Tourism firms fear drop-off in domestic trade

Mayor Stuart Crosby

Some Bay tourism operators and businesses fear the domestic visitor market which pumped $636 million into the economy in the past year could stagnate if key organisations don't work together to retain the momentum.

The concerns come hard on the heels of the resignation of Tourism Bay of Plenty chief executive Rhys Arrowsmith.

The domestic visitor market accounted for 82 per cent of tourism spend for Tauranga and the coastal Bay of Plenty to March 2015 according to figures from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment while international visitors spent $137 million.

Tauranga City Council Mayor Stuart Crosby said Tourism Bay of Plenty, a joint council-controlled organisation, was fundamentally charged with getting people into the area then "it is up to the operators to service those businesses as best they can".

The balance between investing domestically or internationally had been an issue for a longtime, he said, however council needed to listen to operators.

The council was also set to invest significantly in events during autumn and winter, he said.

Tourism Bay of Plenty head of marketing Kristin Dunne said the domestic visitor market was "our focus".

That had been evident over the last three years with a print and advertising campaign that cost $500,000 and 80 per cent of the marketing budget dedicated to it, she said.

"It is very important we maintain our domestic strength as that is more of a year-round proposition and helps sustain local businesses through-out the year, whereas international is a huge growth opportunity for us to bring in more high value free independent travellers."

Tauranga Chamber of Commerce chief executive Stan Gregec said the chamber and Tourism Bay of Plenty were "aligned in contributing services and support to businesses across our respective sectors".

However, many local businesses, especially in the Mount, depend considerably on the tourist dollar so "it makes sense to try and find ways to keep this income coming in all year round rather than just the traditional summer time influx".

Mount Mainstreet manager Peter Melgren said it operated on a budget of $143,000 that included overheads and it had started to run events during winter to attract visitors.

He was an advocate for the collective approach and said, "we seem to be sitting on our hands with a fair bit of comfort and complacency".

Colonial Court Motor Inn owner Kris Stamatakos, of the Motel Association also supported working together to attract more visitors.