Packed buses outside the door, phone call after phone call and no accommodation available in Te Awamutu.
That is how i-Site manager Roz Liddell is describing the information centre’s Fieldays experience.
The national agricultural event at Mystery Creek in Waipā wrapped up on Saturday with a four-day total of 106,000 people, up 1000 on last year.
Te Awamutu’s experience is in stark comparison to what Cambridge i-Site and Chamber of Commerce reported.
There they say the days of having a national event just up the road to boost retailers’ tills seem to have whittled into insignificance.
Liddell, who returned to the i-Site after two decades away following Waipā District Council’s decision to cut its $157,000 funding, said the biggest impact on their business was Fieldays’ decision to only sell tickets online.
That meant the i-Site – which always made a healthy income out of selling Fieldays’ tickets – had to do so on an agency basis.
But Liddell, an experienced marketer who stepped in to help initially for two days a week and now three days, said it was no good moaning about it.
The i-Site fielded call after call for details about the Fieldays free buses and because all accommodation was booked out, the only rooms they could get were in Ōtorohanga.
“You make opportunities – you can’t wait for them at the door. You can’t sit back and wait for people to spend their money (with you),” she said.
Te Awamutu retailers spoken to by The News reported a steady week except on Friday when it rained heavily around the Waikato.
The Cambridge result has prompted a call for a more strategic retail approach to big events like Fieldays.
Fieldays Customer and Strategic Engagement head Taryn Storey said the event was a true celebration of the primary sector and its achievements.
“It’s more than just the primary sector, it’s a very important local and national event,” she said.
“If the vibe is anything to go by, it felt very, very positive.”
But the economic headwinds have produced a different event for this year’s 1069 exhibitors.
“Those cost pressures have meant they have had to turn up in a different way and that could well be they are travelling rather than staying local and eating local.”
Mystery Creek was a destination which had to cater for its visitors. There were three food courts this year and more entertainment and dining options.
Tickets could only be bought online and there were plenty of free public transport options.
“We have to make sure we are providing a visitor experience, and we get a lot of feedback every year around ensuring there is a balance and a variety of food, seating, amenities generally,” said Storey.
Liddell recalls when she was i-Site manager several years ago putting a four wheel drive motorbike, hay bales and models dressed in rural gear into the i-Site to encourage people to come in.
She had no time to do that this year but is looking at every opportunity to get people in while they prepare for July 1 next year when there will be no council funding.
“We’re happy – retail is going well, and we’ve got four volunteers helping out.”
The council will give Te Awamutu and Cambridge i-Sites grants of $30,000 each in the 2024-2025 financial year to help recover from the loss of the council’s funding.
