Committee For Lorne: Lorne Business & Tourism Association Up & Running!

By now, hopefully, you are aware that Lorne’s Festival of Performing Arts is on again in 2018.

The LBTA ran the Festival from 2012 to 2016 as part of the “Love Lorne” campaign. This campaign was designed to promote Lorne as a visitor destination in the off-season to attract visitors and support local businesses during the traditional “low season”. FOPA became a Signature Event of the Surf Coast Shire and the Shire provided invaluable financial and resource support. Changes to government policy on Arts Funding made it increasingly difficult for a team of volunteers to take on the project and in 2017, the tough decision was made to cancel FOPA.

But FOPA is back in 2018, and the driving force behind it is the new Executive Team of the Lorne Business & Tourism Association (LBTA). Late last year, a group of local business operators stepped up to the plate to take on the responsibility for managing the LBTA. The retiring President, Chris Tutungi, who had served for nearly 10 years, welcomed the new team which brought with them business experience, energy and fresh ideas. The new Executive Team comprises:

President
Bryce Newcombe (Lorne Central)
Vice – President
Paul Upham (Lorne Hotel)
Secretary
Lee Gordon (Cumberland Lorne)
Treasurer
Luke Nisbet (Livewire Park)

This team is ably and capably supported by Leon & Katie Walker (HAH Lornebeach and Karen Stribling (Great Ocean Road Real Estate) and Grant Price (Lorne Surf Shop). John Waller (Lorne P-12) is assisting the team with staging FOPA 2018.

One of the first agenda items of the new committee was to explore staging FOPA again. All business operators had noticed a drop in business in August 2017, the month when FOPA had previously be staged. This year the team have adopted a new innovative approach to staging the event while managing costs through the utilisation of existing venues. The program for FOPA is now available and bookings are open. Visit the FOPA website at www.fopa.com.au. Obviously FOPA filled a need because 75 per cent of the tickets for the Gala Opening Night are already sold! Don’t miss out it will be a great weekend.

The staging of FOPA is just one initiative of the LBTA. The organisation exists to represent the business community of Lorne; retail, hospitality, accommodation. The “Love Lorne” campaign is an initiative to promote Lorne as a destination and the Facebook page www.facebook.com/WeLoveLorne/ which was established in 2010, has nearly 10,000 followers. The executive of the LBTA maintains regular contact with Committee for Lorne, Surf Coast Shires, Great Ocean Road Coast Committee and Great Ocean Road Tourism to represent our business community’s interests.

The LBTA holds regular meetings to discuss issues of interest to our business community. If you would like to subscribe to the email list, whether or not you are a business operator, in order to keep in touch, send your details to [email protected].

In the meantime, please welcome the new LBTA executive team and contact them if you have any matters to discuss and last but not least, we’ll see you at FOPA!!