Building long term connections at 2024 Australia Fiji Rendezvous
by AIMEX 28 Aug 2024 07:40 BST
22-24 August 2024
The fourth annual Australia Fiji Rendezvous brought together 18 Australian marine industry representatives to Port Denarau Marina from 22 to 24 August 2024, creating a dynamic gathering of industry expertise.
With a goal of bringing together marine industry representatives from across the Pacific, the Australia Fiji Rendezvous offers an opportunity to strengthen connections between the international superyacht community to foster and develop long-term relationships that will be mutually beneficial for everyone involved.
Delivering a strong contingent to Fiji, Australia was represented by Rivergate Marina & Shipyard, Superyacht Group Great Barrier Reef, Gold Coast City Marina & Shipyard, Southport Yacht Club, Quality Marine Clothing, Royal Motor Yacht Club Broken Bay, Pantaenius Yacht Insurance, Jones Bay Superyacht Marina, Coral Sea Marina, City of Gold Coast, GC Marine and The International SeaKeepers Society.
The Rendezvous activities included a Morning Tea Expo along with a Rivergate Marina and Shipyard VIP Captain's Lunch on Thursday at Sails Denarau. Friday's activities featured a Crew Cocktail Making Lesson and a Crew Networking Party, where a local supplier of Fijian Coconut Vodka was showcased to the Australian group. The night's festivities continued with a traditional Fijian dance performed by VOU Dance Fiji and a local band providing entertainment. All activities were held at Sails at Denarau, overlooking the superyacht marina.
Mark Riddell, Southport Yacht Club commented "This Rendezvous is one of the best to attend, and despite having less captains and crew in attendance than previous years, we were pleased to straight away convert two bookings to Southport Yacht Club for berthing and in-water jobs. The Rendezvous events will always generate a lot of interest for Australia, Queensland and the Gold Coast, and we appreciate the support of the City of Gold Coast in hosting their trade mission to Fiji."
Attendees also took part in an exclusive cultural tour of the Bula Coffee Site, where they learned about the production and distribution processes and the significant impact Bula Coffee has on local communities. This visit held extra meaning, as attendees of the ASMEX 2024 Conference had previously heard from Conference Speaker and Bula Coffee Founder, Luke Fryett, who shared his inspiring story about the creation and growth of the business, leaving a lasting impression on many delegates.
David Good, CEO, Superyacht Australia concluded "Superyacht Australia enjoys working alongside Fiji to encourage vessels to visit the South Pacific with Australia's refit and maintenance complementing Fiji's cruising grounds. This year's event has ensured that Australian industry leaders have a deeper appreciation of the offerings for superyachts in Fiji and can become advocates for including Fiji in every yachts itinerary when visiting the South Pacific. Whilst yacht captains and crew were light on the ground, feedback from the attendees has focused on the rewarding experience of strengthening the connection between Australian and Fijian industry participants."
Captain Will, visiting the region with a 70+ metre vessel commented "Thank you to Superyacht Australia for hosting a lovely crew event at Sails Denarau, Fiji. Meeting the Australian representatives made us aware that Australia is a well-established superyacht destination with a lot to offer in terms of cruising, safe dockage, shipyards, provisioning and uniform suppliers. We had an amazing time, and you made us realise that there's more to Australia than Bundaberg and Kangaroos."
Superyacht Australia hosted this Australia Fiji Rendezvous with the local Fijian support of Port Denarau Marina and the on-the-ground agents Yacht Help, Yacht Partners Fiji and SEAL Superyachts.
Superyacht Australia extends our gratitude to our sponsor, Rivergate Marina & Shipyard and each of our members who made the journey to Fiji, and the superyacht captains and crews who participated in the networking events.