Long-serving AHA NSW President Scott Leach was unanimously elected as the AHA’s new national President earlier this month. AHA NSW Hotel News’ Jason Bartlett spoke to Mr Leach about the challenges of his new role. HN: Scott, congratulations on being elected as national president of the Australian Hotels Association, how did it feel? Just let me say at the outset that I was extremely humbled by the support of my colleagues across Australia. I look forward to working with the various AHA teams’ right across the nation over the coming year, as we continue to advocate for what is best
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An overview of the Australian Hotels Industry. The Australian hotels industry is a significant contributor to the Australian economy and plays a pivotal role in providing entertainment to millions of patrons. Australian Hotels, More than just a drink and a flutter
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The Best Laid Plans… To celebrate their 125th anniversary in 2013, Bundaberg Rum had long planned a special release – the first super deluxe rum ever released in Australia – the 125th Anniversary Rum. Unfortunately, nature intervened, as it so often does. Nine months before the planned celebration, the city of Bundaberg was inundated with floods for the second time in three years and the distillery’s plans were very much on hold. Previously, on Christmas Eve 2010, after it sustained heavy rain, the Burnett River broke its banks, inundating hundreds of homes. Peaking at nearly eight metres above the usual
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By Nicole Pesa Are pubs still vital to the Australian landscape? Documentary feature filmmakers James Ward Breen and Natalie Palomo explore this question by looking at the past and the present. Verdict? Pubs are more important than ever. The son of an Aussie publican, James strives for an unprecedented inside- the-industry and behind-the-bar look at the recent social history of the iconic Aussie pub. It celebrates an essential part of the Australian cultural identity and aims to show the positive impact pubs have had on our culture through its connection between patrons. From the 6 o’clock swill to different forms
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Australian music – particularly rock – has its origins in hotels and pubs, with a proliferation of live performances occurring in the early 1970’s. This stemmed from the liberalisation of state licensing laws and the epiphany among hoteliers and publicans that providing live music would attract the generation of baby boomers in masses. From the crowded beer gardens
of inner city hotels to the bustling backrooms of almost every suburban ‘local’, immensely famous Aussie bands – including INXS, AC/DC, Cold Chisel and Australian Crawl – once cut their teeth on the popular pub circuit. While in the twenty-first century, both the
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A long and proud history of helping the community Almost every AHA member is involved in providing sponsorship or support in some form to a local sporting group or community organisation. By their nature, hotels are often the social hubs of their communities – a ‘home away from home’ utilised as a meeting place, for dining, entertainment, overnight accommodation and for hosting events such as weddings. Hotels support thousands of sporting clubs and community organisations across Australia. Many people play in social sporting teams, or become involved in community groups, partly because of the opportunities for social interaction, which can
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The wake up foundation is a not for profit organisation that is run by young people for the benefit of young people. Channelling the power of education and awareness, wake up has and continues to inspire young people to re-evaluate their cultural norms and take responsibility for their own actions. Established in 2014, Wake Up was a reaction to an incident involving the brother of Joint Managing Director & Founder, Claudia McEwen. “My brother was assaulted by two strangers [on a night out in Bondi] and was very badly injured,” explains Claudia. “This incident caused me to reflect on the issue
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Founded by the alcohol industry in 2005, Drinkwise Australia is an independent, not-for-profit organisation, which utilises the power of evidenced-based social marketing for the purpose of producing a healthier and safer drinking culture. The CEO of this organisation is John Scott, who as a former non- executive Director and Chair of the Social Marketing Committee has a wealth of experience working with major policy development and consumer driven communications initiatives. Drawing upon two decades of knowledge from his role in strategic marketing and research, Mr. Scott has chosen to share with us his insights into the current Australian drinking culture,
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