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WANTED: An inbound tour operator with a major game changing idea to test the new international growth fund process!
New criteria for export marketing grants from NZTE on the face of it, are encouraging for inbound tour operators who meet the requirements. However, Chief Executive Lesley Immink met with NZ Trade & Enterprise recently and unofficially were told that they were unlikely to qualify. The new F0CUS 500 criteria includes international assistance for the top 500 export companies (they currently fund 380) with a minimum turnover of $3 million, at least 20% of your business must be export and approx 15 FTE’s employed. The new fund is called “International Growth Fund” or the IGF, and while several of our major inbound operators meet the criteria, it is Tourism New Zealand who is charged with marketing New Zealand to the world says Nick Metson of NZTE. It is for this reason that additional government or MED funds would not be allocated to support separate export marketing grants for inbound operators. The other difference to the criteria is that the ‘idea must be a game changer’ and extension on ‘business as usual’ is not enough to be approved. They must also be able to demonstrate for the past three years, significant growth.
When challenged about inbound operators going into new markets to lead the way for Tourism New Zealand and the return on investment could be significant re development in new markets eg. Russia, Brazil, the old ‘tourism is not a very productive sector compared to other export industries’ was bought up. It is for this reason that the new name change for ITOC to the Tourism Export Council of New Zealand cannot come quick enough. (01 March 2012) We need our key agencies to acknowledge the contribution that tourism has in our economy for GDP, Forex, GST and employment opportunities. Their support to the inbound sector re their request for export marketing grant assistance could make a difference in attracting the high yield visitor that we seek, sooner rather than later . Aus Trade in Australia fully support their inbound industry with export marketing grants even though it is their sixth rated industry. They are investing huge amounts into Eastern Europe, the Middle East and South America over the next few years and if we aren’t careful, will be the poor cousins and second choice.
It is obvious that small nimble private sector companies can move quicker and determine financial viability of an export product or service than a government agency. If an operator matches an export marketing grant dollar for dollar, they will not waste their time and money if the early investigations prove fruitless. How many IT companies has NZTE and the FORST fund invested in with no return? The tourism industry is not a risk industry, is surprisingly stable despite the economic crisis and acts of gods, and is the number one export earner for the country. So, the Tourism Export Council is seeking a ‘pipeline inbound tourism operator’ who meets the above criteria to test the process. Contact the Chief Executive on Lesley@itoc.org.nz for more information. Tourism Export Council (ITOC) Background:
The Tourism Export Council of NZ was founded in 1971 and celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2011. It represents 250 tour operators and suppliers (accommodation, attraction, activity and transportation) throughout the country who package, distribute and market New Zealand tourism products and services internationally.
ENDS
For more information, please contact:
Lesley Immink, Chief Executive Phone: 04 495 0810 Email: lesley@itoc.org.nz
OCTOBER – NOVEMBER 2011 EDITION TOURISM BUSINESS MAGAZINE
The tourism industry is made up of different sectors, like the chapters in a book. Each chapter by itself, can be read independently but when read in one sitting or strung together, contributes to the story as a whole. Some chapters are written fast, and some slow. Some are full of character and action and some support the detail needed to thread it all together to make the story full of substance. If we think of the tourism story, some chapters are written and favoured by inbound operators and some by product suppliers. Some chapters are written by technology savvy authors and some by agencies who benefit from working with different sectors in the industry. However, and whoever writes the chapters, the contents over-all should add up to a robust, productive best seller!
In the 90’s, the industry was ‘sold’ a national quality standard system that would give confidence to off-shore partners and customers, that we care enough about them to ‘rank’ ourselves and operators. The core of the industry despite initial reservations, bought into the system that would provide a marketing advantage or an annual business assessment of safety and standards. In theory, New Zealand was going to promote a world class story with world class experiences by acknowledging those operators accordingly – a great vision to work towards.
In reality, anyone can start a tourism business with no checks or quality standards to adhere to. After initiating the above quality standards system, our national tourism organisation and website allow ‘anyone’ to register and compete with the operators who have supported them from the beginning. It seems that we are no longer on the same page or in the same book. There is no ‘editor’ but a host of ghost authors and now the possibility of a third party booking engine selling it’s own storyline in direct competition with inbound wholesalers and many product suppliers.
There are too many operators participating in the New Zealand tourism industry that do not belong to our leading tourism organisations of ITOC, TIA, RTO’s or Qualmark. If a policeman or doctor from another country wants to work in New Zealand, they need to belong to the appropriate organisations and regulatory bodies before they are allowed to practise. We as an industry need to encourage those who want to work here, whether they be on-shore or off-shore, to have membership and participation with our key organisations. We have a responsibility to check we are delivering on our 100% promise to the world and to minimise any negative impacts when some operators bring us into disrepute.
To deliver a world class story we need all businesses and organisations in the industry to work together and encourage business excellence. We can’t afford to keep underselling our country through discounts and deals. We need to step up and work out how we want the New Zealand tourism story to end. A discounting trashy cheap novel that is read once and discarded, or a top quality high valued best seller that is revisited and recommended to others?
The Inbound Tour Operators Council of NZ was founded in 1971. It represents 250 tour operators and suppliers throughout the country who package, distribute and market New Zealand tourism products and services internationally.
Contact: Chief Executive, Lesley Immink ph: 04 495 0810 email: lesley@itoc.org.nz
AUCKLAND council’s proposal this week to almost immediately deny coaches access to the summit of Mount Eden is insulting, says ITOC president Martin Horgan.
“Why discriminate against coaches?” he asks. “(Are they) just easy targets? Coaches are an environmentally effi cient and responsible mode of transport for New Zealand visitors, driven by qualifi ed professionals who respect our roads, our attractions and conservancies.”
He tells IT:”The same can’t always be said for those travelling in rented vehicles. And what causes less congestion on the summit, 40 people in one coach vs. 20 rental cars?” Mount Eden is one of the most visited attractions in New Zealand with more than 1.1 million visitors a year.Key attraction “Such visits to the summit are promoted as a key attraction in most Auckland and New Zealand itineraries. To deny visitors this brochured and advertised attraction will expose ITOs and our wholesale partners to compensation claims in countries such as Japan and the UK where strict consumer laws apply. At the very least the industry needs a period of 18-24 months to live out our brochure obligations.”
If the council is prepared to compensate RWC fans for failed RWC transportation, and is it also prepared to do the same for coach passengers who were expecting to enjoy the vista from the summit of Mt Eden? Mr Horgan asks.Naivety “To suggest the coach tour passenger demographic could trek the last 200m to the summit shows real naivety.
If this is the council’s best suggestion for coach tour passengers then this Auckland highlight will be out of the reach of many of our highest-spend visitors.” If total protection of the site were the true motivation behind the move then all vehicle transport to the summit would have been stopped, not just coaches. “Do we want our own Uluru where any visitation is frowned upon?”
Mr Horgan suggests the council should allow 18-24 months before any closure so ITOs can live out their brochure obligations.
ITOC Background:
The Inbound Tour Operators Council of NZ was founded in 1971 and celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. It represents 250 tour operators and suppliers throughout the country who package, distribute and market New Zealand tourism products and services internationally.
ENDS
The next annual conference of the Inbound Tour Operators Council will be held on the West Coast in August 2012.
Lesley Immink, Chief Executive of ITOC says: “The decision was announced at the Gala Dinner on the final evening of the 2011 ITOC Conference held in Tauranga.”
“ITOC conferences traditionally alternate between the North and South Islands and we are delighted to be staging the 2012 conference on the West Coast. The 200 delegates at this year’s conference greeted the announcement with much enthusiasm so we know we’re going to get plenty of support.”
Tourism West Coast Chairman Phillip Barnett says he is delighted at the news.
“This is fantastic. It will bring the top NZ inbound holiday destination decision makers to the West Coast and give us and every tour operator on the Coast a real vehicle to promote the region,” he says. “When the West Coast last hosted this conference at Franz Josef in the early 1990s the region saw a big rise in awareness and visitor numbers surged.”
Mrs Immink says that getting tourism operators to different parts of the country is a key part in educating them on the attractions and activities on offer. “The West Coast has a fantastic reputation as a visitor destination and we know that West Coast Tourism will do a great job in ensuring that delegates from around New Zealand and overseas will see it at its very best.”
The dates for the August 2012 conference will be announced in the next few weeks.
ITOC Background:
The Inbound Tour Operators Council of NZ was founded in 1971 and celebrates its 40th Anniversary this year. It represents 250 tour operators and suppliers throughout the country who package, distribute and market New Zealand tourism products and services internationally.
ENDS
For more information, please contact:
Lesley Immink
Chief Executive – ITOC
TOURISM BUSINESS MAGAZINE – April/May Edition
“To be professional, act professional”
The new chief executive of ITOC is on a mission. She wants to raise the levels of professionalism in the tourism industry and have the industry valued by every New Zealander. For the past 30 years she has been involved in tourism and says the standard of professionalism has declined despite all the market intelligence, evolvement of technology and education and training that is available. Her comment is not a swipe at industry colleagues but highlights the changing attitudes of society, ourselves and prospective employees. The easy entry and transient nature of the tourism industry has been its own worst enemy and we have fallen into the trap of thinking tourism is not seen as a ‘profession’ or an active career path.
Lesley started in the tourism industry as an enthusiastic seventeen year old at THC Milford Sounds working as a housemaid. She fell in love with the ‘people industry’ and recognised tourism wasn’t about being a definition, but helping people enjoy spending their money and being the best employee you could be. This philosophy of being the best tourism ‘professional’ has led to a rewarding career of working at many of New Zealand’s top destinations, starting an inbound tour operation (NZ Educational Tours) and developing tourism education programmes. Lesley says we need to stop highlighting that because there doesn’t seem to be a clear career path in tourism, that it is a negative. Yes, to start in tourism and hospitality you don’t need to be qualified but you can teach anyone a skill – changing an attitude is a lot harder. Most employers across all industries will state that the number one requirement in a prospective employee is a good attitude. Working in tourism requires a professional attitude to be successful and it is commendable now that workplace training and the education sector is providing the pathway for qualifications to balance practical application.
Of her role working with the Inbound Tour Operators Council, Lesley’s main goal is to remind the industry that despite the advent of e-technology and booking direct with product suppliers, working with an inbound operator is the vital link in the distribution chain that provides ‘security’ in good times and in times of adversity. The recent Christchurch earthquake was a great example of the inbound operators network and tireless efforts they went to in locating their clients.
To paraphrase Dale Carnegie’s “to be enthusiastic, act enthusiastic”, if we want to be taken professionally, we need to treat ourselves as professionals – as people and as an industry. I look forward to meeting with all sectors of the industry during the year.
ITOC wants thoughts on Industry Training
New ITOC Chief Executive lesley Immink wants to hear from any operator or training provider who may have concerns or good news to report with the direction of tourism training in New Zealand.
Ms Immink sits on the Tourism Training Council and if representing operators needs feedback on how operators are faring with modern tourism apprenticeships, ATTTO workplace training and the Kia Ora Mai programme. “Tourism qualifications are currently under review so if operators have critique on the current programme, we need to know now before decisions get made on behalf of operators” she tells Inside Tourism
Forecast by Inbound Operators indicate further cancellations to come!
What do you do when your surgeon has a crisis of faith and can’t operate anymore and you are losing blood?
Do you:
a) Google an online doctor and hope you can follow their instructions?
b) Hope the intern who thinks they know what to do, because they’ve watched the surgeon do it, ‘can actually do it?’
c) Ask the psychologist to assess the situation and recommend someone else? OR
d) Reassure the surgeon that he is the best person for the job. Tell him you need and value him and ask, what you can do to help?
The tourism industry is haemorrhaging and it’s important the cause of the bleed does not over-ride other symptoms and lead to additional leakage that could impact on what we do with long-term recovery. In the above analogy, the surgeon is the inbound wholesaler, the internet is the online doctor, the psychologist is supportive national tourism bodies and the intern is other agencies who think they know what to do but are not in a position to do anything. Our industry is experiencing unprecedented loss and it is imperative the right messages and relevant assistance is implemented by talking with inbound wholesalers.
During the week after the Christchurch earthquake, full ITOC members were asked to estimate their cancellation of business loss. They estimated a loss of 12,000 bed nights. By 18 March there was a reported cancellation loss of 32,000 bed nights. This number is forecast to rise. Japan and Asia are the most affected markets but UK, USA and Europe are also currently uncertain.
The number of cancellations is difficult to gauge because the international safety message has been unclear to trade and agents. The uncertainty of available hotel accommodation now, and in future months, also concerns offshore wholesalers considering committing to New Zealand as a destination. Offshore wholesalers need to hear that “New Zealand is OPEN FOR BUSINESS!” Inbound wholesalers will be the first port of call in the distribution line that off-shore agents and wholesalers will come to. The online doctors and interns have their place in the supply chain, but nothing beats having a person who knows when you are coming, where you are going and your general wellbeing more than the inbound operator.
I’d like to share what it means to have a family member book their holiday with an ITOC inbound operator. One of our members had 1000 customers in Christchurch during the first few days of the earthquake. After a few days the member had to report to Red Cross that “51” were missing. Can you imagine the sinking feeling you would have as the owner or CEO of that company in reporting to Red Cross missing people and also having to communicate with overseas family members? The staff of that company worked tirelessly over the next few weeks with more than 1200 hours of overtime (700 unpaid) – searching high and low and after two weeks they were able to take everyone reported missing ‘off’ the Red Cross list. What a huge achievement and illustrates the enormous responsibility inbound operators have when people entrust their lives into our care. This is not an isolated or special case, it’s just what we do when we need to do it. Inbound wholesalers know what to do on the ground and that is one of the many benefits booking travel with a wholesaler provides. We are constantly faced with a crisis of some description – whether it be road closures, flooding, snow, clients unwell or urgently needing to get home, accidents and earthquakes.
Back to the surgeon and the bleeding. When things are dire everyone wants the surgeon to be confident and work his magic, with his team and other specialists doing all they can to help. He is after all, taking the biggest risk with each decision he makes. Our inbound tour operators take the largest personal financial risk in bringing visitors to our country. They get little recognition from the country, the government and some sectors of our industry which is ironic considering the tourism industry is the number one export industry for our country. Let’s give them the support and respect they deserve. Keep talking with them to check future health progress.
Full and allied members of ITOC thank you in advance and good health to you all!
Inbound tour operators appoint new CEO
The Inbound Tour Operators Council (ITOC) has appointed a new Chief Executive, it announced today. Lesley Immink will take up the position on 2 March 2011, ITOC President Brian Henderson said. She replaces previous Chief Executive Paul Yeo.
Mr Henderson said Mrs Immink brings a wealth of knowledge and experience of the tourism industry to the role. This includes establishing a successful inbound tour company, NZ Educational Tours (NZET) in the early 1990s, which she ran successfully for 14 years.
NZET was a double New Zealand Tourism Award winner. It won the ‘Best Small Operator’ in 2000 and the following year won the ‘Organised Group Tours and Touring’ and several national environmental and sustainable awards. In 2006 she sold NZET to take her family travelling around the world for 10 months. For the past three years Mrs Immink has been working for an American wholesaler travelling extensively throughout New Zealand working with product suppliers. She has also been teaching tourism, hospitality and restaurant services at secondary and tertiary levels.
“We look forward to working with Lesley to advance the interests of New Zealand tour operators and suppliers who handle a large share of New Zealand’s inbound tourism business,” Mr Henderson said.
With Mrs Immink’s appointment, ITOC now has a full-time Chief Executive able to focus on the members and the issues they face, Mr Henderson said. The role was previously shared with the Travel Agents Association of New Zealand (TAANZ).
For further information please contact:
Brian Henderson
President
Inbound Tour Operators Council (ITOC)
DDI: 09 359 8380 Mobile: 0275 525 877 www.itoc.org.nz