BIA Victoria -
General News
Melbourne Leisurefest makes successful debut
Monday, 13 October 2008
Melbourne Leisurefest makes successful debut
Melbourne Leisurefest made a successful debut from 2 to 5 October with attendance up by more than 40 per cent over its predecessor, the RV & Camping Leisurefest.
More than 29,000 patrons attended the four-day event at Sandown Racecourse, which featured four-wheel-drives, boats, caravans and RVs, plus all the associated equipment and accessories.
The newly expanded event was a joint venture by the Caravan Trade & Industries Association of Victoria (CTIAV), Boating Industry Association (BIA) of Victoria and Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce (VACC).
Billed as Australia’s largest outdoor leisure show, its unique combination of exhibits and attractions proved popular with patrons of all ages, from young families to retirees.
Especially popular were the four-wheel-driving and of-road towing test runs on Sandown’s newly built off-road test track, plus test towing of boats, vans and trailers on the Sandown straight.
Patrons were lined up an hour before the 10am opening each day, and the weather favoured the event’s outdoor focus for three of the four days, with only Friday afternoon being affected by rain.
The Saturday and Sunday were particularly strong, attrracting almost 20,000 visitors, which matched the full three-day attendance of previous RV & Camping Leisurefests.
Special attractions included boat licence training and testing by the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard and the launch on Saturday of Peter “Spida” Everitt’s TV show, Great Australian Doorstep.
Most exhibitors reported steady sales across the full range of vans, trailers, boats, four-wheel-drives and accessories, despite the generally depressed retail market in the leisure sector.
Melbourne Leisurefest will return to Sandown for 2009 from 1 to 4 October, the first weekend after the AFL Grand Final.
... ends
Contacts: BIA Christopher Keegan (03) 8696 5600
CIA Peter Wright (03) 9329 5311
VACC Maxene Gladman (03) 9829 1281
Media inquiries & images: Sarah Thompson 0431 178 187 or (03) 9898 5570
sarah.thompson3@optusnet.com.au