Neslihan Karabeyoglu, Mehmet Karabeyoglu, Turkey; Rene Chapman, Australia; Farouk Nefzi, Netherlands; Mayor Tom Tate; Miguel Chiu, China; Julie Anastasia, USA; Martin Redmayne, UK; Mark Anastiasia, USA; Ronald Japinga, USA
The Mayor of the Gold Coast, Mr. Tom Tate hosted an afternoon tea for the large number of international visitors brought into the Gold Coast during the Australian Marine Export and Superyacht Conference and Sanctuary Cove International boat show. These international visitors were brought in under a programme initiated by the Gold Coast City Council to showcase the capability of the Gold Coast marine sector. The international stakeholders were keen to understand what is happening in the marine sector in Australia, research the capabilities of the Australian marine export and superyacht industries, look at new innovations and to develop business relationships in the region. The countries represented are Netherlands, New Zealand, Taiwan, Turkey, UK, USA, Korea, China and UAE.
MaryAnne Edwards AIMEX CEO stated “the Mayor and the council should be congratulated for this now ongoing initiative and that a full report will be completed after the show detailing the sales and economic impact of this project. The international visitors were given a tour of the Gold Coast Marine Precinct and were highly impressed by what they saw, many commenting it is what they need to develop in their own regions”.
Previous years have shown this project has generated sales of over a million dollars to the GC region. Companies such as Riviera, a large employer on the Gold Coast have participated in this initiative and reaped the benefits by bringing in new international dealers resulting in export sales.
Edwards said “this type of support is the most practical support the Council can give to the Gold Coast marine sector. It truly showcases what the marine sector has to offer and especially allows local manufacturers who struggle to attend international exhibitions the opportunity to talk directly to these key global players. Bringing international stakeholders to Australia and the Gold Coast provides many of the smaller manufactures who cannot afford to have presence at international trade shows or even the time to leave their business an opportunity to network with and do business with these contacts in their own backyard.”
