Tourism Lethbridge and Lethbridge and District Exhibition have made significant strides in securing major events for the city.
The partnership is making it possible to attract 500-plus attendee conferences that maximize the capacity of the Agri-food Hub and Trade Centre and surrounding venues. The strategy extends beyond just securing event space. It ensures delegates experience Lethbridge’s local attractions, culinary scene and cultural offerings.
“A successful event is about more than just the venue, it’s about the entire destination experience,” says Dominika Wojcik, senior director of communications at Tourism Lethbridge. “Our goal is to create an environment where conference attendees can engage with Lethbridge beyond their meeting space, from visiting local restaurants to exploring our downtown and various attractions.”
With a destination-first approach, Tourism Lethbridge and LDE have actively engaged with industry leaders and event planners to position Lethbridge as a premiere destination for business events.
“The demand for unique and well-equipped destinations is growing. Lethbridge is ready to deliver,” adds Devyn Derksen, LDE event sales manager. “Having the space, technology and supporting amenities needed to host large-scale conferences and events at the Agri-food Hub and Trade Centre is a game-changer for the region. The work being done now will help to establish Lethbridge as a premiere event hosting location for years to come.”
Right now, work is being done on the foundation of building these larger events up, notes Wojcik. “This is a very long-term strategy. Currently, what we’re starting with is the relationship building side of it. We’re meeting one-on-one with meeting planners. In the last couple of weeks, we met with over 25 meeting planners to talk to them about Lethbridge.”
Then, Wojcik says, “we move onto site tours and bidding on RFPs.”
“That’s when we’re going to start seeing the impact of these events coming into our city. They bring a huge economic impact.”
There’s also the Business Events Advisory Committee, Wojcik adds, that meets quarterly. “They’re kind of the drivers for these initiatives working alongside our community partners.”
These events benefit everybody in Lethbridge, according to Wojcik. “It’s all our venues because we know this is a destination-first approach. Planners want to see other parts of our city and not just the venue they’re staying in. That’s why it’s so important for us to have the Committee, to make sure everybody is represented in our city.”
