The Meetings and Events industry awards for 2012 were presented at the gala dinner to finish off the 2013 MEA conference e in Darwin – and the winners are Individual Awards Operations Person of the Year Business Development Person of the Year Event Manager of the Year Meetings Manager of the Year Y MEA Future Leader MEA [...]

The Canberra Convention Bureau’s annual famil is known as Top Secret To find out why it is Top Secret and what the delegates enjoyed this year ASE spoke to CCB CEO Robyn Hendry.  

The redevelopment of the wharves around the MCEC has presented a unique opportunity for conference organisers to hold functions right next to the Convention Centre at South Wharf Promenade and the first to do so was AIME 2013. More than 2000 guests attended Welcome Reception hosted by the Melbourne Convention Bureau to kick off AIME [...]

Martin Smith investigates an underground event – photos by Jen Dainer I like whisky, though normally just neat.  Which is no ice, no water and certainly no coke.  So it was kind of strange to have an old jam jar with the Monkey Shoulder logo on it thrust into my hand upon entering.  Just go [...]

White Night, which is the anglicisation of Nuit Blanche, was originally conceived in Paris, France in 2002, in an attempt to make art and culture accessible to large audiences, within public spaces. Trevor Connell reports  300,000 people turned up for Melbourne’s inaugural White Night experience, far more than anyone expected. Except for Andrew Walsh, the artistic [...]

The Association of Australian Convention Bureaux (AACB) Inc released its strategic plan at AIME 2013. Following the release ASE spoke to AACB Executive Director Andrew Hiebl – see below this media release. Andrew Hiebl, Executive Director AACB said “the strategic planning process has added much needed focus to the organisation, as any like process does, and [...]

  by Trevor Connell Without a doubt the inaugural White Night Melbourne was a great success.  Estimates of 300,000 people streamed into the CBD to enjoy the streetscapes, the music, the exhibitions, the spectacle and the quirky. I spent the night roaming the streets and venues to experience as much as I could – and I still [...]

It was big! In fact it was the biggest non sporting corporate event ever held at the MCG. 4000 guests from Amway India were incredibly excited to be at the MCG for their farewell dinner to wrap up their incentive trip to Melbourne. ASE went along to the event as an observer and then the [...]

Last week 4,000 delegates to the Amway India Leadership Conference descended on the MCG for a concert and dinner.  This was the largest ever corporate event at the MCG and the first time that number of people had dined at the venue outside a match day. Two years ago the MCVB pitched for the Amway [...]

Summernats 2013 was launched in front of Parliament House yesterday and ASE took the opportunity to chat to Andy Lopez about the annual carfest and other events that are produced by Out There Productions, including Australia Day and the NSW Schools Spectacular. Apologies for the sound getting blown away – it was very windy. Summernats [...]

“Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who’s the safest of them all?” We all love a good fairy story, the fantastical propositions, the subtle disassociation from reality and the warm secure feeling that no matter what happens that it is all make believe and no one really is going to get hurt. The above values apply [...]

Client companies are demanding experiences that translate to their bottom line ISES Sydney explored coming trends at their October networking function at Li’l Darlin Report and photos by Nate Cochran The middle is being hollowed out of events budgets, with clients demanding big ticket experiences they can reuse or cheap and cheerful options, a panel [...]

Dear Australia, Let us be the first to congratulate you on the birth of your bouncing infant Workplace Health and Safety Act & Legislation. Like any new parent you are probably experiencing that time-honoured mixture of anticipation for the future mingled with abject confusion about what to do with them in the meantime? As an [...]

Canberra’s annual Floriade is very popular with locals and tourists alike and to enhance the experience the organisers decided a few years ago to add night time activities. Mandylights have the contract to light the park and ASE spoke to lighting designer Richard Neville about how they do it and what is involved.

On offer was the opportunity for an event manager or student (under 30 years old) to spend a week with each of three of the top event producers in the world. David Grant (Sydney), David Jamilly (London) and David Merrell (Los Angeles) were on hand to judge the entries from the young event managers who [...]

We seem to be a nation divided By Bespoke Safety* Call it Catch 22 or a double-edged sword but currently in the Australian events industry “it is the best of times; it is the worst of times.” In the turbulent wake of national WHS Harmonisation, the Australian events industry is in somewhat of a dilemma. [...]

Lena Malouf reflects on what has changed in events over the past few years. Being in business at any time is anything but straight forward and regardless of the reason you need. #Management know-how #Reasonable cash flow #Enjoy providing on going service to clients The principle change over the past few years is simply this; we [...]

Trevor Connell reports an spending a night in the cold Networking events are a wonderful thing. At a Canberra Convention Bureau networking function a few months ago I got chatting to Barbara Knackstedt  from St Vincent de Paul Society.  ”Would I help out with photography at the CEO Sleepout” she asked.  I agreed to meet [...]

report by Trevor Connell ASE exhibited at Sydney’s Event Showcase (nee RSVP) again this year and we were generally pleased with the results. SES2012 gave us the opportunity to promote this website and to network with visitors and exhibitors. Some thumbs up and some thumbs down and a big suggestion. The first bouquet goes to [...]

The Melbourne chapter of ISES certainly know how to celebrate in style.  To mark the 25th anniversary of the founding of the international association the local chapter held a dinner in the glorious Melbourne Town Hall on 6th July. Guests enjoyed pre-dinner canapés and drinks in the intimate foyer before moving into the main hall [...]

LOUD events recently opened the redevelopment of the Wintergarden Brisbane After a $100 million over haul by ISPT the centre has ensured a number of international brands make their first stamp on the Brisbane retail market. The theme “Come Play In The Garden” lent itself to a stunning series of live floral centrepieces, hanging gardens, [...]

report by Trevor Connell Last week the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre produced a Signature Event to showcase the centre’s ballroom along with their catering and technical services.  Guests included Club Melbourne Ambassadors, members of the MCEC Trust, the MCVB, and representatives from government, Melbourne iconic venues and hotels and the media (trade and mainstream). [...]

Last night at the launch of the Australian Event Awards, Sydney 2000 Olympic Chief, Sandy Hollway called on Government and Industry to instigate a deliberate, strategic expansion of the Australian events industry. Hollway, who is also Co-chair of the Event Awards Judging Panel, called the events industry a National Asset, saying: “Australians feel the ground [...]

The Proposal That one of Australia’s capital cities should stage an Indigenous Arts Festival of world standing every two or four years, to honor and celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, and indigenous cultures from around the world, as a major new visitor attraction. Rationale In a country in which indigenous culture has such [...]

(Address by Sandy Hollway to launch the 2012 Australian Event Awards and the 2012 Australian Event Symposium, 15 May 2012) I would like to thank you all for being with us this evening for the joint-launch of two of the most important fixtures on the calendar of the Australian events industry — the 2012 Australian [...]

by Trevor Connell By all accounts this year’s MEA conference was a great success.  The speakers ranged from good to great, the social events were a great hit and the venue staff went all out to impress. This is not intended to be a definitive appraisal of the conference but rather a collection of observations [...]

Sydney-based boutique events company Funktionality Events and Experiences formally launched their new warehouse and showroom recently- with somewhat of a bang! Report by Siobhan O’Hamlon, photos by Oneil Photographics Now situated in Marrickville, Funktionality are very excited to finally have their offices and all their stock located within the one building, just a stone’s throw [...]

ASE editor, Trevor Connell interviewed Brenda Bailey, sales and marketing manager of the Big Group, at AIME. ASE started by asking Brenda about the MCVB welcome function at the Myer Mural Hall on the Sunday night preceding AIME. BB:         Oh yes, true; that was a gorgeous night.  Sunday night was actually hosted by Melbourne Convention [...]

The AIME Welcome Reception, hosted by the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau (MCVB) and supported by Reed Travel Exhibitions, was held at the opulent Melbourne Pavilion – one of Melbourne’s newest business events venues, located in the inner city suburb of Flemington (also home of the Melbourne Cup). One of the city’s best kept secrets, the [...]

ASE have been contacted by Mary-Anne Kyriakou and Davina Jackson regarding the article I wrote about Vivid Sydney in June 2011 Mary-Anne and Davina have submitted some corrections and updated information to that story. In particular they question the statement in the following extract in the original article… “There he met Australian artist Mary-Anne Kyriakou and they [...]

Oriental silk lanterns, deep coral peonies and 1930s Shanghai inspired details create an elegant backdrop for over 500 guests at this year’s YWCA Mother Of All Balls. Workshop Events supported the YWCA NSW once again this year in providing complimentary event expertise to design, create and produce the Shanghai Chic-themed fundraising party, held in the [...]

It was more like dining in a fine restaurant than in a convention centre. The Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre hosted 80 guests for their second Unconventional dinner on Tuesday night. (See the media release from SCEC for their details). Pre-dinner drinks were held in front of Tim Storrier’s Point to Point, the huge painting [...]

report and photos by Trevor Connell Take the advice of someone who states “My dad does pretty good parties.” That was the recommendation from Peter Jones’ daughter as seen in one of the video tributes to the man who was celebrating 20 years in the business as The Ringmaster of Razzle Dazzle (as he was [...]

An invitation to an awards dinner at Allphones Arena (nee Acer, nee Sydney Superdome) conjures up images of the venue’s subterranean ballroom.  But it was not to be, in true out of the box thinking, this event was held in the vast foyer of the building. The biggest challenges with a cavernous venue like this [...]

On Wednesday 31st August, Sydney’s Sun Studio’s became the Land of the Stupid, Home of the Brave as DIESEL Ambassador , Alexandra Richards (daughter of Rolling Stone Keith Richards) , hosted a ‘provocative party’  for over 250 guests including Vogue editor Kirstie Clements, GQ Editor Nick Smith, top models Charlotte Boss, Spencer Petterson, Kate Peck, [...]

Workshop Events created an extended “reveal” for the Australasian relaunch of the Holiday Inn brand at the Holiday Inn Old Sydney in The Rocks last night. On arrival guests saw a large green wall from which sections were slowly peeled to reveal text and posters. Following drinks and canapés and a welcome from Bruce McKenzie, [...]

DAE Delivers Largest Video-Mapping Ever Attempted for Moscow City Day Australian company David Atkins Enterprises (DAE) delivered the largest 3D video-mapping show ever attempted in celebration of Alfa Bank’s 20th anniversary and Moscow’s 864th birthday. Setting a Guinness World Record, the show integrated unique 4D elements such as live performance, scenic and special effects into [...]

Trevor Connell reports on SES and ABEE Some exhibitors I spoke to at SES/ABEE thought it time for the two shows to merge – I disagree. Although the delineation between the halls has all but disappeared there was a considerable difference in the feel between each hall. The Australian Business Events Expo (ABEE) is retaining [...]

Winner of the Event of the Year at the Australian Event Awards in 2010 – Trevor Connell reports on Bluesfest 2011 It is one of the largest festivals in Australia and it has been going for 23 years on various sites around Byron Bay.  The event is known for a great line-up of musical acts…  [...]

The MEA conference welcome reception was held at the Adelaide Town Hall and featured performances by Opera singers Antonio Villano and Kate Lara followed by the Town Hall’s resident organist – all quite fitting in this venue. South Australian food and wine was enjoyed by the guests courtesy of Epicure Catering. The welcome address to [...]

Workshop Events embraced oriental inspiration to produce three social events for a Singapore based conference attended by over 500 guests from Australia in April 2011. Workshop Events was commissioned to produce the Welcome Reception, Family Evening and Gala Dinner for a financial conference held in Singapore in April.  Over 300 delegates travelled from Australia with [...]

Following a successful event in Sydney last year JTB Australia again staged a dinner event featuring the talents of two of the most successful chefs from the Japanese TV show. Over 500 guests attended this year’s Iron Chef dinners over two nights at Melbourne’s RACV City Club. Hiroyuki Sakai (Iron Chef French) and Kenichi Chen [...]

After four years at the MCEC, RSVP Melbourne has rebranded as Melbourne’s Event Showcase and moved to the Royal Exhibition Building. Trevor Connell reports While the Sydney RSVP event (now rebranded as Sydney’s Event Showcase) has maintained its strength (particularly by co-locating with ABEE) the Melbourne version appears to be struggling. The move to the [...]

Review by Trevor Connell* This year’s Royal Easter Show main arena feature entertainment program reunited the team that produced The Man from Snowy River spectacular for the RES in 2000 and 2001 Hamish Turner and Andrew Cooper were working for the RAS NSW back then while Terry Goodear headed the now disbanded Carlton Draught Clydesdale [...]

Industry comment by Darren irvine “TOD fees” or “Contractor Supervisor Charges” were a subject brought up in the “AV Unravelled” session at the MEA National Conference, held in Brisbane. What are TOD fees? Are they necessary? Can you avoid them? Many hotels now charge a fee when a conference organiser brings in an Audio Visual [...]

MEA NSW recently hosted an information session on Sydney’s Vivid festival that provided insights into the production of Sydney’s latest festival – now in its third year. story and photos by Trevor Connell The speakers were Brenton Kewley (Events NSW) with Anthony Bastic, Laura Roberts and Peter Loxton (AGB Events) Introduction by Brenton Kewley on [...]

A Carnival themed event to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Vie Media and the launch of Vie Magazine. The goal is for the guests to have a living experience of the magazine for an unforgettable night filled with fun and excitement; and at the same time promote the magazines further to the public. The acquisition [...]

The event:       Amway China incentive dinners Client:       Amway Greater China Venue:       The Dome, Sydney Showground Pax:       9000+ Dates:       16, 20, 24 & 28 January 2011 Event produced by:       Triumph Leisure Solutions The creative The theme for this event was inspired by Australia’s connection to the oceans and our beach culture. Our journey encompassed a [...]

By Jaid Hulsbosch, Director, Hulsbosch Communication By Design. Think of place you’d like to visit for business or a holiday. Chances are it is already a well recognised brand destination. The brand of a town or country is important whether you are a struggling regional city or a developed and advanced community. Prosperous and successful [...]

The AIME Welcome Reception was hosted by the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau and supported by Reed Travel Exhibitions. The evening was orchestrated by the MCVB, with decor and themeing produced by Solution Red and catering delivered by The Atlantic Group. More than two-thousand guests gathered at the St Kilda Sea Baths to enjoy some [...]