Conference Eco-System Success Story

The severe impact of the unnecessarily extended covid lock-downs saw tourism, travel entertainment and conferencing businesses hard hit with revenues way down and some having to close their doors permanently. And for African countries like South Africa, this had a major impact on the overall GDP and employment rates.

Fortunately, there have also been some recovery success stories with businesses re-investing during the tough periods now experiencing rewards for maintaining a positive outlook.

We spoke with Gary Koetser, CEO of Century City Conference Centre and Hotels about the success story of the Conference Centre and the recently completed conference facilities up-grades and their new Verve function facility, a 500 square meter designer space that can host over 1000 people.

Investment Courage Pays Off

Gary responds to the question; Have conferences recovered to pre-covid levels yet? by stating “Yes, we have seen conference numbers improved to beyond pre-covid levels with a 72% annualized occupancy rate”. He gives credence to the Group’s commitment when they were bold enough to continue with their expansion of the hotel facilities during the covid period despite the increased risks of investment.

Century City Conference Centre did however pay a hefty price for this investment with the centre having to extend finance that exceeded R60 million, to keep their doors open and according to Koetser, these loans have only just been settled in June of 2024.

In addition to the financial cost, there was also the unfortunate cost of jobs with 42% of direct staff being retrenched in order to maintain the business and a large number of staff at businesses fulfilling outsourced functions, also losing their jobs.

Eco-System Success Story

There is however a remarkable success story that has emerged, and it is not simply a single business that is now thriving but an entire eco-system that Koetser proudly presented to me. “Our vision in building the Conference Centre, from the beginning was not simply about a single business, we saw the opportunity to create a hub around which many businesses and services could thrive” he says.

The plan was that the positioning of the Conference facility was surrounded by businesses and that there was ample land available for further expansion.  This plan has certainly been a success with seven hotels, numerous business parks, as well as retail and entertainment facilities, all being established within easy walking distance to the conference Centre. “the Centre is a hub” Gary says, “that creates a whole economic eco-system that multiplies the effect of job creation and economic growth for the whole region.”

More to Come

They have not stopped yet either, with the Group having invested an additional R15 Million on a complete facilities upgrade and the launch of the new Verve function facility.

“We listened to our customers” says Koetser “and what they were telling us is that we needed to lift our conference offering up a notch to standards seen elsewhere in the world, and so we have incorporated lots of new privacy areas such as our new privacy booths and intimate dining spaces, as well as private work-stations for people to have private conversations or to do work in while at a conference”, Says Koetser “We have built in complete flexibility for any type of event and can accommodate from small private meetings to large conferences and exhibitions”, he adds.

African Focus

Gary is also very proud of their new African Art gallery that features local artists work, and that also has built-in spaces for local artists to come and work in. “So attendees can not only view that art but are often able to see them at work as well, he says, and particularly for our international visitors this has become a major attraction along with our range of African food choices available”.

Collaboration Pays Dividends for Tourism

The good news story extends beyond just a stellar conference facilities and the growth has meant that they now employ 61% more staff than they did pre-covid and the Hotel facility now has 250 rooms available.

Beyond that Gary is excited about the overall contribution that they are making in overall tourism value. “We have created a new term he says – “Confecation” – which means that people are not only coming for conferences but are staying longer on vacation”, says Koetser. Local tourism numbers indicate that conference tourists are staying 18% longer and this means a big boost for the local tourism industry as a whole.

According to Koetser, a lot of the growth is also due to efforts by Wesgro, a local business promotion agency in the Western Cape, who have been working with Airlines to ensure more direct flights are available to Cape Town.

“We are also working with these Airlines to provide special offers to conference attendees that enable them to extend their stay with their spouse or partners staying for free which is resulting in more “Confecation” success he adds.