A post-World Cup brand, an airlift strategy and a national convention bureau - these are just some of the things that Cape tourism stakeholders are working on to sustain the region's high profile attained during the tournament.

This emerged at a top-level tourism industry think-tank held in the city last week, known as JAMMS (Joint Association Members Meeting Sessions) and attended by members of Cape Town Tourism (CTT), Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU), South African Tourism (SAT), the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (Fedhasa) Cape, the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry (SAACI) Western Cape and the Southern Africa Tourism Services Association (SATSA) Western Cape. CTT CEO, Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold, told about 200 attendees her organisation was working on a post-World Cup brand and marketing positioning statement for Cape Town because the destination was finding itself “in a bit of a vacuum” after the event. To this end, CTT would hold a workshop involving the industry in the next two months. “It is important that Cape Town decides on a positioning statement with which to market itself with one voice to the world. Consultative, co-operative partnerships between Cape Town’s tourism players are essential for establishing a strong brand and positioning statement for Cape Town,” she said.

CTRU CEO, Calvyn Gilfellan, said tourism to the region was being hamstrung by limited air access because of lack of airline capacity. He said CTRU and Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) were working on an “air lift strategy” to get more direct and charter flights into the city. The move was supported by Protea Hotel Group CEO and MD, Arthur Gillis, who said he would do “whatever it takes” to ensure that lack of airlift was addressed soon.

To combat seasonality that impedes sustainable tourism growth, JAMMS mandated South African Tourism to investigate setting up a new National Convention Bureau, which would handle both mega sporting events and mega conventions. Fedhasa Cape chairman, Dirk Elzinga, suggested targeting the Middle East from where people may want to escape extreme summer heat and may appreciate the Cape winter.  He also pointed out potentially off-putting factors such as international event organisers not being able to reclaim VAT in South Africa, while being able to do so when organising events in competing destinations. He also questioned how international delegates were being encouraged to return to the Cape seeing that research showed that 25% of participants were known to return with their families on holiday. The session stressed that affordability in Cape Town be addressed. "We don't want to become a cheap destination but we have to make sure that the word is out there that Cape Town offers a fabulous, unforgettable, value-for-money experience," Du Toit-Helmbold said. The session found other challenges facing the city included lingering post-recession economics; limited exposure of the region's communities because tourists stayed in well-established tourist nodes; a 45% increase in accommodation capacity; and aligning tourism strategies at regional, provincial and national level.