Tasting Australia - Evaluation of the Festival, Legal and Risk Management - Case Study Example

Last Name 1) (STUDENT NAME) (PROFESSOR …) (SUBJECT) 12 June 2009 An Analysis of ‘Tasting Australia’ Across the world, wine tourism is gaining immense popularity as it has the promise and potential to encourage regional development in terms of boosting both employment and the economy (Alonso, Northcote 2). As mentioned in ‘The World’s Wine Markets: Globalization at Work’, ‘.the pace of wine’s globalization shows no signs of abating’ (Anderson 7). Today most countries have clearly witnessed the link between wine and tourism, compared to earlier times when many believed that the wine industry could not be a part of tourism (Hall, Cambourne, Macionis & Johnson 5-31). It is thus imperative that wine producing nations market their core wine production potential to the maximum. In Australia, with more and more regions realizing the importance of wine tourism, food and wine festivals have become the order of the day. (Last Name 2) Kevin McLintock, Chairman, Directions Taskforce, Wine Australia, in his report, Wine Australia, Directions to 2025 (2007), states that in 1996, the Australian wine sector had set a target of achieving annual sales of of $4.5 billion by the year 2025. This figure was actually exceeded 20 years earlier and the sales target of $5 billion was set for 2007. INTRODUCTION Food and drink festivals have gained immense interest and recognition in Australia and ‘Tasting Australia’ is an extremely popular and well-attended event that draws together sommeliers, restaurateurs, chefs, media (travel, food and wine writers), beer producers, food lovers, the Australian public and tourists from across the world (Maum 1). ‘Tasting Australia’ is a biennial event held in Adelaide, South Australia and showcases the immense bounty of Southern Australia through gastronomic delights and culinary expertise. This food and wine festival is owned and managed by a division of the South Australian Tourism Commission, Events South Australia. Started 11 years ago, this festival has attained acclaim by effectively conducting 70 events, of which 65 are targeted at the general public. This includes the Michelin Australian Food and Wine Writers' Festival, the Jacob's Creek World Food (Last Name 3) Media Awards, the Hilton/Advertiser Food and Wine Sessions (featuring celebrity chefs from around the world, The LifeStyle Channel's Australian Regional Culinary Competition at the Regency Hotel School (with teams of Australian chefs and apprentices competing for gold, silver and bronze medals), Adelaide’s outstanding Central Market, The City of Adelaide's Feast for the Senses held at the scenic Botanic Park etc, amongst others. ‘Tasting Australia’ also hosts the extremely popular Le Cordon Bleu World Food Media Awards. The grand finale of ‘Tasting Australia’ is a black-tie event, the glitzy World Food Media Awards event celebrating the culinary world's finest in food and wine writing (books and columns), photography, TV, radio, CD-roms and Internet websites. In addition there are several conducted tours that enables visitors to tour the outlying areas from Kangaroo Island to the Limestone Coast (known as the South East) to the various wine regions that surround the Adelaide area. ‘Tasting Australia’ is held for a period of 8 days and attracts more than 50,000 people and is hailed as the ‘world’s biggest food festival’ (Herbst 1). The festival combines great food, world-class wines and the warm Australian hospitality impeccably. This paper will provide information on ‘Tasting (Last Name 4) Australia’, one of the most popular and well-accepted festivals held in Adelaide. CONTEXT Australia is considered wine country and Adelaide is at the centre of this booming industry. Wine tasting and winery tours form a part and parcel of the city’s tourism activities. The Adelaide Central Market has been trading since 1869 and is considered one of the best fresh produce markets across the nation. All these attractions, in addition to its picturesque beauty and pleasant climate make Adelaide a travellers’ paradise. It is the best place for a relaxed vacation with a relaxed and high quality food and wine culture and hence a popular tourist destination. Tourism forms the crux of the Australian economy generating employment, supporting small businesses and helping build regional communities and the Australian government has recognized its importance. According to the Market Profile of Tourism Victoria: Food and Wine Tourism, (2007), 4.6 million international food and wine tourists visited Australia in 2007, accounting for 141.7 million nights and 90% of all the visitors to Australia are food and tourism visitors. Wine, forms an integral part (Last Name 5) of Australian life being associated with both business and leisure. As stated in Small Winegrowers' Views on their Relationship with Local Communities (2008), ‘The development and strengthening of relationships between wineries and their community has very important implications, including supporting initiatives to nurture and maintain the community's fabric, encourage further development in local areas, or use wine tourism as a tool to tap into commercial opportunities’ (Alonso, Northcote 3). The festival, ‘Tasting Australia’ was started in the year 1997 by Ian Parmenter - a London-born Australian celebrity chef, winemaker & author and David Evans. They were awarded the Jaguar Award for Excellence in 2001 from the Gourmet Traveller. The increased competition in this sector, in recent times, has resulted in improved quality of service for competitive differentiation. Wineries and in turn wine and food festivals in Australia are focussed on catering to the customer/visitors point of view. ‘Tasting Australia’ is the perfect amalgamation of festival, food, arts, culture, shopping and sports. The Australian nation has a wide range of wines – from the sparkling, dessert and (Last Name 6) fortified wines to the full-bodied reds and deep, fruity whites. In 2005, Australia came in sixth in the list of world wine producers. Festivals such as ‘Tasting Australia’ are a major cultural feature in wine-producing regions of Australia and attract both local holidaymakers and international visitors year on year. It is interesting to trace the history of wines in Australia. As per the Australian Government, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (2008), it is believed that the first vines came to Australia as far back as 1788 with the first European settlers. The credit of establishing the first commercial vineyard goes to John Macarthur and by the 20th century, the nation was importing 4.5 million litres of fully bodied red wines to the UK. The real impetus to the wine industry came between 1996-2007, where there was a whopping rise in exports. In 2006–07, sales of Australian wine totaled approximately 1.23 billion litres: 449 million litres were sold domestically and 786 million litres were exported. (Last Name 7) Coupled with tourism, festivals such as ‘Tasting Australia’ allow a complete experience combining cuisine, wine, culture, heritage, festivity and celebration. It instills immense pride amongst the organizers and host city and gives local Australians a sense of belonging and pride in the community and nation. PLANNING The journal Critical Success Factors for Wine Tourism (1999) presents success factors of the wine and tourism industry and broadly these may be classified as ‘quality (of wine, service and experiences), wine country appeal, winery appeal and developmental and marketing factors’ (Getz, Dowling, Carlsen & Anderson 20-43). Adelaide can be termed as an epicurean’s paradise with cultural, artistic, gastronomic and intellectual events peppering its calendar throughout the year. The city serves as an excellent base for trips to the nearby wine regions. The climate of Adelaide is essentially Mediterranean and the Adelaide Hills is located east of the city providing an ideal base for a memorable South (Last Name 8) Australian holiday with picturesque views, quaint country settings, a breathtaking countryside and seemingly endless vineyards. According to Service Quality at the Cellar Door: Implications for Western Australia’s Developing Wine Tourism Industry (2000), the wine region of Adelaide Hills has 33 cellar doors (O’Neill , Charters 8 ) and given this setting, Adelaide is indeed the most suited location to conduct ‘Tasting Australia’. The Australian population is made up of 130 different nationalities and their food culture is a mix of Italian, Greek, Asian, French and Middle Eastern cuisine. South Australia has 275 wine producers and makes up almost half the nation’s wine produce. It is also home to innovative and inspirational chefs. The main mission of the festival is to promote the State’s best food and wine to the world. The vision of the organizers is to present the perfect kaleidoscope feast for the senses – bringing together gourmet cuisine, best-in-class wines and myriad events to help participants connect with South Australian culture and experience diversity. According to the South Australian Food & Wine (Last Name 9) Tourism Strategy 2009-2014 (2009), ‘By 2020 South Australia will be recognized as the world’s leading food and wine tourism destination’. The goal of ‘Tasting Australia’ is to ensure a spectacular platform to showcase food and wine to tourists, professionals and citizens and create a unique experience for all attendees. Food and wine festivals provide several economic benefits for the region boosting the hospitality industry (hotels and accommodation), tourism industry (if the festival is on an international or national scale), transportation sector and the restaurants and bars in the area, amongst others. The report ‘A history of the Australian wine show system’ states that the ‘show system has evolved from the British agricultural show tradition’ (Dunphy, Lockshin 3) As per the report, ‘The Rock, the Reef and the Grape: The Challenges of Developing Wine Tourism in regional Australia’, (2005), the wine industry in Australia has, thus far, ‘worked on a cottage industry mentality and there was a lack of cooperation between the wine and tourism industry’ (Beams 5). This has definitely improved in the recent past. (Last Name 10) In order to ensure record participation, it is essential that an event like ‘Tasting Australia’ gets top share of voice in the media through advertising, public relations, brochures, pamphlets and leaflets. In the past ‘Tasting Australia’ events have generated more than $ 100 million worth of editorial media coverage. It is absolutely necessary that the festival adheres to the highest standards of quality and that the right organizers are handpicked to ensure flawless execution of the gala event. ‘Tasting Australia’ is able to attract tourists and visitors through food, wine, festivity, cultural and natural resources. The team has been able to exhibit a great product mix with the country’s top chefs, world-renowned chefs, restaurateurs, media, sommeliers and the general public flocking together under the same roof. In fact plans for ‘Tasting Australia’ 2010 are already underway and the focus of the festivities will be on South-Australia’s local heros that include chefs, writers, food and drink producers etc. Besides being an exporter of food and wines, organizers of ‘Tasting Australia’ have decided to showcase South Australia’s proud professionals such as Maggie Beer, Cheong Liew, Christine Manfield and Simon Bryant. Tasting Australia is owned and managed by Events South Australia, a division of the South Australian Tourism Commission. (Last Name 11) HUMAN RESOURCES It is without doubt that one requires tremendous skill to organize an event of this scale successfully. Besides the actual conceptualizing of the event, there is also the need to implement and execute the plan of action with impeccable precision. Planning a public event in particular can be extremely challenging. This is because every single individual working on the site forms a part of the event workforce. This includes the event management team, paid staff, multiple contractors and volunteers and even the food vendors and cleaning teams that could cause the workforce to explode at the time of an event. Decision-making is done on the go and the event whizzes past at a fast pace, increasing stress levels and fatigue. The fact of the matter is that for an event of the magnitude of ‘Tasting Australia’, there is very little time to train the volunteers and the main driving force for personnel on the event-site to maintain standards of customer service is self-motivation, self- discipline and the innate urge to excel. It is important that steps are taken to retain the volunteer work force for the event ‘Tasting Australia’ so that they come back every year. If the efforts of a volunteer are recognized, they will feel encouraged to put in their best effort and this will automatically result in a (Last Name 12) positive, enthusiastic climate (McCurley, Lynch 5). According to psychologists Clemes and Bean, experts in self-esteem, it is important that all people satisfy three basic motivational needs – a sense of connectedness, uniqueness and a sense of power. For this, it is imperative that the volunteer staff is treated on par with employees – they must not have lower standards than paid staff, they must have equal participation in the decision making process and thus feel that they have played a significant part in the unit’s strategy. All staff must be given challenging assignments that ensure that they utilize their individual strengths, thus making them feel effective and worthwhile. At ‘Tasting Australia’, all issues pertaining to legal considerations of human resource management have been put in place – these include the human resource strategy and objectives, policies and procedures, processes for recruitment, selection and induction, guidelines for training and professional development, supervision and evaluation and even retrenchment of staff. First, the team decides which tasks need to be clubbed together to form a job, applicants are screened and appropriate candidates chosen. A decision also needs to be taken regarding the use of volunteers, which tasks they are needed (Last Name 13) for and also the number of people that need to be recruited. Volunteers will ensure reduction of recruitment and training costs. SPONSORSHIP Sponsorship is an important part of Financial Management for any event. This involves budgeting, sourcing of funds, allocating funds for various activities, monitoring the flow of money and evaluating the money resources. One of the first steps in organizing any event is to obtain sponsors to fund the event so as to reduce costs. An event budget needs to be laid down which will define the projected costs (and which may later be compared with the actual costs). Most sponsors are likely to want to see a budget before committing to supporting an event. The plan must profile the event audience, establish what the event can offer and even chalk out the benefits of a long-term relationship with the prospective sponsor. This would mean giving the client the chance to develop a sustainable sponsorship model – which will essentially be the lock-in period, where the client has to support the event, come what may. Given the magnitude of ‘Tasting Australia’, expenditures will be gigantic in terms of labour costs, rentals, supplies and entertainment. Many costs such as (Last Name 14) construction of venue, insurance, hiring personnel etc remain fixed while others such as cost of food and beverage, the total number of attendees, cost of airline tickets etc are variable costs. Sponsors need to see value in investing their monies in an event such as ‘Tasting Australia’. They need to be aware of the increased awareness towards their brand, enhancement of brand image etc. The way in which sponsorship impacts the audience is very simple. With sponsorship, there is increased awareness regarding the sponsor and the brand and this leads to a favourable disposition. This could then convert itself into intent to purchase. The Government of South Australia is the main sponsor of ‘Tasting Australia’ and corporate partners include Michelin, Jacob’s Creek, the Hilton and the Lifestyle Channel, amongst others. MARKETING For an event like ‘Tasting Australia’, different marketing strategies need to be employed for the local audience and the overseas tourists. There needs to be a clear-cut marketing plan that outlines the event mission, analysis, execution and control. The right marketing mix needs to be arrived at. ‘Tasting (Last Name 15) Australia’ has a distinguishing core concept and this has been effectively clubbed with the location to allow tourists the total experience. The festival offers great packaging (add-on frills like accommodation, transport and other attractive offers), people, partnership, pricing, place, physical setting (this means the actual venue itself, access to the internet, toilets, ATM machines etc.) and processes in the marketing plan. The media strategy also needs to be decided. ‘Tasting Australia’ utilizes mass media through advertising, PR, sales promotions, ticket selling, online marketing and other marketing collateral. LEGAL & RISK MANAGEMENT The Australian state and territory governments maintain strict national standards for wine. When one organizes an event of this scale, one must anticipate problems and hazards such as crowd control, legal issues, human resource management etc. Risk management refers to dealing with problems of this nature effectively. ‘Tasting Australia’ is one of the major festivals in the country and all necessary steps have been set in place to counter administration issues (all permits and licenses are secured), health and safety issues, crowd management, alcohol and drugs, security, transport (parking and (Last Name 16) public transport), trademarks and trade practices, environmental waste management etc. EVALUATION OF THE FESTIVAL If one were to evaluate ‘Tasting Australia’, one would have to deem the festival a resounding success. Adelaide is modern, prosperous and one of Australia’s culinary and wine centres and hence is the perfect location for the event. Wine competitions and culinary competitions engage the wine and culinary experts and events such as ‘feast for the senses’ awe the 50,000 attendees. RECOMMENDATIONS Although ‘Tasting Australia’ is an incredibly successful event, I do believe the following steps can be taken to increase participation. First, international promotions (advertisements, tie-ups with Qantas to increase airline bookings to the region during the festival etc.) need to be conducted in order to boost awareness regarding the festival. Next, there needs to be a host of activities for children of all ages at the festival. One must keep in mind that many of the visitors and tourists to the festival, are likely to be travelling with their (Last Name 17) families and activities that could keep the entire family engaged would be a crowd-puller. Lastly, in order to encourage community participation, wines from smaller breweries need to be recognized and given the right impetus to further boost the wine industry in Australia. (Last Name 18) Works Cited Alonso Abel Duarte, Northcote Jeremy. Small Winegrowers' Views on their Relationship with Local Communities: Routledge, 2008. Print Anderson, Kym .The World’s Wine Markets: Globalization at Work : Edward Elgar Publishing, 2004. Print Australian Government: Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade. http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/trade_fast_facts.html. Web 12 June 2009. Beames Geoffrey. The Rock, the Reef and the Grape: The Challenges of Developing Wine Tourism in Regional Australia: SAGE, 2003. Print. Dunphy R, Lockshin L. A History of the Australian Wine Show System: SAGE, 1998. Print Getz Donald, Dowling Ross and Carlsen Jack, Anderson Donald. Critical Success Factors for Wine Tourism, MCB UP Ltd, 1999. Print. Hall Michael, Cambourne Brock, Macionis Niki and Johnson Gary. Wine Tourism and Network Development in Australia and New Zealand: Review, Establishment and Prospects, MCB UP Ltd. 1997. Print. Herbst Sharon Tyler, Tasting Australia…And it’s Incredibly Delicious. http://www.sallybernstein.com/travel/oceania/tasting_australia.htm. Web 12 June 2009. (Last Name 19) Maum Courtney, “Chill Island, Hot Food - Tasting Australia 2010” http://kadmusarts.com/food/?p=129. Web 12 June 2009. McCurley Steve, Lynch Rick Volunteer Management: Heritage Arts, 2000. Print. O’Neill Martin, Charters Steven, Service Quality at the Cellar Door: Implications for Western Australia’s Developing Wine Tourism Industry: MCB UP Ltd, 2000. Print. South Australia Food & Wine Tourism Strategy 2009-2014. http://www.tourism.sa.gov.au/industryinfo/Documents/Food&WineStrategy_v2.pdf. Web. 12 June 2009. Tasting Australia Goes Vintage. http://www.tasting-australia.com.au/asset/PDFs/MR_-_Tasting_Australia_Goes_Vintage1.pdf. Web.12 June 2009. Tasting Australia. http://www.tasting-australia.com.au/. Web.12 June 2009. Wine Australia: Directions to 2025. http://www.wfa.org.au/PDF/Directions%20to%202025.pdf. Web.12 June 2009. Read More