SA Tourism Commission, Executive Director of Destination Development, Nick Jones at CAPA Australia Pacific Aviation Summit 2022
Nick Jones is the Executive Director of the Destination Development Group, with the key focus of driving the supply side of the South Australian tourism industry. Nick has played a key role in increasing the accessibility to South Australia, attracting new hotel and infrastructure development, and regional tourism development. He oversaw the negotiation and introduction of new international airlines to South Australia, record cruise visitation growth and the development of the South Australian touring routes to capitalise on the significant self-drive market. He is a member of the Regional Visitor Strategy 2025 Steering Committee. His team also managed the $20 million Tourism Industry Development Fund, designed to help regional tourism operators improve and diversify their offerings to grow visitation. Nick and his team continue to work hard to help South Australia’s tourism industry reach its full potential and capitalise on significant post-COVID opportunities. Nick joined the SATC after a number of years in senior consumer and trade marketing, sales and management roles with Publishing and Broadcasting Limited, at the time, the owners of Channel Nine Network and Australian Consolidated Press.
Transcript
Nick Jones:December 2019, we hit $8 billion worth of tourism expenditure in South Australia, which was a year ahead of where we were expecting to be. So it was a fantastic result. And of course, then COVID, things fell off the cliff. We went down to about $4 billion, so it halved. What was pleasing to see though was the South Australians' appetite to visit their own state, support their own industry, support their tourism operators, and get out and not only have a great holiday but buy local produce and spend and keep regional South Australia and the CBD moving along pretty strongly. It's gone pretty well. It's powering back now. We had a number of new hotels come online and accommodation during COVID and that was probably a little bit scary for them at the time, thinking they're coming through in a pandemic. But their occupancy rate's been very strong, and it's allowed them to keep people employed, and we're well placed. As aviation picks up and those international and interstate markets open up again. The biggest thing, and we're hearing it everywhere, not only in tourism but every sector, is staff. Getting staff, getting skilled people to work, and that is the entire supply chain from— I'm talking from aviation workers through to accommodation, through to those who provide laundry services. It is unbelievable. It's, it's, it's wondering where all these people have gone in the world. But it's not only tourism, it's not only South Australia, but that, that would be the biggest issue. The pleasing thing has been the demand. The demand is there as interest rates have gone up, cost of living challenges have come in. People still seem to be very fixed on having their holiday and wanting to travel. It seems a not-negotiable, and that's, that's really pleasing. And I think after a couple of years of not being able to do that, they're prioritising it for themselves and their families. So that's an opportunity for South Australia, it's an opportunity for Australia. Visit SA.
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