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Sydney will be given a new “brand” in a bid to drive business growth, investment, innovation, arts, lifestyle, events, education and tourism, Premier Morris Iemma announced today.

Mr Iemma said the multi-dimensional “city brand” would assist business and better deliver Sydney to the world.

“Developing a Brand Sydney is not just about logos and tag lines, it’s about capturing the stature, strengths and spirit of this great global city,” Mr Iemma said.

“The new brand will create an image and reputation for Sydney that will differentiate it from other cities around the world.

“Our city has a reputation as a global financial centre with a competitive business sector and is a leader in creativity and innovation.

“The new brand will build on Sydney’s already strong reputation overseas and set our industries apart from their competitors.

“Sydney needs to tell its story better to the rest of the world.

“People are clearly aware that we are a welcoming city with a beautiful harbour and relaxed lifestyle and now we need to tell them more about how well we perform in other areas such as education, finance and innovation.

“The Sydney brand will deliver a consistent message to international audiences that will define Sydney as a leader in business, culture, tourism, events and education.”

Mr Iemma said Brand Sydney would build on work to attract significant projects and major events, showcasing Sydney’s role as a business hub in the Asia Pacific and promoting the State as a great place to do business.

“In March, Sydney was voted the number one city brand in the world in the annual Anholt City Brands Index for the second year in a row,” Mr Iemma said.

“This new brand will build on our success as a global city that is an excellent location for business, a host city for world-class events and a number one destination for visitors.”

A Brand Sydney Project has been established to develop a contemporary city brand with John O’Neill AO appointed as independent Chair of the Steering Committee.

Image: Tourism Australia Copyright

Premier Morris Iemma today announced Carla Zampatti as the 2008 Australian Fashion Laureate, coinciding with the start of the inaugural Rosemount Sydney Fashion Festival.

Mr Iemma said the prestigious Australian Fashion Laureate was the highest honour awarded by the Australian fashion industry.

“The Australian Fashion Laureate recognises outstanding creative or intellectual achievement in the Australian fashion industry; a person who has and continues to make a significant contribution to the Australian fashion industry,” Mr Iemma said.

“Carla Zampatti is one of Australia’s most celebrated and iconic designers and NSW is honoured to be able to celebrate her illustrious career.

“Carla is a worthy recipient of the Laureate which celebrates the important role played by fashion in the cultural fabric of New South Wales.

“The Laureate reflects the global standing of the Australian fashion industry and its contribution to our economy, creativity and lifestyle,” he said.

Since launching her first collection in 1965 and opening her first retail boutique in Sydney in 1972, Carla Zampatti has built a successful retail empire with 30 stores nationwide.

She serves on several boards and is an active supporter of many charities.

“To be recognised for outstanding achievement by the Australian fashion industry is an incredible honour and I feel very humbled to be here today accepting this award,” Ms Zampatti said.

“I would like to thank all of those involved, including the Iemma Government through Events NSW and IMG Fashion, for their continued support of the Australian fashion industry.”

Simon Lock, Managing Director of IMG Fashion Asia Pacific, said Ms Zampatti was a shining light in the Australian fashion industry.

“Carla has achieved many milestones over the past 30 years, and continues to be an incredible mentor to our industry,” Mr Lock said.

Events New South Wales and IMG have extended their relationship to secure Rosemount Australian Fashion Week in Sydney from 2009-2013, with an option to extend to 2014 and 2015.

Image: NSW Premier Morris Iemma and Fashion Designer Carla Zampatti winner of the Australian Fashion Laureate 2008 pose with models in the Heritage Ballroom at the Westin Sydney on August 11, 2008 in Sydney, Australia.  (Photo by Gaye Gerard/Getty Images)

Sydney will welcome an extra 46,210 international conference delegates at events worth almost  A$145 million to the local economy thanks to a solid annual result announced today by the Sydney Convention and Visitors Bureau (SCVB).

The result reinforces Sydney’s standing as a centre for international events, demonstrated last month when the city welcomed more than 200,000 pilgrims for World Youth Day.

In the year to June 30, 2008, the SCVB won bids for 37 international conferences, incentives and other business events, to be held in Sydney between now and 2014.

The wins include 10 events from the rapidly growing markets of Asia, which contributed A$29.2 million to the SCVB’s annual scorecard.

The result is a solid increase on the 30 events secured the previous year, worth just over A$100 million and 24,960 delegates.

SCVB Managing Director Jon Hutchison said the bureau had increased its bid success rate to an impressive 71 per cent during 2007-08.

“The SCVB’s success rate is consistently high and demonstrates both the strength of the Sydney brand and the strategic approach we take when securing events for our city,” Mr Hutchison said.

“Sydney undoubtedly remains one of the world’s most desirable cities and this is reflected in surveys around the world,” he said. “Sydney also remains Australia’s leading conference city and one of the Asia-Pacific region’s most important meeting centres, which was again confirmed in the latest rankings by the International Congress and Convention Association.”

Among the events secured by the SCVB during 2007-08 are 12 large-scale events for 1000 delegates or more.  The largest is the World Conference on Lung Cancer for 8000 delegates in 2013, an event worth $19.2 million.

Other major events include the Asia Pacific Life Insurance Congress (8000 delegates, worth A$15.6m), the 2010 Golden Oldies Rugby Festival (6000, A$11.8 million), the 2007 Bayer Schering Pharmaceutical Annual Conference (2200, A$13.2 million) and the 2010 Annual World Congress of the Human Proteome Organisation (2000, A$10.1 million).

The successful year comes as the SCVB mounts an intensified push into key markets in Europe and Asia while expanding its operations in Sydney.  As part of its partnership with Events New South Wales, the SCVB has embarked on a strategy to make Sydney one of the world’s top ten conference cities and greatly increase the economic contribution of the city’s conference sector.

“Sydney has never before had such strong support for its events industry, created by a new unity among our city’s leaders in both government and industry,” Mr Hutchison said.

He said the new energy was evident in the SCVB’s strong start to 2008-09, with Sydney winning six bids in July for international meetings collectively valued at more than A$13 million.