TRC and Swoogo unite to create ShowSimple - DIY badge printing in a box

In continuous pursuit of the most seamless and satisfying experiences for event planners, TRC and Swoogo - best-in-craft service providers to the events industry for more than 15 years - have launched 'ShowSimple'.  It's DIY badge printing in a box.

TRC, already trusted to deliver stellar onsite event support for brands including Walmart, Ford, Shell and L'Oreal, spotted a gap in the market for great value badging services for smaller size events. Greg Lazzaro, Founder and President of TRC said, "We recognize that every event is different, and sometimes smaller is better!  ShowSimple delivers all the great TRC magic, in a box to your door".

The real magic though, comes from the integration with Swoogo - the next-generation event registration company making waves in the industry with their mobile responsive, fully flexible platform loved by the likes of Inc., Fast Company and Schneider Group.  Customers of Swoogo need only enter a few details about the badges they want, within the Swoogo portal, and order directly for delivery onsite.

It's a partnership through and through, says Swoogo founder and CEO, Leonora Valvo, "Our customers asked for it, and TRC delivered it.  Our teams worked in concert to design the product and I'm delighted with the results".

ShowSimple includes two barcode scanning stations, a full color printer, the customer's choice of badges, lanyards and even self-contained router with internet access.  It's simple, but it's not hands-off - ShowSimple customers work with a specialist 'virtual badge advisor' and product manager to be confident of a quality experience.

TRC and Swoogo (along with their fellow best-in-craft event partners in The Event Tech Tribe) will be at IMEX Las Vegas 10-12th October to launch ShowSimple (booth G659) and are hosting their user conference/innovation forum "Unite" (open to non-Tribe customers) in San Francisco on 16th October.  

White Christmas in Estonia

Destination: Tallinn, Estonia

Why go: What better time to visit the home of the first Christmas tree? The medieval Old Town also takes on a magical quality with snow-covered rooftops.

What awaits: Mulled wine, traditional Estonian food, knitwear and Christmas trees galore at the famous Christmas Market in the Old Town Square. Skaters whizzing around the Old Town's outdoor ice rink as candles fill cobblestone lanes with their flickering glow. Try a genuine Estonian Christmas dinner of jellied meat, beetroot salad, herring, roast potatoes and pork, washed down with dark porter beer. Spend an active day at the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds, which offers snowtubing, iceskating and mountain skiing close to the city centre.

Getting there: It is a two-stop trip to Estonia from all major Australian cities.

Rachel's top tip: "Make a wish under the huge Christmas tree in Old Town Square. Spruce growers throughout Estonia compete each year to have their tree chosen as the Christmas tree of Tallinn."

 

Go stay in your own private treehouse

TULUM TREEHOUSE — Tulum, Mexico

Nestled among a swaying sea of lush emerald palms, Tulum Treehouse is a full-service private home located a stone's throw from the heart of Tulum—yet it is a fortuitous jungle setting near the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve that sets this experience apart. Here, a sublime private house can be rented with only the three bedrooms, or as a five-bedroom accommodation. Created by local craftspeople in collaboration with an international design crew, the team collectively put sustainability above all. 

The Tulum-based, full-service architecture studio Co-Lab Design Office and interior designer and stylist Annabell Kutucu have taken the natural beauty of the Yucatán as primary inspiration, conscious not only to preserve and protect the biodynamically rich environment, but to also create a stay deeply connected to the natural world. Large common areas, several spacious wrap-around terraces, multiple spaces for indoor-outdoor living, and five bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms make up this exclusive, full-service jungle escape.

Excitement builds as Winx prepares to make Flemington debut on Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day

With the AFL Grand Final signalling a close to the football season, sporting fans will now turn their focus trackside for Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day at Flemington, where the World's Best Horse on Turf in Winx will make her debut at Australia's premier racetrack.

This Saturday, 7 October 2017, will see Winx shoot for her 21st consecutive victory in the $500,000 Group 1 Seppelt Turnbull Stakes (2000m), where Melburnians will get the opportunity to witness arguably the best horse since Black Caviar to race at Flemington.

Winx, who is stabled at trainer Chris Waller's Flemington facility while in Melbourne, will continue her build up towards the Seppelt Turnbull Stakes with her final gallop on Thursday. Media will be able to capture vision of the super mare on the Flemington course proper at 6.30am on Thursday 5 October before hearing from trainer Chris Waller and jockey Hugh Bowman at 7.00am.

The Victoria Racing Club (VRC) is preparing additional facilities at Flemington for all racegoers to enjoy Winx on Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day, with the course being bolstered by additional screens, food and beverage outlets and Winx merchandise to ensure all racegoers can be in the moment with Winx.

All profits from merchandise will go to the National Jockeys Trust, as well as proceeds from the auction of signed saddlecloths from the Seppelt Turnbull Stakes, including Winx's saddlecloth.

Members can get up close and personal with the wonder mare from the Members' Lawn, or watch the action from a range of venues including The Forum, The Atrium and The Peak. General Admission areas will also be expanded, with the James Boag's Premium Celebration Deck featuring entertainment from the Emerson Duo and the James Boag's Premium Lawn Bar presenting the perfect space for racegoers to relax and revel in the action with a drink and live music by The Mad Hatters.

Children and their families can get into the spirit of Winx with Winx-themed hobby horse racing, silks and face painting. Other exciting free activities in the Kids' Zone include yard games such as giant chess, croquet, jenga, lawn bowls, bocce, mini-golf and pony rides.

General admission precinct Saintly Place will hold extra significance on Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day, as it will be the first time the public can view the entire trophy collection bequeathed to the VRC by Cups King Bart Cummings.

The Bart Cummings Trophy Collection will be unveiled to media and special guests at 11am on Thursday 5 October, with 149 trophies to be on public display from Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day onwards. Anthony Cummings, James Cummings and Les Carlyon AC will be among those to speak at the event as they recall their memories of the Cups King and reflect on the importance of the collection in Australian sporting history

Gates open at 11:20am on Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day, with the first of nine races set to jump at 12:50pm. Other notable races include The Bart Cummings (2500m), a Group 3 event which offers the winner a ticket into the 2017 Emirates Melbourne Cup.

Metro trains will run special services to and from Flemington for Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day, with trains departing Southern Cross Station between 10:59am and 1:39pm and return services departing Flemington between 4:55pm and 7:20pm.

Tickets to Seppelt Turnbull Stakes Day are available from Ticketek. Children under 16 are FREE when accompanied by an adult.

For more information head to Flemington.com.au.

@FlemingtonVRC   #TurnbullStakes   #GoWinx

Workplace engagement the key to beating leave liability

Corporate Traveller General Manager Jess Anscombe

Australian employers are racking up significant risk to their balance sheets by not taking proactive measures against annual leave hoarding.

Statistics from Roy Morgan Research show Australians have accrued nearly 134 million days among the nation's 8.5 million-strong paid workforce with more than one third holding in excess of four weeks annual leave.

The disproportionately high percentage of workers holding that amount poses an especially high financial risk to employers, particularly in the SME sector.

Recent news of a Northern Territory public servant accumulating more than two years of annual leave, an estimated liability of almost $400,000, highlighted the financial risk of unchecked hoarding.

Corporate Traveller General Manager Jess Anscombe said the key to counteracting hoarding was increasing workplace engagement for taking leave and promoting the health and well-being benefits.

"Many of our customers have worked with us to parlay the business travel partnership into a parallel leisure solution that helps minimise leave balances," she said.

"Utilising the existing relationship helps keep the issue top of mind around the office and reduces the barrier for employees to make bookings by increasing the convenience factor."

Ms Anscombe said this leveraging approach had fast become a more popular option for businesses with Corporate Traveller's integrated leisure travel service, Travel Club, experiencing increases of 44 per cent in enquiry and 27 per cent in sales in the last financial year.

Many employers are also using incentive and rewards tactics to boost employee motivation to take leave.

"Professional travel managers can be used as a resource for annual leave enticements like travel vouchers, gift cards or holiday discounts," Ms Anscombe said.

"They can also assist in setting up a regular flow of alerts to employees for special industry deals or exclusive workplace promotions around Christmas, Easter and school holidays."


About Corporate Traveller

Corporate Traveller has been a leading supplier of business travel solutions for more than 20 years and services more than 6,500 clients throughout Australia.  As part of the Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG), Corporate Traveller is backed by the global network of one of the world's largest travel agencies.

2017 Minister's Student Achiever Award Winners

The State's next generation of world-class tourism professionals were honoured today in a special ceremony at NSW Parliament House to mark the 2017 Minister's Student Achiever Awards.

Minister for Tourism and Major Events and Assistant Minister for Skills Adam Marshall congratulated 14 students on their academic achievements in tourism and hospitality studies.

"The students honoured today represent the future of tourism and hospitality, and embody the commitment to excellence that is critical to the continued success of our industry," Mr Marshall said.

"The NSW Government is committed to growing the NSW visitor economy to ensure we remain the number one State for tourism and major events in Australia. This means the creation of more jobs across the industry and more opportunities for future generations of tourism industry professionals."

Mr Marshall also congratulated the tertiary institutions on their continued support of tourism and hospitality related studies.

"It is encouraging to see the wide cross-section of institutions represented by these students and I thank them for their continued commitment to fostering our future industry leaders."

Since 1990, the NSW Government has acknowledged academically high achieving tourism and hospitality students at an annual Minister's Student Achievers Awards ceremony.

Students from NSW education institutions offering degrees, diplomas and certificate courses in tourism and hospitality studies can be nominated for the Awards.

To be eligible, students must have completed one year of their studies and be a resident of NSW.


2017 Award recipients

Melissa Allcroft
Bachelor of Management (Tourism)
University of Technology Sydney

Yani Dawe
Bachelor of Business (Tourism and Hospitality Management)
Southern Cross University, Lismore Campus

Kye Dewberry
Cerfiticate III in Tourism
TAFE NSW, Bega Campus

David Hickson
Diploma of Hospitality Management
TAFE NSW, Ultimo

Dominic May
Bachelor of Business/Bachelor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship (Tourism Management)
University of Newcastle

Chelsea McKay
Bachelor of Hospitality
International College of Management, Manly

Harry Mitchell
Bachelor of Business (Hotel Management)
The Hotel School, Sydney

Michael Santo Monteleone
Bachelor of Business (International Hotel and Resort Management)
Blue Mountains International Hotel Management School at Torrens University Australia

Titania Oberg
Bachelor of Tourism Management
Western Sydney University

Janelle Rooney
Diploma of Travel and Tourism Management
TAFE NSW, Ourimbah

Jenny Scoufis
Certificate IV in Patisserie
TAFE NSW, Loftus

Rebekah Sharpe
Bachelor of Business (Tourism Management)
William Blue College of Hospitality Management

Cindy Sneddon
Diploma of Hospitality Management
Barrington Training Services, Clubs NSW, Riverina

Jordan Stanford
Advanced Diploma of Event Management
TAFE NSW, Northern Beaches

FCM launches next generation technology suite, FCM Connect

A streamlined travel program to provide a better and more efficient business travel experience has been launched by FCM Travel Solutions to ensure that travellers, bookers and managers have greater connectivity.

FCM Connect is an integrated global technology platform which gives clients access to multiple tools that deliver on their travel program.

"We believe technology should move our customers forward, and the next generation release of our technology offering, FCM Connect, is designed to do just that," said Marcus Eklund, Global Brand Leader, FCM Travel Solutions.

"We're excited to launch FCM Connect to existing and new customers. Our improved solution has been designed for the modern Traveller, Booker and Program Manager and addresses their desire to be more connected to the entire booking, travel and management journey. Being better connected helps travellers and bookers feel in control and gives our program managers the visibility they need to elevate their travel programs," Mr Eklund said.

At the core of the solution is the FCM Connect HUB; a single-sign-on platform that gives customers one simple connection point to all of FCM's leading technology tools including Analytics, Approve, Booking, Secure, Expense and Mobile. HUB is easily customisable for each company in both configuration of tools used and interface design.


Image: The FCM Connect Hub connects users to FCM's full technology suite

"Through extensive customer consultation and product development, we've refined a world-class, end-to-end solution that ensures all of our customer's travel needs are organised – from pre-trip approval to booking, to traveller tracking and reporting that provides complete visibility of spend," Mr Eklund said.

FCM Connect was previewed to clients and industry earlier in the year at the London Business Travel Show and Global Business Travel Association Conference in Sydney, Australia. It is being progressively rolled out and will be available to customers from early next year.

FCM Connect will support organisations across a full range of travel program deliverables including:

• Global, regional or national fulfilment
  
• Cost reduction strategies
  
• Data compliance
  
• Duty of care responsibilities.

For more information on FCM Connect visit www.fcmtravel.com.au