Afterburners on as Melbourne welcomes 30th anniversary AIME event and Adelaide awarded Dreamtime 2023

The Asia Pacific Incentives and Meetings Event (AIME) team, in partnership with the Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB), have launched their 30-year celebratory event. It runs 13-15 February at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC). AIME brings together international and local buyers to access leading exhibitors from around the world. The event is owned by MCB and managed by Talk2 Media & Events. More than 400 hosted buyers, over 350 exhibitors and 2,000 visitors are expected to attend AIME 2023. Organisers say 25 countries will be represented at AIME and 12,000 meetings pre-scheduled. New event features include: The Accor Hosted Buyers Lounge, a ‘Tech’ area, and a Wellness Café. An enormous kangaroo and a special anniversary lanyard featuring First Nations’ artwork, are some of the ‘touches of Australia’ delegates will be treated to throughout. Organisers held an opening press conference at THE LUME, Melbourne featuring The Hon. Steve Dimopoulos MP, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events; Minister for Creative Industries, Julia Swanson, CEO, Melbourne Convention Bureau; Natalie O’Brien AM, CEO, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre and Phillipa Harrison, managing director, Tourism Australia. AIME’s Knowledge Programme will include an address from Australian tennis star, Jelena Dokic, and will see a mix of industry business leaders and professionals as well as keynote speakers share their knowledge and experience. The Day 1 Welcome Event was held at Marvel Stadium, co-hosted with MCB. State-of-the-art pearl theming celebrating 30 years was mirrored in a directional menu curated by Victorian producers, Delaware North. And as the curtain is pulled back on the show floor, Australia’s first female jet fighter pilot will touch down at AIME 2023 on the Afterburner Top Gun stand A12. ‘Em’ (pictured) not only breaks the sound barrier, she also breaks down the barriers in what was once a predominantly male domain – as the RAAF welcomes an inclusive and diverse policy. She will share the fighter pilot mindset and the simple methodology behind their success. Afterburner has two amazing prizes up for grabs on the stand – an authentic Top Gun bomber jacket and A$2,000 off an Afterburner team building event or keynote. Meanwhile, Business Events Australia has announced Adelaide will be the host city for Dreamtime 2023, the incentive showcase. It will be the first edition held since 2019. The Dreamtime programme includes a destination showcase, dedicated media event, business session and networking opportunities. Tourism Australia managing director, Phillipa Harrison, said Dreamtime will be more important than ever before as Australia continues to rebuild a pipeline of international business events. “Dreamtime 2023 is a valuable part of our distribution activity to bring qualified planners and media to Australia to experience the wealth of new product available and our world class event delivery,” Harrison said. “Like so many of our destinations, Adelaide has undergone unprecedented infrastructure development, welcoming new product such as Sofitel Adelaide, Adelaide Oval Hotel and Eos by SkyCity and the Southern Ocean Lodge, which will reopen later this year.” Dreamtime 2019 generated A$97m worth of business. Prior to the pandemic, the business events sector was a key contributor to the visitor economy, attracting 1.04 million arrivals, spending A$4.5bn for the year ending 31 December 2019. Business Events Adelaide chief executive officer, Damien Kitto, said: “Our hard work winning Dreamtime is an exceptionally worthwhile investment for the State’s long-term economy and Business Events Adelaide. Hosting Dreamtime puts Adelaide front and centre of vital global event decision makers.  Business Events Adelaide through the strong support of the South Australian Government is aggressively pursuing corporate incentive groups to further deliver economic growth.” Dreamtime 2023 will be held 7-10 November in Adelaide, with international buyers and media visiting other Australian destinations pre and post the event.