Debate
Building New Zealand ' s business events future
WE PRESENT A BRIEF FLAVOUR OF A TOP-LEVEL PANEL DEBATE AT THE NEWLY OPENED NZICC IN FEBRUARY. SEE ONLINE AT WWW. C-MW. NET FOR FULL VERSION
W hen Te Panapana became
the first official business event at Auckland’ s New Zealand International Convention Centre, it marked more than just a ribbon-cutting moment. The February gathering brought together three of the business events industry ' s most experienced leaders to discuss how this new facility can establish itself on the international stage – and what pitfalls to avoid along the way.
The panel featured Sven Bossu, CEO of the International Association of Convention Centres( AIPC); Peter King, CEO of the Australian Business Events Association( ABEA), and Lisa Hopkins, CEO of the Business Events Industry Aotearoa( BEIA). Their collective message was clear: world-class infrastructure is just the beginning. The real work starts now.
Beyond bricks and mortar King was emphatic about the need for sustained investment beyond the physical venue. Auckland cannot afford to view the NZICC as a finished product, but rather as the cornerstone of something much larger.
“ Don ' t just stop at this investment here with this piece of infrastructure,” King urged.“ You ' ve got to keep investing in event attraction and the skills in the industry to build a genuine ecosystem around business events and events more broadly, and that will build an enormous reputation for Auckland and for New Zealand.”
Bossu highlighted cities like Singapore and Toronto as exemplars of how to activate convention infrastructure beyond simply hosting events.
Recounting his experience running Sibos, a major financial services conference bringing together 10,000 banking professionals, he described how Toronto immediately connected organisers with local universities, arranged high-level speakers, and showcased 10 FinTech startups in the venue itself, entirely financed by local government. The result? Five of those startups had signed contracts with major international banks by the end of the four-day event.
“ It doesn ' t happen by magic,” Bossu cautioned.“ It ' s a lot of hard work. Cities like Singapore, like Toronto, they ' re extremely good at that.”
The Australia-New Zealand dynamic One of the most intriguing discussions centred on the relationship between Australia and New Zealand in the business events sector. According to King, they ' re both competitors and collaborators- and that ' s precisely what makes the industry work.
Below: Opening debate in the NZICC, with panelists Sven Bossu( second left), Peter King( second right) and Lisa Hopkins
“ We are very competitive, but we are so collaborative,” he said.
The numbers tell a compelling story. Australians represent approximately 40 % of all international delegates attending conferences in New Zealand, making them by far the largest source market. Currently, around 23 % of all conference delegates in New Zealand are international visitors, with 55 % being domestic travellers from outside the host city.
But here ' s where things get interesting for Auckland. King revealed that Australia ' s major venues are running out of capacity. Despite facilities in Sydney and Melbourne, and new developments in Geelong with plans for Canberra and Perth, Australia faces a space crunch over the next decade.
“ The big events can ' t grow,” King noted.“ So we need more infrastructure. It ' s an easy jump over the ditch to get here.”
Hopkins sees this capacity constraint as a significant opportunity. Many Australian conferences already operate on a state-by-state rotation, and increasingly, New Zealand is being considered as part of that circuit. With world-class convention centres now available across the country, New Zealand can offer event organisers the newest facilities- and as Hopkins quipped,“ every kid wants the shiniest, newest toy”. n
46 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / ISSUE 141