The future of motor shows in Australia has been thrown into turmoil with word coming through that this year’s Australian International Motor Show has been cancelled. It was scheduled to be held in Melbourne from 28 June–7 July. The 2014 show in Sydney, to be held at Homebush while Darling Harbour’s Convention Centre undergoes renovations, is also under threat.
Russ Tyrie, AIMS event director, explained the decision to News Limited: “We have made the decision not to proceed based on the consensus view of the auto industry to focus limited marketing budgets on specific activities rather than an industry motor show.â€
The article expands on this putting the costs of exhibiting at the show into a broader context:
In 2008 Mercedes-Benz rented the Mount Panorama race circuit for an entire week for less than it would cost to exhibit at the Sydney show. It invited VIP guests for track test drives and says it sold more cars than it would have done at the motor show.
At the 2012 Australian International Motor Show in Sydney attendance numbers were just 135,500, down from a peak of 320,000 in 2001. Similarly, 160,000 attended the most recent show in Melbourne, well down on its best figures of 257,000 achieved in 2004.
Declining participation from manufactures, citing increasing exhibition costs, had forced the Melbourne and Sydney shows to join forces to host the Australian International Motor Show in alternate years.
That theory still hasn’t worked with an anonymous manufacturer spokesperson telling News: “The exhibitor costs were getting out of hand and there are better and more effective ways to spend the money.â€
Russ Tyrie added, “Decisions on future shows will be made by the committee based on market research and exploring opportunities as to how this event can best meet the needs of the industry and the public.”
[Source: News.com.au]
UPDATE 26 March: An official statement has been added below.
Australian International Motor Show Joint Venture Confirms 2013 Cancellation
March 26 2013
The Australian International Motor Show (AIMS) Joint Venture confirmed that the 2013 Australian International Motor Show scheduled for Melbourne in June, will not proceed.
“We have made the decision to not proceed with this year’s Show based on a consensus view of the Automotive Industry to focus limited marketing budgets in 2013 on firm specific activities rather than an industry based Motor Show.” said Russ Tyrie, Event Director, Australian International Motor Show. The Joint Venture expects there will be a pause in Motor Show activity as they explore options for future Shows in Australia.
“In not proceeding with the Show in 2013, Australia is following a global trend that has been apparent for several years, where cities do not always have a Motor Show. This trend is evident in the recent suspension of Motor Shows in London, Zagreb and Amsterdam.â€
Decisions on future Shows, including 2014, will be made by the AIMS Joint Venture Committee based on market research and exploring opportunities as to how this event can best meet the needs of the industry and the public.
ABOUT THE AIMS JOINT VENTURE:
The AIMS Joint Venture was formed in 2009 when the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, the organising body of the Australian International Motor Show held in Sydney and the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce, the organisers of the Melbourne International Motor Show agreed to merge to organise and manage future shows.
Under the Joint Venture, the Motor Show was to be shared in alternate years between Melbourne and Sydney, which commenced with Sydney in October 2010 followed by Melbourne in 2011 and Sydney 2012.
9 replies on “2013 Australian International Motor Show cancelled, 2014 may follow”
Even major car manufacturers cannot see the value of such a small market here in Australia. A sign of the times.
That right; it would cost more to send the cars down here and show them off for a two day event than they make back in the new car sales.
While this article may be trying to establish a trend, the fact remains that people don’t turn up when manufacturers don’t display.
I chose not to go last year purely because of the lack of manufacturer participation. It was completely uninspiring. No Hype. Nothing headlining as a real attraction. Many brands I wanted to look closely at did not participate.
Plus the “Australian” International Motor Show doesn’t seem to be able to make it out of Melbourne or Sydney.
I went last year for the first time in ages. Vowed to not go back. No value in the price with the limited range of manufacturers available. Plus I get frustrated at queueing up behind several 9 year olds who are always in the car I want to look at!
It was perfect when the motor show aligned with the F1. I’m not going to make a second trip to Melbourne to see a half dozen exotics and 400 encoboxes and falcadores.
D’oh – Econoboxes.
@Scott, yeh you’re right, BMW, Mercedes, Audi, VW, Porsche, Ferrari, Aston and any other euro i have missed, make very little money out of their handful of Aus sales.
Have it in Melbourne when the F1’s are on, it will always have big numbers. Make it a MotorSport/Car week.
The week leading into the GP you could have an event @ Sandown