Event L’Oreal incentive trip
Organiser Shanghai Jin Jiang Tours
Group size 140
Date April 15-22
The brief
L’Oreal wanted to invite its top Chinese distributors to Melbourne for meetings and an incentive trip.
Challenges
The distributors were hairstylists who use L’Oreal products. As they didn’t have professional titles, it was difficult for them to get business visas. However, organiser Kevin Zhu of Shanghai Jin Jiang Tours met with the Australian consulate in Shanghai and explained the group’s upcoming tour.
By providing the correct supporting documents from L’Oreal for the Australian consulate and a list of the attendees, all delegates were able to get visas as a group.
Execution
The distributors came from across China and so the organiser divided them into three geographical groups – north, east and south. Those from the north met in Beijing, the east met in Shanghai and the southerners met in Guangzhou.
The Beijing and Shanghai groups flew directly to Melbourne. Those in Guangzhou took a bus across the border to Hong Kong and flew to Melbourne from there. This resulted in two days of travel time both going there and back.
During their visit they stayed at Sebel Albert Park in 70 rooms in shared accommodation. There was a registration and welcome party for the delegates upon arrival.
The next two days were spent attending shows where top stylists from the US and Europe were on-hand to demonstrate the latest in hairstyles and products, followed by a day of free time.
A day trip was also organised that took in the city sights and the Great Ocean Road, which meant hiring three tour coaches and booking Chinese restaurants for meals.
The organisers did not expect the delegates to be in desperate need of Chinese food after just two days of being in Australia. However, the event planner had already sourced some top restaurants as a back-up and his efforts were greatly appreciated by the group.
Comment
Jayy Ji, national marketing manager for Matrix (China) said: “Everyone enjoyed their time in Melbourne. The itinerary was well organised.”