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2 June 2025

Business Events Australia Industry Update

Welcome to the latest edition of the Business Events Australia Industry newsletter where we provide an update on Tourism Australia’s marketing and distribution activities to drive demand and support for Australia’s business events industry.

In May, our team were busy highlighting why there’s nothing like Australia for business events in the UK and Europe. The team held a lunch with senior agents and media in London before heading to IMEX Frankfurt with Australian industry to represent Team Australia.

Our team in Asia continued to deliver Business Events Australia Seminars in Greater China, enhancing agents’ knowledge on Australia’s business events offering. In exciting news, Tourism Australia entered a MOU with Amway, in hope of attracting more Amway events to Australia in the future.

And we also launched our Advance Program, a great opportunity for Australian Industry to leverage our expertise to deliver projects to increase consideration for Australia or delegate attendance to events.

As always, we’re keen to hear what’s happening across Australia – this information helps inform the work we do so please continue to share your news and updates and contact us with any questions.

Latest News

REGISTRATION OPEN FOR AUSTRALIA NEXT 2025

Registration is now open for Australian industry sellers to participate in Australia Next 2025, Tourism Australia's signature incentive showcase. Australia Next will be held in Melbourne / Narrm from 1 to 3 December 2025. The event provides the Australian business events industry the opportunity to connect with qualified incentive buyers from around the world, while showcasing Australia’s best incentive experiences and products. View the results of Australia Next 2024 here.

IMEX FRANKFURT

Twenty Australian industry organisations representing destinations, venues, accommodation, and destination management companies joined Tourism Australia’s specialist business unit, Business Events Australia, on the Australia stand at IMEX Frankfurt. During the event, Business Events Australia delivered 13 stand presentations to educate more than 135 international buyers on the latest news on Australia’s business events product and delivered 75 pre-scheduled one on one buyer and media appointments. Sentiment for Australia is positive across both incentive and association buyers, with a number of business leads generated on the stand. This year the team also hosted an Australia press conference on the stand with the theme: Innovating Sustainability Down Under: How Australia is driving positive change for business events. The press conference provided an opportunity for media to hear about Australia’s sustainability initiatives in business events directly from the Business Events Australia team and destination partners.

ADVANCE PROGRAM 2025/26

Applications are open for Tourism Australia’s international business events partnership program, the Advance Program for 2025/26. The program provides the opportunity for Australian industry to access financial support and leverage Tourism Australia’s expertise to deliver industry-led projects which increase consideration for Australia for new international business events; or increase international delegate attendance at events already secured for Australia. For more information, including eligibility criteria, what kind of projects the Advance Program supports and how to apply online, visit here. Applications close 5pm AEST on Monday 30 June 2025.

IMEX AMERICA

Registration is open to join the Australia stand at IMEX America from 6 to 9 October 2025 in Las Vegas. IMEX America is the USA’s largest trade show for the global meetings, events, incentive and travel industry, attracting thousands of professionals from around the world. For more information on the program and to register, please visit here.

WESTERN MARKET ACTIVITY HIGHLIGHTS

In May, Business Events Australia hosted five incentive agents from North America on a familiarisation program to Sydney and The Whitsundays in partnership with IHG Hotels & Resorts. During their stay in Sydney, the planners received a Welcome to Country by Aunty Margret, got to meet Australian wildlife at Taronga Zoo, took a private behind the scenes tour of the iconic Sydney Opera House, dined on oysters straight from the ocean, climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge and stayed at the InterContinental Sydney. The program concluded at the InterContinental Hayman Great Barrier Reef, where highlights included a scenic helicopter ride over Heart Reef and Whitehaven Beach, a guided Jet Ski tour around the waters of Hayman Island, wine tasting with the on-site sommelier and dinner under the rainforest canopy. The program has already generated two business leads for Australia with 100 per cent of agents indicating in their post familiarisation survey they are likely to consider Australia for their groups.

In the lead up to IMEX Frankfurt, Business Events Australia hosted a lunch at Spring Restaurant in London, to highlight why there’s nothing like Australia for business events. Tourism Australia’s Regional General Manager UK/Northern Europe, Andrew Boxall, welcomed guests before Tourism Australia’s General Manager Business Events, Commercial and Industry, Kelly Maynard provided an update on Australia’s business events product offering to 20 senior incentive agents and media from the UK, and airline partner Singapore Airlines. During lunch, guests dined on a menu produced by Australian chef Skye Gyngell and sampled Australian wine. Insights from lunch include Australia is considered a desirable destination by clients for incentives and corporate meetings (with global delegates) and sentiment is positive on the value for money proposition from the UK.

ASIA MARKET ACTIVITY HIGHLIGHTS

Tourism Australia and Amway have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to help Australia attract more Amway events in the future. Amway has hosted groups to Australia since 1985 and in April, Melbourne / Narrm hosted 16,000 Amway China incentive delegates for its 30th Anniversary Leadership Seminar – the largest corporate incentive group on record to Australia. Amway’s Chief Operation Officer, Asha Gupta, and Tourism Australia’s Executive General Manager Global Markets & Business Events Australia, Robin Mack, signed the Memorandum of Understanding in the Amway office in Singapore on Thursday 29 May.

In May, the team in Greater China delivered two Business Events Australia Seminars, one in Qingdao and Beijing. Both Seminars were attended by more than 80 business events agents each, with Australian convention bureaux and Singapore Airlines in attendance. Australian industry provided an update on their destinations and latest business events offerings for the agents to enhance their product knowledge of Australia. Insights from agents suggests sentiment for Australia is positive and there is business potential for small to medium size groups. In total 17 business leads were generated for Australia, with group sizes ranging from 50 to 1,000 pax.

Business Events Australia also attended the Procurement China Summit, which attracted more than 300 corporate procurement professionals from industries such as pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and automotive. Business Events Australia hosted an Australia-themed lunch for 40 key corporates from insurance and IT industries which are strong in the China market. The event has already generated six potential business leads for Australia.