood, received and contributed to by our communities Strategic Initiatives To influence destination management issues that affect the visitor experience. The role of CCT is a facilitation role and to point people in the right direction. Play to our regional natural and cultural environmental consciousness strengths. Leverage media opportunities effectively to increase the profile of the industry. Work with CCC to capitalise on resident activities for the benefit of visitors (and vice versa). Best Practice Business Management Purpose To develop an inspiring place to work and retain great people who produce great results Strategic Initiatives Recruit, develop and retain the right people. Develop succession planning for the organisation. 11

15 Strategic Outcome Results As a result of our strategy, we have achieved prosperity for Christchurch & Canterbury through the following strategic outcomes: Strategic Priority 1.0 Growing Economic Return from Visitors Increased visitor arrivals from key markets (i) International (ii) Australia to be NZ s number 1 leisure destination for Australians (iii)domestic Chch & Canterbury is clearly recognised as a desirable short leisure break destination for New Zealanders Increased length of stay (i) International - Christchurch & Canterbury is clearly recognised as the heart of the South Island (ii) Australian & Domestic - leisure Overall Horizon 1: 10/11 Due to the world economic crisis the team will strive to maintain the region s share (22% as at YE June 2010) of international arrivals in relation to national visitor arrivals (IVS). Total arrivals (all countries) nationwide YE June ,489,871 To grow Australian resident visitor arrivals from Australia via CIAL by 9.5% from 313,639 to 343,639 (YE June 2010) i.e. by 30,000 - in line with JV submission (previous year s growth 10%) To increase CIAL domestic arrivals by 3% which will increase domestic arrivals from 2,158,712 to 2,223,473 Average visitor length of stay in Christchurch commercial accommodation achieves 1.9 nights Average visitor length of stay in Christchurch accommodation achieves 2 nights (for Australia & domestic) 15.7% market share of all visitor nights (CAM) Increase the Australian composition of guest nights in Chch hotels by 2% to a total of 21% (NZHC). A 1% increase in domestic visitor nights to Canterbury by end F10/11 Results YE June 2011 Christchurch share is 18.6% (total arrivals all countries 2,489,822) YE June 2011 Australian arrivals into CHC down by - 17% to 259,034 Domestic Arrivals at CIAL declined by 2% to 2,119,230 Average length of stay in Canterbury 1.84 (YE June 2011) Unable to measure as CAM no longer provides country of origin statistics 14.3% share of all visitor nights (CAM) Achieved 2,563,163 Domestic Guest Nights (+0.2%) YE June

16 Increase in Visitor Expenditure (i) International and Australia (ii) Drive visitor expenditure on the ground (iii) To increase visitor numbers to Banks Peninsula and strengthen off season performance To maintain international visitor average expenditure at $2,633 (declined by 5.6% in F09/10) To grow Australian average expenditure by 1% in F10/11 currently $1,774 (decline of 2.1% in F09/10) To achieve a gross turnover of $9.604m and net revenue of $1.175m in the Christchurch & Akaroa i-site Visitor Centre Contribution from the Christchurch i-site Visitor Centre & Akaroa (or from alternative source) is minimum of $412K At least maintain, and aim to grow, market share for region through tracking which includes Akaroa Visitor Centre Sales (and visitors). $2,418 average expenditure (down 8% from $2,633) $1,601 average expenditure (down 8% from $1,737.40). Note this is not CHC specific In the i-site Australian spend reached $703K up until 22 Feb representing a 31% increase on previous FY Achieved $6.426m in gross turnover and revenue of $839k Contribution $77k Akaroa Visitor Centre: Sales $656k Net Revenue $116k -12% ($11k) Visitor numbers 138,838-16% (26k) No separate CAM statistics are available for Banks Peninsula as these are now amalgamated into Christchurch City Increase numbers of conference delegates and the financial return to Christchurch & Canterbury (business visitors) TOTAL BIDS: 50 Achieve 35 association conference proposals: International : 10 Australia :15 New Zealand :10 Achieve : 15 corporate Australia : 10 New Zealand : 5 TOTAL BIDS: 24 up to January no new bids completed following 22 Feb EQ Association: achieved : 15 International : 4 Australia : 6 New Zealand : 5 Achieved : 9 corporate Australia : 5 New Zealand : 4 13

17 Implement processes to ensure CCCB s resource is targeted to bid activity likely to result in business for region The development of Christchurch & Canterbury as an Incentive destination Increase C&I economic value to the region by 6% (F09/10 $67,991,145) Increase conference delegate days by 4% (F09/10 164,065) Grow regional market share to 22% Achieve 40% conversion rate from bids Achieve 15 incentive proposals: Australia : 10 NZ : 5 F10/11 $61.3mill Conference Delegate Days F10/11 100,640 Pre 22 FEB 91,058 Regional Market Share F10/ % Pre 22 FEB 19.5% Conversion Target 40% F10/11 Bid Total 24 Wins 7 Loss 6 Pending 11 Tracking approx 30% but note that 45% of bids were still pending Achieved 6 Australia : 5 NZ : 1 Capitalise on the shift to digital communication and booking Ensuring the site is easily found around the world by prospective and qualified customers Increased interest and bookings on the site by all visitors Increase of site visits by 24% to 46,500 per month (gross visitation) and net visitation to 25,063 per month Increase of average page views by 20% to 177,961 To decrease the bounce rate by 3% from 47.69% to 46.1% To increase the number of Australian visitors to the site from 140,000 to 195,000 To increase the number of NZ visitors to the site from 183,000 to 226,000 To increase the overall/gross booking revenue from $210k to $252k (20% increase) Improvement of domestic & Australian search engine rankings for key words 46,919 gross visitation per month; 21,743 net visitation per month 197,534 page views per month Bounce rate decreased to 46.34% 176,535 Australian visitors to the site 200,308 New Zealand visitors to the site $135k achieved on Bookit/Vianet Wotif.com has stopped providing turnover data to all NZ RTOs but on basis of booking numbers estimated at $59k Total booking revenue estimated at $194k Not measurable 14

18 Strategic Priority 2.0 Business Members & Stakeholder Collaboration Horizon 1: 10/11 Results Supporting business partners & suppliers to optimise profit & provide the best experience to visitors Value added to CCT business partner membership by demonstrating increased site use and leads/bookings/sales Private sector funding contribution of $650K for Australian campaign Increase in the number of product searches per month Online sales targets met Increase in online revenue Operator annual fees contribute a minimum of $600K Non-CCT/TNZ funding for Australian campaign totals $688,000 (includes CIAL, other RTOs, Airlines and Destination Marketing Groups) Operator annual fees contribution $625K Strategic Priority 3.0 Tourism Leadership & Advocacy Horizon 1: 10/11 Results Our communities value the benefit of tourism and be proactive in terms of leadership and advocacy On average 2 positive media messages per month Achieved Supporting the principals of natural & cultural environmental awareness & sustainability Strategic Priority 4.0 Best Practice Business Management Increase the number of Qualmark members by 5% Horizon 1: 10/11 As at June 2011 there were 329 licensed operators in Canterbury, a decrease from 351 on June 2010 (this reflects a number of Christchurch operators ceasing business either permanently or temporarily due to the February 22 nd earthquake) Results Staff survey Staff turnover Training & motivation In the annual staff survey achieve a 65% overall staff satisfaction rating of excellent/very good Achieve less than 18% staff turnover Achieved. 67% overall staff gave a satisfaction rating of excellent/very good Achieved. Turnover 16.7% (excluding redundancies) 15

19 Results by Department Marketing Overview Key Market Summary Origin New Zealand % Change Christchurch % Change YE June 2011 YE June 2011 All Markets 2,489, % 461, % Australia 1,112, % 259, % UK 220, % 38, % USA 188, % 21, % China 131, % 7, % Japan 78, % 15, % Germany 65, % 13, % South Korea 59, % 12, % Canada 48, % 5, % Singapore 32, % 8, % Malaysia 26, % 9, % There were significant changes in the composition of travellers to New Zealand over the past year. As new air routes opened to Chinese and Malaysian markets they have stimulated significant growth (25% and 34% respectively). These routes have only been operational since February and April so we expect greater impact on overall arrival results in the 2011/12 year. A number of different factors have affected the traditional markets of Australia, UK, USA and Japan. Ranging from strength of the Australian dollar/overall weakness of the Pound and Euro, effects of the global recession and how this changes the importance of international travel to the individual. Fuel surcharges and an increase to the British Air Passenger Duty both contributed to increasing flight costs and finally the perceptions of travel to NZ in the aftermath of the Chch earthquakes in September 10 & February 11. Christchurch has seen drastic reductions in arrivals and its share of international arrivals has dropped from 22% to 16%. Key Market Strategy At the beginning of this financial year we had developed a more focused plan for campaign marketing that had a strong focus on Australia (with the strong support of the central government RTO funding initiative) and a secondary focus on the domestic market. CCT aimed to consolidate and grow the longer term opportunities in long haul markets with a focus on media and trade relationships. Earthquake Disclaimer The earthquakes in September 2010 and February 2011 caused significant changes to the marketing plan in all markets. In September the overall focus was around countering perception issues as the international media coverage was significant and dramatic. February delivered considerably larger and broader issues with the core visitor hub of Christchurch being so physically broken. The new marketing strategy had to focus on 16

20 providing reliable accounts of the situation on the ground and conveying clear information about operational versus non-operational tourism services. The CCT marketing team halved in size after February and consequently this has reduced our ability to undertake the same level of activity. Australian Market Market Overview NZ YE June 2011 % Change CHC YE June 2011 % Change Australia 1,112, % 259, % Warning signs of the decline in Australian arrivals began in April 2010 before the beginning of this financial year. The September quake accelerated this decline. Prior to February 2011 the average monthly decrease for the year was -11.8%; and post has been -29.4%). Market Strategy The second year of Joint Venture RTO Funding was confirmed for the 2009/10 year. This added an additional $1m towards the CCT led activity for promoting the region in Australia. The intention of this activity was to create a strong campaign platform that not only establishes a strong brand position but increases preference and intention to visit and aids conversion across all key partners. Activity was divided across campaigns, media and some Australia specific online development. Market Activity Campaigns - Best Kept Secrets The creative focus of the campaigns collectively was that the Christchurch, Canterbury and partner regions, when combined, are shown to be the ultimate place for tourists to experience New Zealand. Awareness of all regions outside of Christchurch was considered very low in Australia and so the concept of New Zealand s best kept secrets was adopted. This was brought to the Australian market by TV personality Phil Keoghan. Originally three seasonal campaigns were planned with a relatively equal media spend spring, autumn and winter. However the consequences of the earthquakes significantly amended the planned activity. Please note that the funding contributions for these campaigns came from Christchurch International Airport, Tourism West Coast, Nelson Tasman Tourism, Destination Marlborough, Jetstar, Mt Hutt Marketing Group, Mackenzie Winter Marketing Group and Air New Zealand. Campaign Timing Earthquake Changes Media Spend Spring/ 24 October 2 Summer December 2010 Delayed launch to October. Media spend doubled to increase presence $550,000 TV $275,000 Additional Media 17

21 Autumn Planned for late February Winter February (early bird) 29 May 4 June Campaign cancelled due to timing being proximity to Feb quake As planned Delayed start and complete creative change - $100,000 TV $24,000 Additional Media $40,000 TV Ski TMN Alongside the winter message specifically about Canterbury, CCT also contributed $15,000 to the Ski TMN Canterbury campaign, which totalled $82,000 (with other contributions from CIAL, NZSki, Mackenzie Winter Marketing Group and the Mt Hutt Marketing Group).This amount excluded complementary activity Tourism New Zealand delivered for South Island skiing as match funding. Ski TMN Canterbury Early February As planned $80,000 TV (TNZ and Flight Centre led) Feb, April July Paused for 2 months $82,000 online & adwords Media and PR Activity 2009/ /11 % Change CCT Driven No. of Famils % No. of Media % TNZ Driven No. of Famils No. of Media % After the September earthquake the key challenge for PR was to counter perception issues about the effects of the earthquake on the city. CCT organised two high profile activities in order to achieve this. Key Australian media, C&I and trade were invited to a presentation to discuss the impacts on Christchurch in late September. Paul Bingham, Ian Hay and Barry Eddington presented to the group with Mayor Bob Parker skyped into the meeting. Video footage of the city was created for the event giving a visual representation of the city to show it was open for business. Australia s number one breakfast show Channel 7 s Sunrise, filmed live from the region for the week October. Watched by approximately 450,000 viewers each day, they filmed six live crosses each morning during the five day period from locations within Christchurch and Canterbury. Timing for these broadcast coincided by the launch of the spring advertising campaign. The total cost was $20,000 and the estimated media value by such extensive media representation was $1.7m. Trade Activity 2009/ /11 % Change CCT Driven No. of Famils % Pax % TNZ Driven No. of Famils Pax % CCT visited Australian wholesalers on three separate trips throughout the year (October 2010, March and May 2011). The aim was to give product updates, discuss sales patterns, some front-liner training and provide earthquake updates. In addition to this CCT attended the Kirra Holidays Australian Consumer Road show which gave an insight into the Australian consumer perspective post earthquake. Other highlights included 18

22 Carnival Cruises Pacific Jewel & Pacific Dawn Shore Excursion Staff Famils CCT had the opportunity to host the Shore Excursion Managers and teams from the Pacific Jewel and Pacific Dawn Cruise Ships whilst they were in Lyttelton. The goal of the famils was to ensure that the Shore Excursion Teams knew how to sell the attractions & activities presented onboard correctly and understood the timings and distances from the Port. It also allowed them to gain a better understanding of the product available to FIT s in comparison to what was sold onboard. The feedback was extremely positive and we hope to be able to host more Shore Excursion Staff in the upcoming cruise season. Domestic Market Market Overview % Change CHC Domestic Arrivals YE June ,119, % Canterbury Domestic Guest Nights YE June ,563, % For the first time in five years Christchurch saw a decline in domestic arrivals into Christchurch International Airport. This negative effect began taking shape in the summer months with arrivals Dec March down 3.7%. Market Strategy 250, , , ,000 Domestic Arrivals FY2009/10 v FY2010/11 The aim of activity in the domestic market has J A S O N D J F M A M J been to increase appeal via seasonal and 2009/ /11 activity-based activity that targets specific segments. We have targeted consumers with a high predisposition for domestic travel and who have identified interests that match the offering in Christchurch and Canterbury. The original brief for domestic was to focus on the seasons of spring, autumn and winter and the activity of cycling. Unfortunately the September earthquake put this activity on indefinite hold at a period when the initial spring advertising activity was in market. Market Activity Campaigns Activity The sole campaign that went into market for CCT was for spring The focus was on events of the spring season NZ Cup & Show Week, the Ron Mueck Art Exhibition, SCAPE and The Heart of the Great Alone Photography Exhibit. The look and feel was a continuation of the winter 2010 campaign. In August AA launched their $1 million 10 week domestic tourism campaign, Great Kiwi Road Trips. The aim of the campaign was to motivate consumers to fill up their tank and hit the domestic roads. To support the work in the spring campaign CCT invested in owning a road trip and chose the Picton to Christchurch route with a focus on Kaikoura, Waipara and Christchurch city. Campaign Timing Earthquake Changes Media Spend Spring 13 August 30 September 2010 Online media was cancelled after September earthquake $150,000 (print, billboard & online) AA Great Kiwi Road Trips October Did not change $50,000 (TV) 19

23 Media and PR Activity 2009/ /11 % Change CCT Driven No. of Famils % No. of Media % International Markets Market Overview Origin NZ YE June % Change CHC YE June % Change UK 220, % 38, % USA 188, % 21, % China 131, % 7, % Japan 78, % 15, % Germany 65, % 13, % South Korea 59, % 12, % Canada 48, % 5, % Singapore 32, % 8, % India 29, % 4, % Malaysia 26, % 9, % Christchurch saw a significant decline in the majority of its major markets. International guest nights also saw a similar decline of -19.6% in International Guest Nights YE June Market Strategy The focus for CCT in other markets was to work with our key partners of Tourism New Zealand and Christchurch International Airport to develop longer-term potential in other markets. The basis of this activity sits within the areas of media and trade activity. Media and PR Activity 2009/ /11 % Change CCT Driven No. of Famils % TNZ Driven No. of Famils % After the February earthquake CCT made a conscious effort to ensure that the Tourism New Zealand International Media Programme team was up to date with the situation in Christchurch to ensure that the region continues to be well represented in this activity. The CCT Media Executive spent two weeks based in the Tourism New Zealand Auckland office with the aim of highlighting and positioning each of the Canterbury districts as well as giving updates on the earthquake. Highlights from this activity includes Around the World (October 2010) Canterbury played host to an interactive television show focused on the interests of growing the Chinese youth market. Airing from October 2010, each episode of Around the World was viewed by over 7.5m people and 16,500 online. The series featured on various Chinese channels and websites including IPTV, SiTV (available to 16m households), and tudou.com. OFF (July 2010) In July 2010 Korea s OFF publication featured 100 pages on the Christchurch and Canterbury region in a photographic journey style. OFF generates 25,000 copies monthly to a very targeted audience, this includes the Gold membership of Citibank (60,000) and the VIP database of Kookmin Bank (110,000). 20

24 Trade Activity 2009/ /11 % Change CCT Driven No. of Famils % Pax % TNZ Driven No. of Famils % Pax % After the September and February earthquakes the number of larger trade famils subsided (refer above chart), however the team organised and hosted a number of individual famils to showcase the effects on the central city. Approximately 11 occurred after September and over 30 since February including key Air New Zealand staff and a significant delegation from JATA. Other famil highlights from the year include Tourism New Zealand Taiwan Famil (March 2011) This famil consisted of nine travel sellers from Taiwan. Due to the timing of the famil, the participants were extremely apprehensive about spending time in the South Island and the region of Christchurch & Canterbury. After much discussion and re-organisation of the itinerary the famil was the first to incorporate Canterbury post February Earthquake. Obviously activities originally planned for the CBD were unable to proceed which gave us the opportunity to highlight the regions of Hanmer Springs and Tekapo areas that otherwise would not have been experienced by the group. The overall feedback from the famil was extremely positive with comments being published in the April edition of Tourism News. Post Trenz TNZ Staff Famil (May 2011) The famil consisted of six newly employed Tourism New Zealand staff from the key international offices of Australia, UK, India, USA and China. Three in-depth days were spent in the Canterbury region encompassing the areas of Aoraki Mount Cook, Lake Tekapo, Central South Island and Terrace Downs. The group had the opportunity to experience a range of new and existing products enhancing their product knowledge on the wealth of diversity within the region. It is critical that the region continues to provide famils to the Tourism New Zealand staff responsible for updating the offshore travel trade in order to ensure that key product information is relevant and up to date. Highlights of the Trade Calendar: Event Market(s) July 2010 UK and Europe IMA Workshops UK, Germany, France, The Netherlands, Scandinavia, Italy, Spain & Eastern Europe Aug 2010 China Trade Beijing, Shanghai, Training/Sales Calls Guangzhou & Shenzhen Oct 2010 Kiwi Link Singapore China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand 70 Product Managers 130 Frontline Staff 5 Official Travel Agents (RWC) 20 Appointments 5 regional exhibitors 90 Product Managers 80 Singapore Frontline Staff Nov 2010 IBO Sales Calls Auckland 16 Inbound Operators Feb 2011 MATTA Malaysia Attended by Destination Queenstown as after Feb EQ April 2011 RTO / ITOC Days Auckland 1 day of Product Manager appts, 1 day Frontline training April/May 2011 Kiwi Link North America Seattle 9 Product Managers 125 Frontline Staff May 2011 TRENZ Queenstown 24 regional exhibitors - CCT had 2 full appointment streams, meeting over 100 Buyers Jun 2011 Kiwi Link Japan Tokyo and Osaka 80 Product Managers 21

25 Online Results Overview / /10 % Change Site Visits Per Month* 46,919 37, % Average Page Visits Per Month* 197, , % Average Pages Per Session % Average User Session Time 3:33 4: % Monthly Average Bounce Rate 48.64% 48.73% -0.2% *Please note this includes all sites that CCT manages. Results for traffic to the website have been heavily impacted by the interest generated by the quakes. This meant that over periods immediately after events traffic was significantly higher however these people spent far less time on the site and looked at fewer pages. While overall visits are up the results post Feb have shown a significant decline in traffic. Visits by Week Sept Earthquake Spring/Summer AUS Campaign Feb Earthquake Key Online Activity New Homepage Development In September 2010 further developments were made to the main homepage. The aim of this was to ensure that christchurchnz.com had the flexibility to motivate & educate travellers who are in the research and planning stages of their visit to NZ. This increased flexibility has allowed for a greater depth of content to tell the stories of the region that will also deliver value and representation to key stakeholders and be responsive to campaign & time-specific messages. Localised Homepage Development In April 2011 variations of the main homepage were integrated to the website so that content can be personalised by market. The four markets selected were Domestic, Australia, Asia and Rest of the World. Social Networking and Deals Integration Maintaining CCT s social networking platforms of Facebook and Twitter continued to happen over the 2010/11 year however work toward the CCT Blog has ceased due to a lack of resource. Changes were made to the What s Hot deals microsite that was launched in The amendments limited the number of deals to 10 per fortnight in an attempt to give a smaller number of deals more prominence and create a sense of urgency. After the February quake this site was also pulled down due to a lack of resource. Post February Earthquake Website Changes The presentation priority post the February earthquake has been on ensuring that the content on christchurchnz.com remains factual, up-to-date and relevant to our circumstances. The only listings that are shown on the website are for those operators who are operational; any who have shut down are not displayed. CCT also continues to show open lists so that consumers can see a full list of industry operators who are open for business compared to the limited list of operators who choose to have more comprehensive listings on our website. 22

26 Business Development Service Agreement Revenue Revenue Business Partner membership for the YE June 2011 totalled $625,000 including both CCT & CCCB. An overall increase was achieved in all service agreement sectors. Number of members by type (includes contra) Bronze 64 Silver 18 Gold 10 Premier 9 AVC Brochure 33 Brochure only 407 Brochure & web 285 Web only 41 Business Partner Functions & Communication Over the course of the year CCT hosted 11 industry updates and functions Date Function 6 August Networking Function with Phil Keoghan, International Antarctic Centre 4 November TNZ Industry Workshop, Crowne Plaza Hotel 16 November TIA/CCT Safety Briefing for the Adventure Tourism Sector, Sudima Hotel 23 December CCT BP Open House, CCT 2 February TNZ/CCT workshop, Chateau on the Park 8 February TNZ Market Briefing, Heritage Hotel 16 March CCT Update & Air Asia Presentation, Russley Golf Club 14 April TIA Regional Roadshow, Melton Estate 17 June TNZ /TIA Roadshow Event, Copthorne Commodore Hotel 12 July Tourism Industry Workshop on the Future of Christchurch (invitation only event), Melton Estate 14 July CCT Business Partner Update, Sudima Hotel 23 items of industry communication were sent out to the industry database to 30 June Business Partner Recovery Assistance CCT have worked closely with Westpac and Results.com to develop and deliver a series of four business recovery seminars free of charge to tourism operators across our region. These seminars attracted more than 240 attendees. 23

27 Canterbury Tourism Collaboration CCT continues to be committed to the marketing of the Christchurch & Canterbury region. We continue to foster collaboration to promote the region as a visitor destination. A series of quarterly regional meetings are held to discuss issue and collaborate on marketing initiatives. District Tourism Organisation Meetings 1 July June 2011 Date Location 12 August Mona Vale, Christchurch 7 December CCT, Christchurch 22 March Huntley Lodge, Christchurch 10 June CSIT Offices, Timaru Qualmark Growth Since 2007 there has been a 23% increase in Qualmark licensed operators in the region from 2007 to As at June 2011 there were 329 licensed operators in Canterbury which is a decrease from 351 or 22 operators over the June 2010 total. This reflected a number of Christchurch operators ceasing business either permanently or temporarily due to the February 22 nd earthquake. Qualmark Members TOTAL Qualmark Enviro Gold Totals Enviro Silver Totals Enviro Bronze Totals Enviro Certifcation Jul- 10 Aug- 10 Sep- 10 Oct- 10 Nov- 10 Dec- 10 Jan- 11 Feb- 11 Mar- 11 Apr- 11 May- 11 Jun For Qualmark Enviromark certification, in June 2011 there were 143 certified operators in the region representing an increase of 24 operators over June Special Projects Rugby World Cup 2011 Despite losing the RWC games due to the earthquake events in February 2011 CCT continues to be involved in preparation for the RWC 2011 event. CCT sits on the Governance Committee and is actively involved in the CCC Rugby World Cup Communications Committee. CCT is assisting CCC with VIP and media hosting Cruise In the aftermath of the February earthquake the remainder of the cruise ships booked into Lyttelton were diverted to Akaroa. Lyttelton Port visits to 22 nd February 2011: 63 booked - 49 actual displacement due to earthquake 22 nd February 14 port visits Akaroa Port visits: Booked 7 ships actual 21 24

28 The increase is due to re-direction from Lyttelton post February 22 nd 2011 Total passengers and crew into Lyttelton & Akaroa 2010/11 season were 133,245 A dedicated cruise brochure was once again produced for the 2010/11 season to provide information on the city and to drive sales of attractions through the Christchurch i-site. Great Wine Capital - Best of Wine Tourism Award In 2009 the Christchurch City Council initiated an application to become a member of the Great Wine Capital Network. Christchurch was accepted into the Great Wine Capital Network in This opportunity provided Christchurch/South Island with an international platform for the promotion and sale of South Island and New Zealand wine and wine tourism, as a premium world leading region. For CCT this means recognition of Christchurch/South Island as one of the world s Great Wine Capitals to market South Island wine tourism/tourism to the rest of New Zealand. CCT was tasked with the responsibility for the coordination of the inaugural Best of Wine Tourism Awards for entries were received for the inaugural awards in 2010 this included: 3 entries in the Wine Tourism Restaurants category 5 entries in the Innovative Wine Tourism Experience category 2 entries in the Sustainable wine tourism category 3 entries in the Accommodation section 4 entries in the Wine tourism services category The winners in each category were: Wine Tourism Restaurant: Allan Scott Family Winemakers Marlborough Sustainable Wine Tourism Yealands Estate Winery Accommodation The Old Glenmark Vicarage Ltd Waipara/ Canterbury Wine Tourism Services - Appellation Central Wine Tours Central Otago Innovative Wine Tourism not awarded by judges decision One international category winner for Christchurch/South Island was selected by the International Jury. The winner was Yealands Estate Winery for Sustainable Wine Tourism CCT intends to coordinate the Best of Wine Tourism Awards for

29 Convention Bureau The primary role of the Christchurch & Canterbury Convention Bureau is to grow the economic benefit to the region from visitors attending conventions, conferences and incentive activities in the region. Summary The convention and incentive (business tourism) activity in the Christchurch & Canterbury region was well positioned as a significant contributor to the local economy and was maintaining a strong market position in NZ, prior to the devastating earthquake of 22 February. The first earthquake event on 4 September 2010 had minimal impact on the C&I Business as there was no loss of life or significant infrastructure damage to the city venues or hotels. The impact since February has been considerable with a drop from an average market share of 25% (multi-day delegate days) to 1% for the 4 th Quarter of F10/11. The estimated economic contribution for F10/11 is $45,880,000, a decrease of 50% from F09/10. This decline is directly attributable to the earthquakes. During the first 6 months of this financial year, prior to 22 February, Christchurch continued to attract a high percentage of the Australian conference delegates (over 40% of all Australian delegates) to New Zealand, and maintained a consistent share of all International delegates of approximately 6%. The fact that Christchurch had the only purpose built convention centre in New Zealand, with expansion plans to double the size of this venue enabled our region to attract a significant number of large (more than 500 delegates) conferences. This city also had the South Island s largest in-house hotel conference centre at the Hotel Grand Chancellor, plus significant conference capacity at Rydges, the Copthorne Hotels, the Millennium, the Heritage, the Novotel, the Holiday Inns and the Crowne Plaza all of which are subject to either uncertain re-opening timeframes and in three cases demolition. In the first 6 months of F10/11 we attracted 5 large conferences (500 plus delegates), Auckland hosted 15 and Rotorua 9 in the same period. Since February Christchurch has hosted no large conferences as all of this business has been relocated. It should be noted that in this period other main centres around New Zealand hosted the following; Auckland 12, Rotorua 7, Wellington 4 & Queenstown 1.. Impact of 22 February Christchurch s ability to host multi-day conferences has been significantly compromised by the closure of venue space & city hotels. This infrastructure is all subject to uncertain time lines for a return to business. This table shows a 43% reduction in Conference Capacity. VENUES and HOTELS with CONFERENCE FACILITIES Pre 22 Feb Capacity (Theatre Style) Post 22 Feb Capacity (Theatre Style) 27 Hotels 5, Hotels 1, Venues 16,942 9 Venues 11,010 TOTAL 22,607 TOTAL 12,945 Relocate, Retain & Return Future Business Every effort has been made to assist conference organisers with relocating business that was previously confirmed for the city and ensuring that relationships are maintained to secure future business. Ongoing communication is very important as many corporate clients and associations schedule conferences on an annual or bi-annual rotational basis. During the first few weeks (post quake) we were working to retain over $34 million dollars 26

30 worth of future Australian business. Each time the date for the re-instatement of the Convention Centre was further delayed, these conferences were forced to make alternative arrangements. Once dates are determined for the re-opening of hotels for accommodation and the large city venues, it is anticipated that a number of conferences will commence the process of returning, this will include presentations, bid documents and famil visits. Economic Impact Economic contribution F10/11 $45,880,000 estimate based on 100,640 delegate days with a similar mix of local, national and international delegate days to F09/10 Previous year reported contribution of $67,991, calculation based on Angus & Associates numbers prior to change to COVEC. Multi-Day Conference Delegate Days F10/11 The regional target to grow delegate days by 4% and increase our national market share was on track in the 6 months prior to December 2010, plus there were several large conferences booked for the city from March to June These conferences have since relocated. This table shows the numbers prior to February and F10/11 totals. YEAR Canterbury New Zealand Total Canterbury Percentage F09/10 219, ,498 25% 6 months Pre 22 Feb EQ 91, , % F10/11 100, , % The table below indicates Canterbury s percentage share of the National Total of multi-day conference delegate days over the F10/11 period. The 2 nd half of the year reflects the significant decline due to lack of infrastructure. Percentage 19% 20% 6% 1% CANTERBURY 54,947 36,111 7,924 1,658 REST of NZ 234, , , ,839 JUL - SEP OCT - DEC JAN -MAR APR - JUN This graph shows in red the number of Canterbury Delegate days in the F10/11 period and the dotted line shows our percentage share of the national total Multi-Day Conference Delegate Days F10/11 25% % 20% 6% 1% JUL-SEP OCT-DEC JAN-MAR APR-JUN 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% Canterbury National % 27

31 Bids & City Proposals Target 50 A key role for the Bureau is to seek opportunities to present this region as the destination of choice through city bids and proposals. A total of 24 Bids were processed from July 2010 through to January These bids had an estimated economic value of $28,968,840. The full year target was 50 & there were no new bids since February Bid Conversion - Target 40% Due to the length of time taken in the decision making process, the true measure of conversion will be reflected over months. F10/11 tracking approximately 30% F10/11 Bid Total = 24 Won 7 Lost 6 Pending 11 New Zealand & Australian Activities Completed in F10/11 North Island Event Managers Famil July programme offered to qualified buyers & PCO s Canterbury Conference & Events Expo 17 August over 60 exhibitors, plus local day buyers and hosted buyers from Auckland & Wellington. This Expo is being managed in partnership with Promag Publishing. North Island Hosted Buyers Programme August qualified buyers and PCO s, selected based on business opportunities Air New Zealand Australian PCO Famil August qualified buyers and PCO s, selected based on business opportunities Melbourne, Australia Sales Visits September 2010 Wellington Sales Visits September 2010 Brisbane, Australia Sales Visits October 2010 Auckland Sales Visits, November 2010 Cup & Show, Event Organisers Hosted Lunch, incl. Gold Business Partners Sydney, Australia November 2010 Air New Zealand Australian PCO Famil November programme offered to 8 qualified buyers and PCO s, selected based on business opportunities for Christchurch & Canterbury Australasian PCO Conference, Hobart, Tasmania December exhibiting and promoting Christchurch as the conference destination in 2011 AIME Tradeshow, Melbourne February 2011 MEETINGS Tradeshow, Rotorua, June Meeting & Incentive Planner, produced, printed and distributed early 2011 Industry Partnerships The Convention Bureau has a highly respected team, with strong public relations and media support to ensure we maintain a high profile in the C&I industry. Leonie Ashford was the Chairperson of the New Zealand Convention Bureaux this includes liaison and advice to staff from 19 RTO s and co-ordination of the CAS / CDS Research Programmes on behalf of 10 RTOs. The Bureaus have a close working relationship with CINZ (Conventions & Incentives New Zealand). CINZ activity included two visits to the city and joint presentations with Alan Trotter CINZ CEO in the past 12 months. Our Bureau also has a strong working relationship with the Christchurch City Council Marketing team, and the Sports & Events Teams. 28

32 Partnership Revenue F10/11 KPI Increase CCCB Partnership Revenue by 10% - Target $281,270 F10/11 Actual CCCB Membership revenue was valued at $254,353. Since February 2011 there have been no new Bureau Partners signed up. Finally The Bureau in Christchurch has downsized from three experienced staff to one person, and we are now focused on promoting a very different range of products including one day conferences, smaller multi day conferences and pitching Canterbury as an Incentive Group travel destination. This has been a very challenging time, however we have strong support from our industry partners and colleagues throughout New Zealand and Australia. 29

33 Visitor Centres Christchurch i-site Over the last 12 months the i-site has traded in a very challenging commercial environment. Visitor arrivals into New Zealand remained unchanged but arrivals into Christchurch were down by 15.5%. The continuing decline in the i-site s key markets as a result of the ongoing effects of the global recession, strength of the Australian dollar, weakness of both the pound and the euro and the increased cost of long haul travel due to fuel surcharges and taxes have been well documented. Add to these factors the four major earthquakes including the 22 February loss of our i-site building it was of no surprise that we fell well short of meeting our i-site sales targets for this financial year. To offset declining visitation and excess floor space there was a need to secure another tenant for the i-site building. The Department of Conservation (DOC) was the preferred business and service provider to enhance the i-site services and from mid January the DOC Visitor Centre operated from within the i-site. This partnership and amalgamation of visitor services was an exciting concept and would have provided us with additional revenue opportunities if we had been able to remain in our building. DOC have indicated they are interested in reviewing any opportunity we may have to co-locate in the future. Key Market Summary The key markets for the i-site have declined considerably over the last 12 months, Germany being the exception to this. The increased visitation from China does bode well for the i-site but it will depend of how well the South Island tourism industry meets the needs of this market. Market NZ YE Jun 2011 Variance CHC YE Jun 2011 Variance % of i-site revenue Aus 1,112, % 259, % 19% UK 220, % 38, % 18% Germany 65, % 13, % 9% USA 188, % 21, % 9% Japan 78, % 15, % 9% China 131, % 7, % 6% Performance The following graphs indicate that the i-site was performing well prior to 22 February with net revenue tracking 2% up on budget with overall contribution performing 3% better. In spite of losing 5 days of trading after the 4 September quake the i-site was on track to achieve budge despite some cordons remaining in parts of the the city. The graphs show the critical impact of 22 February, resulting in a 27% decline in budgeted net revenue ($346,158) and a 65% fall in budgeted contribution for the financial year. Ongoing staff costs in the March through to April period (including redundancies) contributed to higher expenses; this combined with a flat revenue stream resulted in the sharp decline in contribution. 30

34 1,400,000 $ net reveuie $ surplus/defict Net RevenueChart 1,200,000 1,000, , , , ,000 Actual Budget 0 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Contribution FY Actual Budget 0 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun The i-site opened in the Chateau on the Park Hotel on 4 April after not having had a shop presence since 22 February although the phones and s were manned through this 6 week period. This location has been a compromise with tourism services spread across the city and the temporary i-site location was not on a main arterial route or in a high foot traffic area. However with only limited CCT funding at that time and very few available buildings, options for the relocation of the i-site were greatly restricted. To co-habit with an existing business was the only option. Not having access to the VIBs booking system and operating on IBIS in the Chateau location has been challenging. Staff The staff selection process for ongoing employment in the i-site post redundancies was based on skills to meet the changing environment, length of service and visa status. A key factor was to ensure we kept the language skills we currently offer being Mandarin, Cantonese, Russian, Japanese, Spanish, Korean, Cantonese, Russian, Latvian, German and Pigeon English to maximise booking opportunities and meeting a broad range of information needs. The annual visitor survey did not take place this year as it was scheduled to commence 23 February so we have been unable to report on Visitor satisfaction and experience. 31

35 Trends The trend of declining numbers of visitors making a booking continued this year being down by 2% on the This was masked by the increase in domestic patronage as we sold many tickets to the very popular Ron Mueck exhibition. The changes in product choices evident last year have continued. Both attractions and outdoor activities showed growth with accommodation remaining constant which would reflect the focus on booking the complete New Zealand experience. Train bookings this year were down 2% as a direct result in the decline of the long haul markets. Focus December 2011 saw the launch of the increased i-site presence on christchurchnz.com. The new functionality allowed the i-site to profile best deals, hidden gems and events with both text and imagery. The overall traffic to the i-site content increased by 92% on the previous year with some of the pages only being online for 6 months. Overall the i- SITE page ranked 6 th in page visits. Working more closely with the CCC events team and ticketing the Hero events was an opportunity for us to increase profile with the domestic market. This worked well and was supported by advertising in local print with distribution in the higher socio economic areas. The i-site worked with the industry to establish a range of best deals to position the i- SITE as a must visit and price competitive in the current deal driven market. This concept worked exceptionally well and will be further developed over the next financial year. Looking Forward The relocation of the i-site into a portable building in the Botanical Gardens alongside Rolleston Avenue is scheduled for October and will maximise opportunities for both the i- SITE and the industry. This visitor hub will include coach and shuttle parking, cafes and restaurants, markets and key attractions such as the Museum, Art Gallery, Punting and the Botanic Gardens will provide visitors with a safe and attractive heart to plan their visit, start and finish their tours and experience some of the best of the Christchurch Experience. Akaroa Visitor Centre The past 12 months has seen the Akaroa Visitor Centre (AVC) operate under difficult circumstances; three major earthquakes that have resulted in reduced visitor numbers and decreased revenue. AVC was closed for a total of 15 days post earthquakes awaiting building inspections. Total net revenue was $116,114. Net Revenue Product Commission Retail NZ Post Commission NZ Post Customs LTNZ Commission Other Revenue Actual Reforecast Budget 32

36 Visitor numbers in 10/11 totalled 138,838 representing a decrease of 16% or 26,551 visitors compared with previous year. Despite this, revenue was up from the following markets: Australia, France, Germany and North America, with the Australian market contributing the highest spend of $154,647. Country Spend $180,000 $160,000 $140,000 $120,000 $100,000 $80, / /2010 $60,000 $40,000 $20,000 $0 Domestic Australia UK France Germany Other Europe North America Asia Other During the summer months local businesses reported a 50% decrease in turnover from previous summers and considered the 2010/11 summer as being the quietest summer for many years. Winter is a challenge for the AVC and Akaroa in general as many businesses close down for some or all of this period. AVC reduced staff and opening hours to counter this. Despite the slow summer, trading over the early winter months proved much the same as other winters. Businesses of course were very disappointed to lose the Rugby World Cup from Christchurch but understanding of the reasons. Going forward, Akaroa is looking at a huge cruise season with the possibility of up to 75 cruise ships visiting during the summer of 2011/2012. The AVC intends to capitalise on this and will look at setting up a booking office at the main wharf of cruise ship arrival days. Focus will also be on increasing sales in general and out of town bookings in particular this is one area where gains can be made. We are looking forward to a great 2011/

37 Corporate Services Human Resources As with practically every part of our business the February earthquake has profoundly affected our staff. Very shortly after the earthquake it was clear that we would not be able to access our building for a considerable period of time and that the i-site would not be able to function as it had previously. Not only were nearly half of CCT s employees working in the i-site, the trading operation contributed significantly to the company s bottom line. This decrease in revenue combined with the post-earthquake decrease in visitor numbers resulted in the decision to significantly reduce staffing levels. This was an incredibly difficult process for all concerned and particularly so considering that we had a very positive and stable team. It is pleasing to note that almost all of the affected staff have now been able to find new employment. CCT is committed to: Attracting and retaining the best people for our organisation Maintaining a high level of transparent and effective communication with our stakeholders Assisting the wider community in areas that support sustainable development Our achievements: There has been a continued focus on the alignment of skills, responsibilities and up skilling in some key areas. The team are well prepared to face the challenges ahead. We received a lower response rate than in previous years of 63% (76% previous year) in the annual staff satisfaction survey. This may have been due to the disruption of the September earthquake. 67% of staff rated their overall satisfaction as excellent/very good up from 62% for 08/09. Human Resources Policy & Guidelines Manual is regularly updated and is readily accessible to all staff. The purpose of the manual is to clarify the responsibilities associated with the operating policies, to ensure that individual accountabilities are understood and to ensure that all legal obligations are met. We provide working relationships that foster communication, involvement and growth, and appropriate recognition strategies. There has been a slight increase in staff resignations (excluding redundancies) compared to the last financial year. The reasons for leaving were: o 2 staff leaving the region for work o 5 staff took up other work in the region Training is an investment in our employees. We encourage i-site staff in their professional development to undertake the nationally recognised VIN Inc. qualification (National Certificate in Tourism Level 4) in conjunction with the Aviation, Travel and Tourism Training Organisation (ATTTO). In addition to the nine employees currently holding the VIN qualification, another two employees are enrolled to complete this course. 34

38 Financial Resources CCT is committed to: Increasing stakeholder returns by increasing visitor numbers, their length of stay and spend, from markets that are sustainable and impact positively on the Canterbury region. Maintaining a balance between risk and return for the business that will reduce variability and uncertainty and enable sustainable growth of the business. Ensuring reliable and timely financial information, effective management information systems and an organisational structure that provides an appropriate division of responsibility and an efficient reporting framework. Our achievements: Financial health of the company is solid. Significant focus on the strategic direction of the company. Maintaining a focus on sustainability has contributed to the improvement in our financial bottom line through increased efficiencies and accountabilities. We continue to pay all suppliers/operators within agreed payment terms, thereby providing assurance of cash flow for suppliers/operators. Continued to further leverage funds through joint venture activity, which has greatly assisted in increasing awareness in offshore markets. Financial Results for the Year This year we recorded a net surplus of $332,684 compared to budget deficit of ($46,688). The main area of material variance occurred due to cessation of building rent as our premises have been damaged and inaccessible since the February earthquake. Revenue from core funding sources was in line with budget and marginally ahead of last year. The Company s Statement of Financial Position at year end is in line with expectations. Equity now stands at $472,958. Financial Results for the Year Ahead The board has approved an annual budget deficit of ($42,989) for the financial year ending 30 June Retained earnings as at 30 June 2012 will stand at $429,

39 Christchurch & Canterbury Marketing Financial Statements Year Ended 30 June

40 37