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International visitors to spend large on the Gold Coast

By Greg Bell

There has been considerable good news for retailers on the Gold Coast of late. The Australian Bureau of Statistics' trade figures for this sector recorded a slight increase nationally between May and April this year, with many industries that are prevalent here performing well.

Notable industries that increased their turnover were cafes, restaurants and takeaway food outlets; personal accessories, footwear and clothing; and also department stores and general retail outlets. Given the high appeal of our part of the country as a tourism destination, those interested in taking up retail leasing on the Gold Coast could see significant benefits in the long term.

New data from a number of sources suggests that this positivity will keep going as well.

Overseas visitors spending up large

Tourism Australia was pleased to report on a new version of the International Visitor Survey from Tourism Research Australia, which recorded a new record high in expenditure from overseas guests in our country. For the year ending December 2014, that total amount spent by this tourist group reached $31.1billion.

Overall visitor numbers also rose, by 8 per cent to 6.4million. This is also a new record, and was largely due to significant boosts in Chinese and US interest in the Lucky Country. 

"The latest figures round off what was a record-breaking 2014, both in terms of international arrivals and the money they inject into our visitor economy," said John O'Sullivan, managing director for Tourism Australia.

"It's important now that we take forward this momentum into the rest of 2015, and beyond to 2020."

Research from IBISWorld has revealed that tourism in Australia is set to reach a revenue total of $128.6billion by the 2019-2020 financial year, and anyone in the industry needs to be well poised to take advantage of this. Expanding your company through the purchase of commercial property for sale on the Gold Coast is one extremely viable way of doing this. 

Gold Coast on the up and up

The City of Gold Coast's website cites 2011 census figures which indicate that the annual revenue generated in the region through tourist expenditure was $4billion at this point. Given the annualised increases of 1.9 per cent forecast for the next five years by IBISWorld, it is fair to expect this number to continue rising.

Further to this, the Gold Coast Airport recently announced the opening of a new direct channel with China – a key emerging tourism market. From 29 September, flights between Wuhan and the Gold Coast will open up, creating even more potential revenue streams for local business. 

This is particularly beneficial, given the sheer scale of the Chinese presence in our tourism industry. According to Tourism Australia, this market increased by 18 per cent over 2014, with visitor numbers rising to 784,000. Spending increased even further, going up by 19 per cent to reach $5.7billion on a national scale. 

Chinese tourism spending accounts for 18 per cent of all such expenditure in Australia. This is a market that businesses can greatly benefit from, and the opening of new flight paths between the country and the Gold Coast is a fantastic opportunity.

If you want to get involved in meeting the tourism market, commercial leasing on the Gold Coast is a great place to start. With real estate available up and down the coastline, there are chances to open up all kinds of businesses that will appeal to overseas visitors.

Contacting Ray White Surfers Paradise is a great first step in this process. We have a wide portfolio of properties that will appeal to business owners of all industries. 

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