NKYCVB REPORTS RECORD NUMBERS
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Betty Burns
(816) 679-4074
Pat Frew, Director of Communications
859-655-4163
E-Mail: Pressroom@nkycvb.com | www.nkycvb.com
Covington, KY/March 16, 2006—The Northern Kentucky Convention and Visitors Bureau reported record numbers at its 2005 Annual Meeting today at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center. Click here to view pictures from this year’s annual meeting
Bureau President & CEO Tom Caradonio reported the economic impact of visitors’ spending in Kenton, Campbell and Boone Counties reached an all-time high at $255 million, up more than eight percent from 2004 at $235. The previous record was $243-million set in 2000.
Of the $255-million in total economic impact, the lodging category accounted for nearly half at $129 million, followed by restaurants at $57-million, shopping $30.3-million, entertainment at $18-million and local transportation $13.9. Corporate travelers continue to be the largest market segment in Northern Kentucky at 39 percent, leisure at 35 percent, meetings and conventions 24 and government 2 percent. This breakdown mirrors 2004 results.
The total economic impact to the community from the marketing initiatives of the CVB was up 3.6 percent last year to a new record of $78.2 million.
The return on investment in Bureau marketing programs was down 22 percent in 2005. This was primarily due to the initial financial investment in the formation of the Regional Tourism Network, a joint initiative with the Cincinnati Convention and Bureau, which calls for the Bureau to devote one-third of its room tax revenues, or roughly $800,000, to the effort. Still, for every dollar the Bureau spent on marketing the region to visitors $19.48 was returned to the local economy in visitor spending.
Caradonio says he’s pleased with the results reported from 2005. “Our theme in describing 2005 industry activity is ‘On the Move.’ We feel our organization is moving on an upward trend and approaching pre-9-1-1 levels. With the formation of the Regional Tourism Network (RTN) fully in place, the task of marketing the region to tourists falls to RTN. That allows the Bureau to continue to strengthen our focus on the meetings and conventions market.”
Caradonio added that the recent announcement that two large international trade associations will be returning to Northern Kentucky in the next three years solidifies the fact that the Bureau is responding to the challenge. The Association of Manufacturing Excellence (emphasizing lean manufacturing practices) and the Association for Computing Machinery (information technology) will return in 2009 and 2007 respectively with a combined economic impact of more than $1.8 million.
The mission of the Northern Kentucky Convention and Visitors Bureau is that of an aggressive sales, marketing, service and informational organization whose primary responsibility is to positively impact the Northern Kentucky economy through conventions, meetings and visitor expenditures. The direct economic impact of visitors’ spending in Campbell, Kenton and Boone Counties in 2004 was $235 million.