The campaign saw 14 state, national and international events hit Greater Shepparton from October to December, seeing countless contestants and visitors from all over Australia and overseas spending time and money in our region.
Greater Shepparton City Council Director Sustainable Development Johann Rajaratnam said “local businesses have provided extremely positive feedback about the campaign, reporting increases in trade and profit.”
“These events help position Greater Shepparton as a leading events destination in regional Australia and ensure we create more local jobs, keeping business busy and the local economy strong,” said Mr Rajaratnam.
Certain events in this year’s campaign achieved record numbers, including the Victorian Open Bowls which had 1,487 entries. The Australian Football Skools International Football Tournament and BMX State Championships also saw great results with a 10 per cent and 20 per cent increase respectively, while the Greater Shepparton Basketball Association annual junior tournament also grew by 10 per cent seeing over 4,000 visitors.
Gouge Linen and Garment Services Director Rob Priestly said “congratulations to Greater Shepparton City Council on the highly successful 51 major events campaign. The campaign resulted in significant economic activity for the region. In our case, at Gouge Linen, accommodation linen hire for Shepparton was up solidly compared to last year during the campaign period. This provided some excellent opportunities for extra hours for our staff,” he said.
Courtyard Motor Inn Owner Brendan Magee said “I think Shepparton is really enhancing its reputation with the events we have, especially with people from outside the region and we are really grateful for everything that the Council does to fill us up because we aren’t the only ones to benefit. All businesses right across different sectors get a spin off from the visitors in the town,” he said.
The 2017 calendar of events is set to be action packed and sure to have something just for you. Take a trip back in time to the 1950’s this February where the Shepparton Showgrounds will be transformed for the inaugural Shepparton Shake Out International Rockabilly and Lifestyle Festival.
Other new events already secured to the region include the Basketball Victoria Country under 16 and 18 Championships, Victorian Junior Fire Brigade Championships and the Nitro Circus Regional Rampage.
In March Shepparton will see its very own beach created with 32 countries competing in a World Series beach volleyball event, playing on a temporary purpose built beach volleyball stadium at the Victoria Park Lake.
