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13 October 2003 Interview
Transcript Tourism in regional Victoria - is it really the great hope? Bedford: This is our regular segment that we've just started recently with Champions of the Bush, because we're all in favour of championing the bush. Today... or around this time, is the 10 year anniversary since the Victorian Government launched its tourism jigsaw promotion under the banner of 'you'll love every piece of Victoria'. I'm sure you've seen the ads but if you're not familiar with the jigsaw it's the way that Victoria has been split into regions like Lakes and Wilderness; Legends, Wines and High Country; the Great Ocean Road; and the Goldfields Region. The defined regions are intended to make it easier to market and promote the towns and attractions involved. In an era when every government seems to want to put it's own stamp on things, we get a lot of change when we change government - this jigsaw has survived. So first the Kennett Government and now the Bracks Government have stuck with basically the same concept in conjunction with Tourism Victoria. Interested to hear from you this morning - if you think it's worked; are we doing enough to promote regional tourism. Our talkback number whenever you want to call us is 1300 303 468. But let's welcome to the program now Darren Chester. Darren is the Executive Officer of Champions of the bush. Good morning Darren. Chester: Good morning. Bedford: Darren I believe that you think tourism could be done a lot better in regional Victoria. Chester: I should start by saying that some parts of regional Victoria are doing very nicely indeed out of tourism but there's other areas I think where we've still got a long way to go. I think the areas that have done well over the past decade like the Great Ocean Road have tended to be better organised. They've managed to get their towns and their individual operators to work together to promote the attractions. But on the flip-side I think some of the regions that have been less successful have not been able to join forces quite as well. That perhaps is not a criticism of the jigsaw promotion but more of it comes down to local leadership. Even though we're talking about holidays it's a very serious business and we need to actively promote the growth opportunities which exist. I think Local Government and the local traders have a crucial role to play in working together in tourism. Bedford: Do we need to see a little bit more support then perhaps from Government. Is it enough to leave it up to local communities to get themselves organised? Chester: One of the big issues for some of the less well-off regions has been the requirement that much of the funding for tourism tends to be on a dollar for dollar basis. I think everyone understands that principle of working in partnership with your government but some regional areas seem to struggle to provide the matching funds. We have to be prepared to sell the message to businesses that the way to get into these bigger marketing programs is to work together, to pool some of their funds for things like marketing. It's probably the only way that some of the smaller operators are ever going to be able to afford exposure in the metro markets where the advertising costs are quite high. But at the same time there needs to be realisation from government that not always will the dollar for dollar work in some of the smaller areas. Bedford: IÕm sure we've covered this before in other interviews - the importance of tourism to a region is it brings jobs and things - but is that all a con - does it really make a difference? Chester: The difficult thing about the figures we see on tourism - and keep in mind they are some pretty big figures. I saw some state-wide figures the other day of $8.5 billion turnover and 150,000 jobs. Even that probably doesn't reflect the whole picture. For example, your local plumber who fixes the motel if it breaks down or the electrical retailer who sells TVs to the motel when they're upgrading. They are probably in the tourism industry too - they just don't know it. There's some big flow-on benefits from tourism and the best thing about it is, it's very well suited to regional areas. People want to get out of the city when they have their holidays and experience the natural attractions of a region. Bedford: But are the regions really sharing in that or when we talk tourism growth is it all going to Melbourne? Chester: That's a difficult one and that's probably the weak point if you like that Tourism Victoria has been made aware of and is very concerned about. And they are taking steps. I think theyÕre trying to extend the marketing programs into the regional centres. We have a situation when we get a major even like the Commonwealth Games or the Rugby World Cup that we've got to be very proactive in the regions - getting into Melbourne and saying 'hey, while you're in town, make sure you come out and see as much as you can in regional Victoria because we've got a great deal of things to offer'. So we've got to come to the party too as regional business operators and get into the city and help sell the message as well. Bedford: I noticed today in the print media, they're talking about a promotion to better market the big Melbourne things like the aquatic centre and the museum and all of that. But we want people to focus on what we've got in regional Victoria don't we? Chester: I think there's a balance to be found there. I see some of those things about marketing the city attractions - and you have a bit of a laugh - because you think we could do a lot better by marketing what's out in the country areas. We've got some drawcards out here like the 12 Apostles or the Gippsland Lakes; the Phillip Island penguins; the Murray River; the high country and the wilderness areas - we've got some great attractions. It's probably difficult for people to see them all in one visit. It's up to us to sell that positive message to get out here and see what regional Victoria's got to offer - don't sit back in the city. Bedford: You sent me through some notes on today's interview and you talked about these timber industry workers who've lost their jobs. The claim was that they would take up jobs in the tourism industry - does that happen? Chester: That's a really interesting one - there's been a situation in East Gippsland where some of your Gippsland listeners may have heard the discussion thatÕs going on at the moment - that perhaps the State Government , rather than just talk about ecotourism may have to come to the party with some infrastructure funding for things like major walk developments or display centres or better accommodation facilities. I think one of the quotes from a timber mill owner in Cann River was that he couldn't see his boys serving up Devonshire Teas and I think there would be a fair bit of re-training required before they moved directly into the tourism industry. But having said that, there's a wide range of jobs associated with the tourism industry. It's not all front of house stuff - there's a lot of work that goes on to make a successful tourism business and I think there are a lot of opportunities out there. We are probably only at the tip of the ice-berg in regional Victoria. Bedford: Have we got enough of the things to make it happen. We've spoken in the past about getting bus services. There was a push to have a bus service to connect - if we get the train across to Ararat, which weÕre supposedly doing - but then you can't actually get a bus from there out to other parts of the state. Do we have issues there that we need to be looking at? Chester: We do have a lot of infrastructure issues across regional Victoria and the transport links - the roads - are a very important part of it. Once you get people to Melbourne, how do you move them cheaply and efficiently out to the country areas. That's something that we're working on at Champions of the Bush. We're constantly in contact with the State and Federal Government - promoting the need for investment in these basic infrastructure things to work with the business community. At the end of the day the businesses are going to make the difference if you like, in terms of employment, but governments have got to help with investment in the basic infrastructure. Bedford: So whatÕs holding us back now. It's always easy to say get more money into infrastructure but what other barriers are there to growing tourism in regional Victoria? Chester: There's probably a few - and the infrastructure one you've touched on - but also I think we're holding ourselves back a little bit with our attitudes. Perhaps we have been a little bit negative in the past and we should have more of a 'can do' attitude like 'yes, we can do that', we can provide these opportunities for visitors. We haven't always been very good at promoting the opportunities together. We haven't always worked well as individual towns. For example it's always great fun when you're playing the nearby town in football or netball to hate them as much as you can and try and beat them, but when it comes to promoting our region, we probably need to wind back that approach a little bit. Bedford: I think you're right - that's a very real thing. I've worked in Bendigo and I've worked in Ballarat and that competitiveness between two cities that probably should be actually combining in their whole marketing because they're very similar cities with a lot to offer. Chester: That's exactly right. I love it on the sporting field with the rivalries which build up between the local towns like your Sales and Maffras. Neighbouring towns are very good at taking each other on in the sporting field but when it comes to tourism, they've actually both got attractions that they should network with each other and the businesses work with one another. So then when you come to Sale you see four or five other things in the district and the local towns all work together. So the networks are very important and putting aside a little bit of our parochialism probably works very well for tourism. Bedford: Do you think there is a sense - especially if you look at cities like Bendigo and Ballarat - you probably get the same situation with cities down the Great Ocean Road - where they want to attract their own tourists, they don't want to lose them to a neighbouring town? Chester: In the broader scheme of things with tourism, the whole region will benefit. I know for example when my children grow up I wouldn't mind if they get a job 30 kilometres away, I can live with that, if it's a nearby town rather than 400-500 kilometres away. We have to look at the bigger picture some times. Bedford: It's changing the mind-set a bit really isn't it? Chester: Yes it is. It's growing our awareness to say 'hey the whole region will benefit if we can work together on this promotion and marketing'. And that's what Tourism Victoria is saying to the regions - chip in your dollars together and we will match it dollar for dollar. That sort of stuff does work - and the Great Ocean Road is great proof of it. They've been doing it for 10 or 15 years and they've probably left a few other regions in their wake, they've been so successful. Bedford: We've talking to Darren Chester who is the Executive Officer of Champions of the Bush. And your calls this morning if you think there are better ways that we could be promoting ourselves tourism wise. Talkback caller: Laurie from Burton's Lookout - importance of good, clear mapping for tourism Bedford: Very good point Laurie. Let's get Darren's view on that. Darren, that's probably something we could do a whole segment on. Chester: It's a great point. We often take it for granted when we live in a country town that everyone knows the back road from here leads to there. The tourism mapping is essential and you put some attractions on those maps - people know where they are going and how to get around and you make it very easy for them. The whole thing is to make it easy for the visitors so they enjoy the experience in your region. Bedford: Darren, you did mention that the Great Ocean Road, and as Laurie said, is one of the regions that has done very well marketing itself - what are some of the parts of the state that need a bit of a kick-start? Chester: I'm probably most familiar with the Gippsland region and we haven't always done as well as we could have done with tourism. We've probably got by on our natural attractions in Gippsland - great things like the Gippsland Lakes and The Prom and some of our wilderness areas. Bedford: Buchan Caves are down that way aren't they? Chester: That's right - there's some fantastic natural attractions down here. When the industry has become more competitive over the last few years we probably haven't sold our attractions as well as we could have. Some of the other more remote communities that have had cutbacks in the agricultural sector and that type of thing have got to start asking - 'what's the new industry going to be for us and how can we make the most of what attractions we do have. How can we work in with other regions and network our opportunities'. Bedford: Well let's look forward to that. I think it's good to talk about it because hopefully it can stir a few people on. Darren, thankyou very much for talking with us. Chester: Thankyou Bedford: Darren Chester, from Champions of the Bush. Media
information: For further comments contact Darren Chester on 0351 55
3719 or 0412 153 719.
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