Hi All,

The main reason for this email is to release the latest Industry Spotlight video, featuring yet another regional legend, Carol White of Lavandula. More on this in a sec.

First, a few updates from me:

• Borealis wraps up in a couple of days and it has been phenomenal. Ticket sales to date are over 35,000 which is frankly extraordinary. We can’t wait to have it back next year. Thanks, everyone for your support of this great event. I’ll be sending a survey shortly to get your feedback on the event and its impact.
• We have an Industry Briefing coming up! It’s been a long time between drinks. Please join us on Wednesday the 21st of September at The Burrow at Wombat Forest Winery. A separate invite will come out soon, but you can register now here
• Macedon Ranges Council is running a Business Breakfast on Friday 7th October 7.00am (for 7.30am start) at Macedon Ranges Hotel & Spa (Valley Rm). Simon Kuestenmacher is an entertaining and insightful speaker who helps businesses understand the changes and trends that will directly impact their business. This event is open to all businesses in the Macedon Ranges and Hepburn Shire. For bookings click here.

Marketing: we bumped up the magazine (out next month) to 48 pages and it’s sold out. Apologies if you missed out; an email will come out in due course regarding the next issue. Another product that is proving super popular is our Solus EDMs – you get a whole EDM to yourself that goes to 78,000 people, with crazy open rates. Get in touch with " target="_blank" rel="noopener">Annissa ASAP if you’re interested as we have to limit these so we’re not bombarding our list with emails. That said, there are a lot of pretty cool marketing products available. Check them out here.

The latest Regional Events Fund round is closing soon. Visit Victoria’s $20 million Regional Events Fund supports events held in regional Victoria, showcasing our tourism strengths and building Victoria’s reputation as an events destination. Round four applications are currently open and welcome applications from private companies, councils, RTBs and not-for-profit organisations for events that meet the eligibility criteria and program objectives detailed in the Regional Events Fund Guidelines. Support is across three streams and closes on Friday, 30 September.

Other stuff:

• We are working on a localised workforce plan that will, through working with experts in the space, create pathways for youth into the hospitality industry – more to come on this.
• Video content from We Are Explorers, created in conjunction with Visit Victoria, will be out soon.
• Content from our collab with Tourism Australia is also out soon.
• We are still working on a super cool Food and Drink event for the region and have funding for concept development which will commence very soon.
• We are working with VTIC on election priorities – what we need from Government to help rebound from Covid and navigate the next few years.
• I’ve been in the media a bit talking about the impact of short-stay accommodation (pros and cons) and will hold a facilitated discussion on this shortly – stay tuned.

Industry Spotlight

Carol White – Lavandula Swiss Italian Farm

Frankly, I’m in awe of Carol. What she has achieved with Lavandula is remarkable. The amount of hard work required to not only get the place to where it is but maintain its standards is extraordinary. I know, that’s a lot of superlatives in one sentence but it’s all true! My family and I love going there; Morgan and I grab a glass of wine, and our girls run amok and burn off that kiddie energy. We love it.

This is a pretty Special Industry spotlight. Carol speaks her mind and, I think, commands respect for what she has achieved.

I highly recommend taking the time to watch. So get yourself a coffee and learn from someone who has achieved great things and helped put our region on the map. All our industry spotlights can be found HERE
I hope you’re all going well. Feel free to get in touch with me any time on or 0419 574 813.

Cheers

Steve and the team