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What is the Australia Festival?
The Australia Festival is the largest Australian promotional event in Latin America. It is an annual event organized by Austrade (Australian Trade Commission) with the objective of raising Australia’s profile and business activities in Latin America. It covers a range of targeted sectors: Education, Tourism, Culture, Business, Food and Beverage (with an emphasis on Wine) and Fashion. Austrade works closely with the Australian Embassies in Latin America, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Canberra and Australian Education International in developing the program. Information on the Festival? Information on the Festival is available via www.australiafestival.com.br. Links on the site covering updates on the organisation of the Festival will be e-mailed to interested parties. Reports on previous Festivals are also available. Why should you participate in the Festival? The Australia Festival exhibition and seminar series has become one of the best opportunities for Australian companies and education institutions to promote their products and services to prospective individuals and partners in Latin America. In 2004, the Australia Festivals throughout Latin America drew in excess of 14,000 participants and generated over A$1 million positive media mentions in the local press. The Australia Festival is a unique opportunity for exhibitors to showcase Australian products and services to a targeted public. The event is a retail and promotional event that also includes a dedicated presentation and business development program. Its multi sector focus promotes transfer of knowledge about Australia on a wide variety of fronts promoting a more mature understanding of what Australia has to offer. A major part of the implementation of the event is the promotion of the initiative and the benefits it offers to a targeted local audience, which typically, is defined as the high-end consumer group, which can readily take advantage of what is available from Australia. An important part of participating in the festival is that the economic and political conditions a have been improving steadily. Regional growth may well surpass 5% in 2004. Brazil this year will post a large rise in growth compared to recent year, 4.5%, and as the largest supplier of students and tourist this will influence peoples decisions positively about travel and study abroad. Argentina is making a strong recovery and Chile, Peru and Mexico all performing strongly. The Education Component at the Australia Festival 2005 The Australia Festival 2005 has at its core the promotion and identification of business opportunities for three key industry areas: - Education and Training - Tourism - Food and Beverage The education component is one of the priority areas of the Australia Festivals in each country and usually generates a large amount of interest. The reason other industry areas such as tourism and food and beverages are included is due to the complementary and cross-promotional opportunities that exist. This and the fact that for many Latino’s, studying in Australia can be (and often is) more than a simple education decision (it is also about lifestyle and the living experience) makes the inclusion of these complementary industries a great idea and one that assists in answering many of the questions that visitors (students, business people and tourists) need answered. Austrade’s in-market research shows that this type of event, which fuses these industry components and of course adds a business element, will often translate into a broader and higher quality local participation. With some 6,000+ students being sourced from Latin America annually (and rising), the Australia Festival 2005 series of business seminars and exhibitions will be the largest Australia-specific events in-country and offer Australian education providers one of the best opportunities to increase awareness of their institution and conduct partnership and recruiting activities in-market. Austrade is working with key partners, including AEI to maximise the impact and outcomes of the Australia Festival 2005. In addition, local institutions, Education Ministries, agents, alumni and business chambers, are all expected to be active partners of the 2005 Australia Festival. In some countries a complementary Education Symposium will take place (where AEI has a presence), whilst in others, dedicated Education seminars and Sessions will ensure that education industry participants get maximum exposure to the local industry and network. This will be on offer exclusively to Australian education institutions that participate in the event. In support of the exhibition, the primary promotional vehicle, Austrade also organises education seminars on specific topics. These will again be offered in each market. In addition, with the assistance of AEI, both in Chile and Mexico, we are planning on organising a supporting Education Symposium involving local institutions; government (Ministry of Education); agents; and associations (such as the local equivalent of the AVCC). In all other markets, education seminars and sessions will take place, ensuring that education participants get maximum exposure at an institutional, government and student level. Target Audience The target audience of the festival is students, travellers, wine lovers, businessmen and the general public with an interest in Australia with a high level of purchasing power. Australia Festival 2004 Results Spanish Latin America (April 2004) and Sao Paulo, Brazil (August 2004) - 14,000 visitors - 181 exhibitors (local and Australian) - Over AUD 1,000,000 in media coverage equivalent and positive mentions of Australia and Australian companies/groups Australia Festival 2005 – Latin America
Venue Venues are to be finalised by the end of February 2005. Advice on this, accommodation options and updates on Festival marketing and organisation will be available on the Festival website and sent to companies that register for the event. |
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