Cocktails nightclub owner wants more big events to lure punters into Surfers

Surfers Paradise nightclub owners wants more to shake their cocktails for as venue association pushes for extra events to boost tourist party town. FULL STORY

A veteran nightclub boss says the Surfers Paradise venue association is pitching to get more punters into the party precinct.

Cocktails nightclub owner Lino Girardi said the Gold Coast thrived on major events with the Surfers Paradise Licensed Venues Association (SPLVA) lobby group proposing more events at quieter periods to keep the tourism hub alive.

SPLVA will meet with Division 10 councillor Darren Taylor next month to push for more events, more music and more action, Mr Girardi said.

“May and June are our toughest months and we noticed with things like SeaFire and the Fisher concert (at Coolangatta) we found a boost,” he said.

Lino Girardi at Cocktails.

“With the Fisher concert we felt a rise in business and that was in Coolangatta – but because (the southern end) can’t accommodate 30,000, any big event like that has a flow-on effect.”

The city’s tourism, events and arts mega-entity Experience Gold Coast has been given a $6m funding boost to put the city back on top as a must-visit destination, the Bulletin revealed this week.

The economic injection is designed to lure “world-class” international acts while bringing tourism numbers back to pre-Covid levels.

Mr Girardi, behind Cocktails since 1989, said times were tough but operators “lived in hope”.

“We just gotta ride it out and batten down the hatches,” he said.

“We look forward to the (Pacific) Airshow. Big events like that, anything that brings people into town has a good flow-on effect.”

Pacific Airshow on the Gold Coast. Picture: Richard Gosling

While a lot of businesses were struggling during the low season, it was a positive shift to see the city tourism hub “diversifying” with the addition of $6.5m The Sporting Globe which opened at the old Hard Rock Cafe location.

“People are still investing a lot of money in Surfers,” Mr Girardi said.

“We’ve got perfect weather this time of year during our quietest months. We can look at doing something similar to what Broadbeach has done – they call Blues on Broadbeach their Indy.”