Superloop Adelaide 500 must be replaced with sports, cultural, entertainment events, Australian Hotels Association says
A devastated hospitality industry says the Adelaide 500 axing will cost it millions – and tourists must be attracted in another way.
SA Business
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The Superloop Adelaide 500 must be replaced with a series of events to draw interstate and international tourists to SA year-round, the state’s hospitality industry says.
Superloop tourists book out about 90,000 hotel nights each year, with about $4m-$6m in room revenue expected to be lost as a result of its cancellation.
Australian Hotels Association general manager Ian Horne said motorsport racing events such as the Grand Prix and Superloop had been the state’s biggest contributors to hotels’ bottom lines, but “in the last decade it’s certainly come off the boil”.
“The 500 has made a significant contribution to the CBD hospitality economy but its heyday was some time ago and all the signs are it’s going to get tougher,” he said.
Years ago, it was commonplace for hotels to require three- or four-night bookings to secure a room during race weekends, but this year, Mr Horne said it was still possible to arrange accommodation on the day.
A decline in corporate support was a major factor in the event’s demise.
Mr Horne said the Superloop’s axing was “a very sad day” for the industry and it should be replaced with sports events or music acts that drew large numbers of tourists.
“If we’re serious about SA being a conference, visitor and business destination, in the State Budget, the Government really needs to put in more funding to help the tourism and hospitality industry expand its influence across Australia and the world,” Mr Horne said.
“Our ambition would be to over the year get three or four major events – sporting, cultural and entertainment – and all of a sudden we’ve got a diverse offering spread over the whole year.”
Frank Hannon-Tan, president of the East End Coordination Group, which represents traders and residents, said sports car racing was synonymous with the area.
“Things like this are hard won and perhaps easy to give away,” he said.
“I think to turn the tap on events like this is really shortsighted.
“The Superloop was slated to move to November, which I thought was really exciting – it was a return to the days when the Grand Prix was at the end of the year.”
Mr Hannon-Tan, co-owner of Amalfi and Mum Cha restaurants and Mother Vine wine bar, said many East End eateries were full during the Superloop 500, and the busy period helped them through the quieter winter.
“It takes more than that to run a successful business but it’s the sum of all parts – you need lots of things like that throughout the year in order to have a really vibrant precinct,” he said.
michelle.etheridge@news.com.au
Sound of silence a lost opportunity
By Nathan Davies
The loss of the Superloop 500 will devastate an events economy already struggling to survive coronavirus, according to industry stalwarts.
Musicians and event organisers have expressed disappointment at the government’s decision to scrap the race, which over the years has hosted huge internationals acts such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Robbie Williams, Australian legends including Cold Chisel and The Angels and scores of unsigned young South Australian bands.
The event also provided employment for thousands of South Australians who worked setting up and pulling down the fencing, stages and infrastructure, provided security and worked in hospitality roles.
Event organiser Peter Darwin, who had worked on 18 of the 21 races, said the cancellation would be wide-ranging and catastrophic.
Mr Darwin believed the dismantling of the SA Motorsport Board and the handing over of the race to the South Australian Tourism Commission was a mistake.
“The passion and the drive and the intellectual property that had been generated was lost and devalued and, on a personal level, the fun and commitment started to waiver as no time was invested to understand the event base,” Mr Darwin said.
“It was not just a motorsport event – it was a varied, family event that brought the city alive.
“It was clear to me over the last few years the current government had no commitment or desire to maintain the event at all – there was no emotional engagement at all.”
Music SA chief executive Kim Roberts said the end of the race was also the end of a fantastic opportunity for young South Australian acts who were recruited as support groups through the Bands on Track initiative.
“I understand that it’s a very difficult environment to be putting on an event that involves both travel and large amounts of people,” Ms Roberts said.
“But it is a loss to the local music scene.
“It has been a great opportunity for young artists to play in front of a big audience and an crowd that might not have seen them before.”