Göteborg & Co - Annual report 2009

8/6/2019 Gteborg & Co - Annual report 2009

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A picture of love under the mistletoe

Love was the theme for Gothenburg ChristmasCity in 2009, and a kiss under the mistletoe is ofcourse part and parcel of Christmas. A giant sprigof mistletoe was set up in Bltespnnarparken andeveryone had the chance to be photographed in thepark with someone they love. Photos of hundredsof kissing and cuddling Christmas visitors werepublished at goteborg.com.


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CONTENTS

5 Tourismavitalindustry

6 Arecordyearonwhichtobuild

9 18consecutiveyearsofgrowth

10 2009ataglance

13 Eventsthatdrewbigcrowds

19 Qualityineverymeeting

23 Touristsfavouritecity27 WithlovefromtheChristmasCity

30 IndustryhelpsGothenburggrow

34 Intheinternationalarena

36 Foodthatsworthajourney

38 Anopencitythatwelcomespeople

39 Environmentandculturaldiversity

40 Gothenburginthemedia42 Gothenburgsnewprole

44 Organisation

50 Annualreport

58 Auditorsreport


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How is the situation for destination

Gothenburg?

Gunnel Aho, Vice Chairman (Moderate):Gothenburg has a good status as a tourist city. Youcan see this in all the positive reviews we get in the

international press. But no-one has escaped theeffects of the recession. Its therefore importantthat we have successes like Gothenburg ChristmasCity. They give us condence in the future that is sovaluable right now.

Gran Johansson, Chairman (Social Demo-crat): Gothenburg Christmas City has become a bigsuccess and will attract more foreign visitors in thefuture. But it has to offer something new each year,which is not easy. One way may be to spread it overa longer period. Gteborg & Co and Liseberg need tond ways to extend it into the New Year, by addingnew content that draws people in. There are a lot ofvisitors in the city over the New Year weekend whoare looking for something different.

Gunnel: The same applies to all the big eventsthat are held every year. They need to develop andoffer something new and fresh.

Gothenburg Christmas City has created a new

tourist season and possibly a new image of the

city?

Gran: Its been a fantastic year for tourism, with

concerts at Ullevi Stadium and much more. But theindustrial recession, particularly in the automotiveindustry in western Sweden, has had massive mediacoverage in Sweden. That creates a negative imageof Gothenburg that also affects tourism. We need to

show the other side as well.

And is it important to take a long-term ap-

proach if you want to present a different image?

Gran: Yes, and in particular we need toimprove the way we communicate informationabout tourism. One common misconception is thatit requires short-term efforts, when in fact it is along-term process that takes time to build up. Idont believe Sweden has taken tourism seriouslyor invested enough in the industry. The handling ofour application for the Euro 2016 football champi-onship was an unfortunate example. I dont believeany other country would have handled it that way.

Gunnel: Its about providing jobs and alternat-ive business when other areas are faltering. Tour-ism must be taken more seriously, and made anational issue, no matter who is in power.

Private travel compensated for the fall in bu-

siness travel in 2009. How do we attract more

tourists until business travel picks up again?

Gran: I think we need to package more

experiences. Even if people are making their ownbookings online we should make sure they can

choose from as wide a range of individually tailoredpackages as possible. Events are important, butfamilies who plan to come here must be able to ndand choose a complete experience for themselves.We need to make it easy for them to do so.

Co-operation and collaboration are key prio-

rities for Gothenburg. How do we develop and

maintain them?

Gunnel: Mainly by not letting up and continu-ing to collaborate in the way we do, which is unique.But also by building on collaboration and makingsure it continues when people are replaced. Itsimportant that this heritage is given space so thatnewcomers can be brought in.

The graphic prole for the destination and for

the company was changed this year. Was the

change a success?

Gunnel: Its a signal that emphasises that we havecondence in the future; that we are looking ahead.You may be applauded for what you have achieved, butyou win trust for taking bold action.

TOURISM A VITAL INDUSTRY2009 was a year of high-quality events. Several big sports and music events dominated thesummer and attracted large numbers of visitors. The large concerts at Ullevi Stadium gave

a boost to trade and the hotel business. Gothenburg saw a rise in the number of hotel guest

nights for the 18th year in succession. This growth came from the tourism sector and com-

pensated for a fall in routine business travel. We now look forward to a new year and new

challenges.

Gran Johansson, Chairman (Social Democrat)Gunnel Aho, Vice Chairman (Moderate)


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A RECORD YEAR ON WHICH TO BUILD2009 was a year that tested us all. The turbulent conditions around us have set in motion

changes that are worrying, but also offer opportunities. Many stakeholders around the

world see tourism as an industry of the future, and one of the biggest new initiatives in our

region is in air travel. In Gothenburg, we managed to attract more visitors to stay in the re-

gion for the 18th year in succession.

The nancial crisis and recession dominated muchof 2009. In western Sweden, the automotive indus-try was hit hard by the recession. We also faced

threats of an international pandemic and accelera-ting climate change.

Looking back now, however, we can take a

totally different view of the year. Domestic tourismwas strong and visitor numbers from our mostimportant neighbouring countries also rose due to

favourable exchange rates.

Tourism is creating jobs

Gothenburgs long-term commitment to tourism,meetings and events has proved successful even inthese hard times. The tourism industry generatesalmost 17,000 full-time jobs in the Gothenburgregion and a turnover in excess of SEK 20 billion.It is an industry that has grown tremendously overthe last 20 years and become an important sourceof revenue for the city and the region.

Accessibility is the key

Growth that is sustainable in the long term is gen-erated through long-term strategies and initiatives.It is very important that Gothenburg continues onits chosen path. This is especially vital in view ofthe big changes taking place around us.

The way that the city, the region and industryhave tackled accessibility is a good example. Roadlinks, air routes, ferry routes, and rail services arekey areas for creating growth. A great deal has beendone, but there is still much to do.

In 2010, City Airline will introduce scheduledight using Gothenburg Landvetter Airport as ahub and linking around ten regions in Sweden withthe rest of Europe. The LFV Group is making largeinvestments in the renovation of the airport. This isa unique project and a fantastic opportunity for ourregion.

The extension of the rail network north to Oslois continuing and will make a big contributiontowards tying together what we call the GO region.


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with the building of the rst public arenas andvisitor attractions.

Now the city is working to develop our arenas

so that they can meet the needs of the future. The400th anniversary could provide a platform fortaking this development work further.

A great year for events andcongresses

2009 brought a long series of events to the city.Gamla Ullevi arena, the national arena for womensfootball was opened and hosted the UEFA Under-21Championship Sweden 2009, which was a nationalevent. In summer there were ve big concerts at

Ullevi Stadium, including AC/DC, U2 and Ma-donna.

Way out West and Gothenburg Culture Festivalin August were very successful and attracted manypositive comments, particularly in the media.

Some 30 meetings and conferences were heldin our region during Swedens chairmanship of theEU, including three informal meetings of ministersof education, defence and nance.

Before the year was over we held GothenburgChristmas City again, this year on the theme of love.For the rst time since it began, the festival con-cluded with New Year celebrations at Gtaplatsen.More visitors than ever visited Liseberg Christmasmarket to have fun, enjoy Christmas dinner andadmire the artistic Christmas illuminations on thestreets, buildings and in squares.

Events that bring a sense of com-munity and positive experiences

Over the year the city has served as an arena forvarious events in sports, culture, politics and music.

And of course there are all the regular annualevents and fairs.

This diversity reects the versatility of ourcity and the people who work here. It is one ofGothenburgs strong points.

Gothenburg is also an events city with a stronginternational standing. In addition to generatingjobs and tax revenues it has produced somethingthat is equally as big and important, but moredifcult to measure. It has created a sense of com-munity and positive experiences for almost a wholegeneration.

This is something in which we can take prideand pleasure.

Leif NilssonCEO, Gteborg & Co.

Train links to the south from the continent willimprove, creating opportunities for German andDanish rail tourism.

A region with potential

Regional focus is strong in Europe and in the restof the world. This is another area where we haveimportant work to do. A few years ago we jointlyintroduced the GothenburgPlus initiative with Re-gion Vstra Gtaland. Together, we have a fantasticregion with excellent potential for developing newand sustainable products for tourism.

Good starting point despite toughclimate

In a major survey of Swedish summer favourites,conducted by the Swedish rail company SJ, Goth-enburg, Liseberg and the west coast took top placein the categories: Best city, Best attraction and

Best destination. A reputation like that cannot bebought. It has to be earned through long-term com-mitment.

Gothenburg celebrates 400th

anniversary in 2021One example of long-term work can be seen in thepreparations that are now starting to be made forthe citys 400th anniversary.

It still seems a long way off, but 2021 is onlya decade away and a decade has already passedsince we celebrated the new millennium.

A great deal has been said about the work thatwent into the 300th anniversary celebrations, 100years ago. Those celebrations marked the establish-ment of Gothenburg as a city of events and tourism,


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Because of the general slump in the economy,Swedens GDP fell by 4.3 per cent (forecast by KI,Dec. 2009). Gothenburg and Region Vstra Gtalandwere hit hard by the economic crisis and many sectorsof industry have experienced difcult times. The

valuable business travel sector remained depressedthroughout Sweden, particularly in metropolitanregions. Right up until May 2009 revenues from thetravel and tourism in the Gothenburg region alsolooked very gloomy.

Trend reversal in summer

In summer the trend changed markedly. Therecession, the weak krona and low interest ratesmeant that Swedes and foreign visitors took moreholidays in Sweden than ever before. Occupancy inall Swedish commercial accommodation establish-ments rose by 2.1 per cent in 2009. Foreign visitorsincreased by 3.3 per cent, while travel to and withinEurope is estimated to have fallen by more than veper cent. Above all there was a clear trend amongconsumers to choose cheaper accommodationoptions.Overnight stays at Swedish camp sites increasedby 6.1 per cent. Overnight stays at Swedish hotelsremained at the same level as in 2008, but thenumber of room bookings fell by three per cent and

total accommodation revenues fell by 5.1 per cent.This was primarily a consequence of the recessionand reduced business travel.In Gothenburg, private travel received an additionalboost thanks to a fantastic summer of events. The

additional music, car and football events areestimated to have brought in more than SEK onebillion in consumer spending.The favourable trend continued into autumn 2009and it no longer seemed impossible to achieve ourtarget of overall growth for the year.

A Christmas Gothenburgsaves the year

The end of the year made all the difference. Christ-mas Gothenburg City set a new record. Almost900,000 tourists came to visit and it was especiallypopular with visitors from Denmark and Norway,

with gures for 2009 as a whole rising by 17 percent and 10 per cent respectively. Tourists spent atotal of around SEK 1.9 billion.Two new events were held between Christmas andNew Year: the outdoor ice hockey match at UlleviStadium and the New Year celebrations at Gta-platsen. These gave a boost to hotel occupancy guresin the nal week of the year. As a result the annualtotal for 2008 was beaten by just 2,700 guest nights

18 CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF GROWTHGteborg & Co was formed in 1991 with the task of marketing and contributing to the de-velopment of the visitor industry in the Gothenburg region. Ever since then the travel and

tourism industry in the Gothenburg region has been able to show real growth in the number

of guest nights each year, regardless of the state of the economy and general GDP trend.

2009 was no exception. This performance is probably unique among European metropolitan

regions.

(total of 3,196,000 guest nights in 2009) and theGothenburg region achieved total growth of barelyone tenth of a per cent. So a weak start to the yearand 364 days without improvement on the previousyear ended with us edging past the post on NewYears Eve and achieving growth for the 18th year insuccession.


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2009 AT A GLANCEJANUARY

3-6/1 Gothia Indoor Bandy Cup

17/1 P3 Gold Music Awards

23/1-2/2 Gteborg International Film Festival

23/1 Major Film Award o Gothenburg

29/1 Samsung Athletics Gala

31/1-8/2 Boat Show

FEBRUARY

6-7/2 Swedish Song Contest

20-22/2 Fotomssan Photography Fair

25-28/2 Gteborg Horse Show

27/2-1/3 Fresh Fish 09 ashion show

MARCH

5-7/3 European Oyster Opening Championship 2009

6-8/3 Passion or Food

8/3 World Challenge Arm Wrestling

19-22/3 TUR 2009 Travel Fair

APRIL

10-12/4 Dreamhack Gothenburg

18/4 The Olympic Trot

25/4 Liseberg Amusement Park opens

25/4 Opening o Gamla Ullevi arena

MAY

4-10/5 International Science Festival

11/5 Beyonc in concert

14-17/5 HBT Festival

16/5 Gteborg Hal Marathon

21-24/5 Gothenburg Basketball Festival

29-31/5 Hammarkullen Carnival

30/5 FIM Swedish Speedway Grand Prix

JUNE

5-7/6 Korpiaden

5-6/6 STCC Gteborg City Race

5-29/6 Fan Zone Gteborg

6/6 Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra inSlottsskogen city park

9/6 Gothenburg Grand Prix

10-14/6 Volvo Ocean Race

10/6 Sweden Malta World Cup ootball qualifer

13/6 Monster Jam15-29/6 UEFA Under-21 2009

15-16/6 City Break Expo

17-20/6 ECM European Cities MarketingAnnual Conerence and GeneralAssambly

21/6 AC/DC in concert

25/6 West Coast Riot

26-28/6 World Junior Athletics Championships

26-27/6 Metaltown


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27/6 Benny Anderssons Orchestra

28/6-5/7 Partille Cup handball

29/6-5/7 Match Cup Sweden, Marstrand

JULY

2/7 Ternheim & Thstrm in concert

5-9/7 EUROMAR 2009 conerence

12-18/7 Gothia Cup

15/7 Deep Purple

15/7-16/8 Summer theatre at Gunnebo

31/7-1/8 U2 in concert

AUGUST

7-9/8 Gothenburg Jazz Festival

8-9/8 Madonna in concert

8-9/8 World Championship P1 Powerboats

11-16/8 Gothenburg Culture Festival

13/8 Gothenburg Company Awards

14-15/8 Way Out West

15/8 Tjrn Runt Yacht Race

21-23/8 Summer evening perormances

29-30/8 FinlandSweden Athletics International

29-30/8 Gothenburg Aero Show

SEPTEMBER

5/9-15/11 Gothenburg International Biennial orContemporary Art

6-9/9 CIP Forum

7-9/9 European Biomethane Fuel Conerence

11/9 Duells Int. Supercross & Freestyle

12/9 SM Slalom Skateboard

16-20/9 European Club Championship Squash

18-27/9 Student09 reshers week

19/9 by Stora Pris Trotting Cup

23/9 Womens Football InternationalSweden-Belgium

23/9-2/10 EU Council o Ministers24-27/9 Gothenburg Book Fair

OCTOBER

5/10 Global Forum

9/10 Kulturnatta, Cultural events

9-11/10 Walking With Dinosaurs

NOVEMBER

4-8/11 Cirque de Soleil

13/11-31/12 Gothenburg Christmas City

13/11-23/12 Christmas at Liseberg

17-19/11 Quality trade air18/11 Cli Richard & the Shadows in concert

DECEMBER

4/12 Pop Idol semi fnal

14-20/12 Music Aid 2009 - Swedish Radio

16/12 Gothenburger o the Year

20/12 Eddie Izzard

28/12 Frlunda-Frjestad

30/12 Eldsjlsgalan

31/12 New Year celebrations


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Residents of the city love events

In a survey conducted by the University of Goth-enburg, a clear majority of residents welcomed thecitys commitment to events. This support is es-sential for success, since the main venue for eventsis the city itself.

Deliberate efforts

As a result of deliberate efforts, Gothenburg hasestablished its place among the leading events citiesin Europe. Gteborg & Co offers organisers com-plete solutions in close collaboration with sports,entertainment and cultural venues in the city. Col-laboration and exibility are important advantageswhen competing with other cities.International competition has continued to grow,placing even greater demands on cities such asGothenburg. This makes it vital to introduce new

events and develop existing ones in order to main-tain our lead. It is of course just as important todevelop the main arenas in the city.

An exceptional year for events

2009 was an exceptional year for events. Over thecourse of the year Gteborg & Co was involved inover 150 events, ranging from small under-18 tour-naments and local concerts to mega-events.

Annual events

Annual events such as the International ScienceFestival and Gothenburg Culture Festival are man-aged by Gteborg & Co. The same applies toGothenburg Christmas City. Other examples ofannual events that form a vital foundation for theevents city are the Partille Cup and Gothia Cup, the

Gteborg Half Marathon, the Gteborg Book Fairand Gothenburg International Film Festival. Eachis unique and helps make the city more human andmore welcoming.

Hot summer for music

The summer was exceptional, with ve capacityaudiences at Ullevi stadium. The rst was during

AC/DCs performance at Ullevi Stadium in June.Then there were two concerts by U2 in July and

August, with a stage set that will go down in history

as the most sophisticated yet. And nally there wasMadonna with her Sticky & Sweet tour and a furthertwo packed arenas.In just three years Way out West has establisheditself as one of the best and most talked aboutfestivals in Europe. The concept of holding a majorfestival in a city park is unique. 25,000 people visi-ted the sell-out festival in August to watch perfor-mances by 82 bands.

Way out West coincided with the Gothenburg Cul-ture Festival. The impressive programme offered

no less than 900 different events over a hectic vedays. The total number of visitors was estimated at

710,000, some 20 per cent more than the previousyear. Reviews from the public and the press werevery positive.

Key role for International ScienceFestival

Among other events, 2009 brought the P3 Goldmusic awards and the Song Festival, which havebecome regular occasions at the Scandinaviumarena at the start of the year. Both events attractedfull houses and were broadcast live on television

and radio.The theme of the International Science Festival,which took place on 415 May, was People For-ever and included an ofcial opening in Nordstanshopping centre by the world-renowned chimpan-zee researcher Jane Goodall. Knowledge will nevergo out of fashion, as the 72,000 visitors to thefestival will surely agree.

EVENTS THAT DREW BIG CROWDSIt was not until late last century that Gothenburg began racking up its long list of successesas an events city. This was when the foundations were laid for what are now two of the citys

key competitive strengths collaboration and accessibility. Attracting and developing events

is an important part of the citys long-term strategy for tourism growth.


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Sports events

Gamla Ullevi arena was opened in April with awomens national match between Sweden andBrazil. There was also a programme of entertain-ment for the whole family, with performances by

Amy Diamond, Jerry Williams, Timo Risnen andCaroline af Ugglas, among others.The big football event of the year was the UEFAUnder-21 Championship Sweden 2009. England,Spain, Finland and Germany all played in the earlyrounds, followed by a semi-nal between Swedenand England. Young people were able to buy tickets

for just SEK 21, and seats were almost sold out. A

fan zone was set up in Bltespnnarparken withfood and drinks available in the park and a giantscreen showing matches in the other host cities.The STCC street race was held for the second yearin succession at the City Race arena in Frihamnen.The stands were once again packed for the eventand this years drivers included Prince Carl Philip.The Sweden-Finland international returned toUllevi Stadium in August and there were tremen-dous performances from both male and femaleSwedish athletes.

Slightly lower prole events during 2009 included

the European Club Championship in squash, partof which was played in Nordstan shopping centre ina specially built glass court.


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CAPACITYRECORD2009:AC/DC: 57,205Madonna: 119,000U2: 117,986Way out West: 25,000 per dayGothenburg Culture Festival: 710,000 visitsUEFA Under-21 2009: 56,534Frlunda Indians Frjestad : 31,144Liseberg Christmas Market: 560,000


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ACQIRED/WOEVETS2009:P3 Gold Music Awards 2010Swedish Beach Tour beach volleyballSwedish Handball Championship fnals 2011World Synchronized Skating Championships 2012World Cup Jumping and Dressage Finals 2013World Challenge Arm Wrestling 2010World Cup Orienteering 2011

EVETS2010:And There Was Light, 20/3 15/8International Science Festival, 19 29/4Speedway Grand Prix, 8/5Youth Skills National Competition, 19 21/5STCC City Race, 4 5/6World Masters Swimming Championship, 28/7 7/8Gothenburg Culture Festival, 10 15/8Way out West, 12 14/8Supercross & Freestyle, 10/9


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When Fredrik Reinfeldt, Prime Minister of Sweden,handed over presidency of the European Union toSpain at the end of 2009 it also marked the end of ahectic period of meetings in Gothenburg and VstraGtaland region. Autumn was an especially busyperiod for EU meetings and conferences.The City of Gothenburg, Gteborg & Co, Region

Vstra Gtaland, the County Administrative Boardand Business Region Gothenburg jointly co-ordina-ted the preparations with the Government Ofces.

A total of 30 EU-related meetings were held on avery wide range of subjects. Gteborg & Co co-or-dinated media and communications activities, themain focus of which was three informal meetingsfor ministers of education, defence and nance inEriksbergshallen. The East Indiaman Gtheborgwas berthed at the key outside, providing a specta-cular backdrop and attraction for visitors. Recep-tions for defence ministers and journalists were

held onboard.

Sexology and quilting

Over the course of the year Gothenburg also hostedthe EMBT congress for specialists in blood andmarrow transplantation; the Nordic Quilt fair forquilt makers; WAS, the world congress on sexology;and the FEMS congress, for microbiological resear-chers at the highest international level.Conference city Gothenburg, with the Swedish

Exhibition and Congress Centre as its main arenafor meetings, is extremely experienced in offeringexible solutions for organisers from all over theworld.In mid-summer, Gothenburg was asked to host theIFLA World Library and Information Congress in2010, instead of 2012 as originally planned. After a

few hectic days the answer was: Yes, if the dates canbe shifted by three days, which was acceptable. Bytaking a exible and professional approach Goth-enburg was able to attract a ve-day internationalconference with 4,000 delegates to be held at thesame time as the Gothenburg Culture Festival.

Wanting to return

When organisers and delegates return home from acongress in Gothenburg they should ideally want tocome back some time. The best way to ensure this

is to provide a conference city where everything isof the highest quality, from the initial bid to imple-mentation and follow-up.In order to develop the citys destinations and venu-es, those involved in the industry also need to meeteach other. One meeting place that has becomeincreasingly important for the conference industryis Meetings@TUR in the Swedish Exhibition andCongress Centre. The Swedish conference industry isa class leader in organising congresses and meetings,but we need to be able to communicate this fact to

QUALITY IN EVERY MEETINGBig meetings and congresses are about sharing knowledge and creating a sense of com-

munity. Gothenburg is a well-known meeting place for meetings of scientists and a wide

variety of associations and organisations. Gteborg & Co has the task of attracting meetings

and helping to ensure that the city develops as a location for meetings.

GunnarSeijbold/Regeringskan

sliet

an even wider audience than at present.

2010 will be a very big year for conferences. Manyof these meetings will serve as reference events forother potential organisers. It is therefore no exagge-ration to say that we are laying the foundations forour future success right now.

Record meetings

Meeting face to face is more important thanever to make contacts, acquire knowledge, drivebusiness forward and to close business deals.Gothenburg will set new records as a conference

city in 2010 when it hosts many large internationalcongresses. We welcome researchers, surgeons, ort-hopaedic specialists, psychologists, dentists, headteachers, librarians, mathematicians, biochemistsand others specialists to Gothenburg.


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MEETIGEWS2010

Three Nobel prize-winners are coming toGothenburg in June 2010. When international re-

searchers in molecular medicine and biomedicine

meet they will be able to listen to Elizabeth Black-

burn (Medicine 2009), Venkatraman Ramakrish-

nan (Chemistry 2009) and Roger Tsien (Chemistry

2008), who will all speak at the congress.

A world frst or MS suerers will be one o

the subjects at the Ectrims congress or 6,000

delegates in October. Swedish researchers have

developed a drug that can be taken in tablet orm

instead o daily injections, potentially changing the

lives o everyone with the disease.

Also in October is the EADV congress or derma-

tologists, which will attract over 8,000 delegates.

This is one o their largest meetings ever. At last

years congress in Berlin, representatives o

Gothenburg were on location to market our city.

Sta rom Gteborg & Co were also in Paris when

researchers rom Sahlgrenska University Hospital

won a nail-biting ballot to host the European So-

ciety or Organ Transplantation congress ESOT

2012.


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Lars-Gsta Dahlf, associate professor in

the Institute of Psychology at the University

of Gothenburg, and president of the 19thWorld Congress for Sexual Health (WAS),

which took place in Gothenburg in June

2009 and attracted 1,250 delegates.

How long did it take to get the congress to

Gothenburg?

Six years in total. Back in 2003 we made a bid tohost the 2007 conference, but lost out to Sydney.

We knew that Gothenburg had a lot to offer andwith experience behind us we made a fresh applica-tion for 2009. And this time we won! The main

factors in our favour were that key personnel hadalready been to Gothenburg on a very well organ-ised visit, and that we were able to offer subsidisedtravel to around a hundred delegates from variousdeveloping countries, thanks to help from thegovernment.

How did the preparations go?

Its a big challenge to arrange a meeting of this size.Without the fantastic support and service we gotfrom Gteborg & Co and the Swedish Exhibition

and Congress Centre it would have been difcult.This is especially true in the case of local arrange-ments, logistics and practical matters.

Would you like to do it again?

Yes, even though its a massive job for everyoneinvolved it leads to many interesting encountersand experiences. We had fantastic help from thecity, but ideally the organising company would alsohave had links to Sweden and Gothenburg. Thatprovides local knowledge and in particular know-how that is worth a fortune.

Agneta Olsson, head librarian at the Univer-

sity of Gothenburg library and organiser of

the World Library and Information Con-gress, IFLA, 1015 August 2010.

Who is coming to IFLA?

Its an international congress for library employeesand information managers that is held in differentparts of the world each year. We expect almost4,000 delegates from 130 countries.

How did it come to Gothenburg?

A few of us thought that Sweden ought to organisethe event, and with the aid of the Swedish Library

Association we were able to submit an applicationfor 2012. We also made good contacts at Gteborg& Co at an early stage, which was very valuable.

But it turned out not to be 2012?

No, we had arranged a site visit in Gothenburg forthe international committee in June 2009. Justbefore that they asked if we could hold it in 2010instead, as they had a cancellation.

So time was a little short?

Yes, instead of having three years we had one. But

its been managed very professionally by Gteborg& Co and the Swedish Exhibition and CongressCentre, who were quickly able to check if it was pos-sible, and the Swedish Library Association has alsomade a tremendous effort to make sure we succeed

and we will!

What is left to do in the six months until the

congress?

Part of it is selling Gothenburg to those who arecoming here. Thats a real pleasure as we have afantastic city and people are impressed by how well

the city is organised. We have all the opportunitiesand we can organise anything, such as activitieslinked to Gothenburg Culture Festival, which willbe at the same time.

Lars-Gsta Dahlf Agneta Olsson


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More cruises to Gothenburg

In autumn 2008, Gteborg & Co and the Port ofGothenburg began a three-year project to developcruise tourism to the city. Its impact was clear by2009, with a total of 34 cruises visiting the city,more than ever before. For 2010, some 40 cruisesare so far booked to call at the city, several of whichare turn-arounds, where the cruise starts andends in Gothenburg. Every visit brings on averagearound 900 visitors to the city.Cruise tourism is increasing worldwide, with anannual growth of nine per cent since the year 2000.Shipping lines are constantly looking for new

destinations with the capacity to take large vesselscarrying several thousand passengers. This is anarea where Gothenburg has potential to develop.The new terminal in Frihamnen was openedin April 2009, improving accessibility and thestandard of service. Large vessels berth in Skandia-hamnen or Arendal. During a normal stopover the

vessel will stay in port for a full day, and passengershave 68 hours to explore Gothenburg.

LARGESTCRISEVISITSDRIG2009:

(Vessel, shipping line, number o passengers)1. Queen Victoria, Cunard Line Ltd 3,5002. MSC Lirica, MSC Crociere SpA 2,2003. Rotterdam, Rembrandt 1,6684. MV Thomson Spirit, Thomson Cruises 1,3745. AIDAcara, Aida Cruises 1,230

TOP5ATTRACTIOS1. Liseberg2. Kolmrden3. Gta Canal4. Inland Railway (Inlandsbanan)5. Grna Lund

TOP5CITIES1. Gothenburg2. Stockholm3. Visby4. Halmstad5. Malm

TOP5DESTIATIOS1. West coast2. Gotland3. Stockholm coast and islands4. sterlen5. Abisko National Park

SWEDESFAVORITEPLACESISMMER:

Source: SJs travel barometer


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Tourist information ofces helping 600,000 visitors

Their contact with the tourist information ofce

often determines tourists rst impressions of adestination. If that impression is poor there israrely a second chance. Gteborg & Co strives tooffer service of a high international standard. Wedo this by using well-trained, motivated and sales-oriented staff. Last year, Visitor Services had almost600,000 visits to its tourist information ofces inKungsportsplatsen and Nordstan shopping centre.In addition to these, over 40,000 enquiries weredealt with by telephone, email, chat or twitter.

Visitors are given information about sights, events,

restaurants and shopping, and they can book hotelsand hotel packages, buy a Gothenburg Pass, sou-venirs, books or tickets for boat tours.Visitor Services distributed over two millionbrochures through brochure stands that are dottedaround the city at 80 different locations.


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Would you like to bewokenbyGothenburgsSaint

Lucy, hit town with a personal shopper and kiss

under the mistletoeinBltespnnarparken?

Then take part in our competition for a Christmas

weekend at the new goteborg.com


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Liseberg Christmas Market had more visitors thisyear than ever, since it began in 2000. It serves asa massive tourist magnet when it opens in mid-November, right up until the day before ChristmasEve. The switching on of the illuminations on 11December brought around 15,000 people to Gta-platsen. Watching from the balcony of GothenburgConcert Hall were Christer Fuglesang and his fellowastronauts. Gteborg & Co has been co-ordinatingand developing the concept of Gothenburg Christ-mas City since 2004 in collaboration with propertyowners and the City Planning Ofce, among others.

Biggest Christmas campaign ever

The campaign to attract visitors to GothenburgChristmas City began right at the start of Octo-ber. It was a bigger and wider-reaching campaignthan in previous years. A Christmas magazine was

distributed to over four million readers in Sweden,Norway and Denmark. A new website featuring themistletoe campaign was launched at the same time,giving visitors the opportunity to win a weekend inGothenburg.

The programme campaign for a GothenburgChristmas City began a little later with extensive ad-vertising in the daily press, magazines, on the weband on social networking sites. Further coveragewas achieved by advertising on television and radio.This was all backed by the independent marketing

WITH LOVE FROM THE CHRISTMAS CITYLove was the theme of this years Gothenburg Christmas City, as could clearly be seen along

the Christmas thoroughfare from Liseberg all the way down to river and the Gteborg Opera.

The colour for the year was red, and everyone had the opportunity to give someone they

loved a kiss underneath the giant mistletoe in Bltespnnarparken.

activities of Liseberg and other stakeholders. Over-all this resulted in a massive marketing campaignfor Gothenburg Christmas City that was also veryeffective.

Almost SEK 478 million

Since the year 2000 the number of guest nightsspent at hotels in Gothenburg has risen by 60 percent. There has been a steady upward trend fora Gothenburg Christmas City. In 2009 a third ofvisitors came from a municipality outside Goth-enburg, and almost one in ten had travelled morethan 100 kilometres. Tourists spent on average SEK1,200 each during their visit, and the largest shareof spending was on Christmas gifts. The direct eco-nomic benet of this tourist spending was SEK 478million. Without a Gothenburg Christmas City thatmoney would have been spent elsewhere instead.

An extra long white Christmas

For the rst time a Gothenburg Christmas City wasextended until New Years Eve. Around 20,000people gathered in Gtaplatsen at the stroke ofmidnight to celebrate and listen to speakers whoincluded Anneli Hulthn, Mayor of Gothenburg.A few days earlier Frlunda Indians and Frjestadhad set a new European record for attendance at anice hockey match, at Ullevi Stadium.

Kissing under the mistletoe in Bltespnnarparken,

a lm at Gtaplatsen, a multimedia show at HarryHjrnes plats, the singing Christmas tree, an in-stallation in Vasaparken and all the other activitiesattracted more visitors than ever. The combinedeffect was to make a Gothenburg Christmas Citythe success that was needed to boost tourism andensure that guest night numbers just exceeded thegure for 2008.


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r ort

rr l r

L k k raperL

Kronhuset

Casino Cosmopol

Gustav Adolfs Torg

Thulehuset

Wijkska huset

Gothenburg Cathedral(Domkyrkan)

The Market Hall

(Saluhallen)Apotekshuset

Harry Hjrnes platsMULTIMEDIA SHOW

Ullevi Stadium

Avenyn 1 och 2

BltespnnarparkenPHOTOS UNDER THE MISTLETOE

Heden ice rink

The main boulevard,Kungsportsavenyn

Scandinavium arena

Gamla Ullevi arena

Renstrmsparken

CHRISTMAS AT

LISEBERG

Museum of World Culture

UniverseumScience Discovery

Centre

GtaplatsenCulture Centre

CHRISTMAS FILM

l rk

r r r k r l r r

Valandkorsningen

KungsportsplatsenBrunnsparken

Kanaltorget

Kopparmrra

Vasagatan

Gothenburg City Library

StoranMUSIC AID

Kungsportsbron

Vasaparken

Charles Felix Lindbergs plats

2

1

5

6

7

8

9

10

12

13

14

15

14

Threekilometresof light and love11-31December

ThebigChristmasloveflm

at Gtaplatsen

1

A multimedia show with love

at Harry Hjrnes Plats

2

Photos of kisses under the

mistletoe in Bltespnnarparken

3


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Pirouettes and daring waltzes

at Heden ice rink

8

Renstrmspark is

a place for romance

9

Atmospheric lighting of

statues in the city

10

Playful symbols of love projected

onto the Lipstick skyscraper

11

Magical lightingat

Kungsportsplatsen

12

Thetraditional blue

illuminations on Avenyn

13

An art break amid the Christmas rush

14

Floating balls of light lit the

way to Heden ice rink

15

Three kilometres of illuminations

between the port and Liseberg

5

Lovegreetings gave donations

to the Radiohjlpen charity

6

First NewYear celebrations

at Gtaplatsen

7

The singing Christmas tree

3


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In Gothenburg there has been mutual interest incollaboration between the public and private sec-tors for many years.

This collaborative approach is most apparent

Region Gteborg, the University of Gothenburgand Chalmers University of Technology. Memberscontribute their time, commitment and nancialresources to the development of the city.

The work of the group has formed the backboneof Gteborg & Cos activities right from the start.The International Science Festival and GothenburgCulture Festival (formerly Gothenburg City Festi-val) are two events that the group was involved insetting up.

In addition to providing information and pro-moting Gothenburg, the group supports projectsin the core areas of Trade & Industry, LearningEnvironment and Events. These three areas com-plement each other and help to build an attractivecity.

A healthy business climate favours trade andindustry, and the Trade & Industry Group regularlyconducts a major survey of the business climateand future condence in the region. A new businessclimate survey was started in 2009 and the resultswill be reported in 2010.

A good learning environment makes the citymore attractive to students and researchers. Goth-enburg is one of the most popular student citiesin Sweden. The task of developing and promotingGothenburg as a city for students, research and

learning is ongoing. One example is the way inwhich Gothenburgs Student Unions, the Universityof Gothenburg, Chalmers University of Technologyand Gteborg & Cos Trade & Industry Group havecollaborated for several years to market Gothen-burg as a city for students. The rst joint marketingplan was drawn up in 2002, and this was renewedin 2009.

A city that has a lot going on is attractive toindustry and to students. It should ideally offer a

wide selection of music, culture, sport and other

INDUSTRY HELPS GOTHENBURG GROWIt is very unusual for a city the size of Gothenburg to succeed in becoming a leading centrefor learning, events and tourism in Europe. This success is built on a deliberate, long-term

partnership between industry, the city, the region and the universities. Gteborg & Cos

Trade & Industry Group plays a signicant role in this partnership.

within the Trade & Industry Group. Workingtogether within the group are 22 of the largestcompanies in the region, together with the Cityof Gothenburg, the Gothenburg Region, Business


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events. Companies can use events to foster business

relationships, and the events themselves boostcreativity and give rise to new service companies.

2009ACTIVITIESADPROJECTSATAGLACE

Company Award seminar

A seminar entitled Small and medium sized busi-nesses future winners? was held during Goth-enburg Culture Festival. Seven previous Company

Award winners were there to talk about their expe-

riences. The 2009 prize went to Berg Propulsion

Production AB on cker and Dermanord SvenskHudvrd AB in Frilless.

Global Forum

The annual Global Forum took place on 5 Octoberat the Swedish Exhibition and Congress Centre onthe theme of Global weekday 7 days a week.

Ways of sharing the fruits of globalisation was oneof the topics discussed by delegates who included:Ewa Bjrling, Minister for Trade; AS Lakshmina-

rayanan, from the Tata Group; Tom Johnstone,

from SKF; and Anders Nordstrm, from TheSwedish International Development CooperationAgency (SIDA). Around 1,100 people came to theSwedish Exhibition and Congress Centre to listen.

Young Enterprise

The Trade & Industry Group is one of the mainsponsors of Young Enterprise, a training projectfor children in the age group 1619. Its purpose isto improve understanding of how companies work

Upptckngotnytt1116augusti.


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and promote a dialogue between schools and in-

dustry. In 2009 the Young Enterprise organisationin the Gothenburg region set a new record, with1,380 young people involved in projects.

Fresh Fish

The Trade & Industry Group provided marketing sup-port for the organisation of Fresh Fish, a fair that isaimed at designers who have not yet made their mark.Since its start in 2007 the fair has attracted wide-spread publicity and is now an established event.

Fresher events

Student09 was held at the Garden Society of Goth-enburg (Trdgrdsfreningen) on 17 September.The following day marked the start of an autumn

packed with activities for students in Gothenburg.Liseberg amusement park, theatres, museums,

cultural institutions and many others invited studentsto information events and special tours. Ten thou-sand students took part in these fresher activities.

CIP FORUM

Some of the worlds leading companies andresearchers in intellectual property met at the CIPFORUM on 69 September. The central theme forthe year was future innovation processes as a motorfor growth and welfare.

Events

For many years the Trade & Industry Group hasworked closely with Gteborg & Co Events, whichcan provide direct funding for attracting new eventsin the elds of culture, entertainment and sport.

Gothenburg Culture Festival

Together with the City of Gothenburg, the Trade &Industry Group helped set up the Gothenburg CityFestival, now Gothenburg Culture Festival, and hasbeen one of the main stakeholders in this eventright from the start. An environmental gala knownas Leve Klotet (Long Live the Planet) was heldin conjunction with this years Culture Festival,

backed by funding and support from the group.

Knowledge city

The theme of the 2009 International Science Fes-tival, which began on 4 May, was People Forever.The Trade & Industry Group is one of the mainstakeholders of this celebration of knowledge andthe host of the Guest Researcher Day at the Uni-

verseum Science Discovery Centre for internationalguest teachers, researchers and doctoral studentsat the University of Gothenburg and ChalmersUniversity of Technology. In 2009 the festival had72,000 visitors, and around 30,000 teachers andstudents took part in the schools programme.


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and enterprise, the Trade & Industry Group heldtwo workshops for cultural organisers in Gothen-burg. The intention is to establish a process forthe sustainable development of culture through

the transfer of knowledge, dialogue and increasedunderstanding between culture and industry.

Other activities:

Gothenburg-Oslo partnership (GO)The EU project Corridor of Innovation and Co-operation COINCO North is a strategic develop-ment project between 15 partners that covers theresund-Kattegat-Skagerak area. Gteborg & Cochairs the section that is concerned with tourismand culture issues. The project team includesrepresentatives of the City of Gothenburg, Region

Vstra Gtaland, the City of Oslo and the municipa-lities of Akershus and stfold.

Stockholm Day

On 16 May, Gteborg & Co and Region VstraGtaland invited over 200 guests to a performanceby Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra in Stockholm,conducted by Gustavo Dudamel. In addition to themusical performance, guests were treated to a Tas-

te of Gothenburg in the form of mouth-wateringdishes prepared by master chefs Leif Mannerstrm,Ola Andersson and Robert Maglia. Sivan, fromcheese makers Sivans Ost in Vara, served up deli-cious cheeses accompanied by lashings of humour.Lasse Swahn was Master of Ceremonies.

OTHERPROJECTSITRADE&IDSTRY,THELEARIGEVIRO METADEVETSTHATRECEIVEDMARKETIGSPPORTI2009:ISCM World New Music Days

Gothenburg International Biennial or Contem-

porary Art

Art Schools autumn orchestra

Pugilist Theatre (Teater Pugilist)

Festival o Fire (Eldesten)

The Gothenburg String Theory (TGST)

Frn Regnormarnas Liv, Allika Theatre (Al-

likateatern)Ukulele Festival

Smask 2009 (Swedish Music Academy Song

Contest)

National Genius Fair (Nationella Snilleblixt-

mssan)

Entrepreneur Hunt (Entreprenrsjakten)

Idea Festival (Idestivalen)

The Gothenburg English Speaking Theatre

Gothenburg Film Award

In January, Gothenburgs Film Award was presen-ted during the opening of the Gteborg Internatio-nal Film Festival. The prize for best lm of 2008went to Jan Troell for his lm of Everlasting Mo-ments, and he accepted the prize of SEK 50,000from Gran Johansson and Birgitta L-fverholm.

Culture & Industry workshop

In a move to improve interaction between culture


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Strength is rarely achieved on our own. This holdstrue in many situations, including the tourism andconference industry. For many years Gothenburghas been an inuential member of European Cities

Marketing (ECM), which is made up of over 125cities and regions from 32 countries.

The organisation provides a network for ex-changing experiences and knowledge on tourism

IN THE INTERNATIONAL ARENABecause Gothenburg has good contacts with other cities in Europe and around the world weare able to learn from each other. This collaboration takes place mainly through the Euro-

pean Cities Marketing organisation. In June, the European tourism industry gathered in

Gothenburg for a busy week.

issues. It enables members to manage joint projectsor learn from each others experiences when theywish to develop destinations and tourism products.

Through ECM, Gothenburg regularly takes partin benchmark studies in tourism with other cities,

which give access to a wealth of information aboutinternational trends as well as many contacts withEuropes leading representatives in the industry.

In the week before Midsummer Day 2009,Gothenburg hosted two large trade meetings: CityBreak Expo and the ECM annual conference, on thetheme of Events and meetings in the city.

City Break Expo

Over a two-day period at the City Break Expo,representatives of the travel industry met witha string of Swedish and international exhibitors,including cities, regions and individual companiessuch as hotel chains and visitor attractions.This gave us a unique opportunity to show off ourcity and the region to some of the most inuentialtour operators who sell city break packages.

A total of 130 exhibitors from over 70 cities and 25countries took part. They met just over 60 of theleading tour operators in Europe.

In partnership with the organisers of City BreakExpo, Gteborg & Co invited members of theinternational travel media to the expo. Under theGothenburgPlus partnership, a number of selectedtour operators were also invited on a two-day jour-ney along the coast to see some of our best tourismproducts.

European Cities Marketing

The ECM summer conference is the largest of the


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ETWORKSFORMTALITERESTS

Gteborg & Co is a partner in several interna-tional networks:

European Cities Marketing, the most inuen-tial network or tourism in Europe. Around 130o the biggest European cities are members.

The GO collaboration is a Norwegian-Swedishpartnership between the City o Oslo, the mu-nicipalities o Akershus and stold, the city oGothenburg and Region Vstra Gtaland.

International Congress & Convention Asso-ciation, ICCA, is a worldwide organisation.

Delice Good ood cities o the world, oun-ded by the city o Lyon and comprising 18member cities.

year for the organisation, and during the confer-ence in Gothenburg delegates were able to attendseminars, group debates and working meetings.The programme was drawn up in conjunction with

the West Sweden Tourist Board and the Centrefor Tourism at the University of Gothenburg, withinput from Swedish and international research-ers and representatives of professional tourismorganisations, as well as organisers of conferencesand events. At the end of the week delegates hadthe chance to enjoy genuine Swedish midsummercelebrations at Ns castle.


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First-class cuisine is all well and good. But there aremany elements of the eating experience that cannotbe bought for money. One example is the food tra-ditions of a particular location and how they have

been preserved.Gothenburg and the west coast of Sweden are

exceptionally lucky in having fresh ingredientsfrom the sea, forests, elds and meadows to choose

FOOD THATS WORTH A JOURNEYEating out can be a big experience. It means more than just satisfying our appetite. Theingredients, the setting, the traditions and the chefs have all become means of marketing

destinations. Together with leading experts in the city, Gteborg & Co has promoted this

aspect of culture for many years through the Taste of Gothenburg initiative.

from. The region boasts sh, seafood, game, dairyproduce, berries and mushrooms of exceptionalquality. In collaboration with Gothenburg Restaur-ant Association (GRF), Gteborg & Co uses food as

an important means of promoting the city in mar-keting campaigns, PR activities and press coverage.

Chef of the Year

The nal of Chef of the Year 2009 was held in Li-sebergshallen in February. Viktor Westerlind fromthe restaurant Fredsgatan 12 in Stockholm tookthe honour in front of TV4s cameras. The personchosen as top Swedish professional chef can expectwidespread publicity, and the competition is one ofthe most prestigious in the industry.

Kungsfenan and Delice

Kungsfenan the Swedish Seafood Award whichis presented each year in Gothenburg, is the highestaward in the world for sustainable shing andmaritime gastronomy. The prizes for 2009 went tomaster chef Paul Bocuse, EU Commissioner Dr. JoeBorg and Namibias minister for shing and naturalresources, Dr. Abraham Iyambo.

Good food is an international language and

Gothenburg is a member of the Delice network ofgood food cities of the world, which was estab-lished in Lyon and now has 18 member cities. Themembers exchange experiences, research and mar-keting, focusing on food and traditions. Delice heldits annual meeting in Gothenburg in the same weekas the Swedish Seafood Award. Some forty celebritychefs from member cities took part with our ownchefs from GRF.


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Food week that draws in thefoodies

Another project on which GRF and Gteborg & Coare collaborating is a week totally dedicated to gast-

ronomy and food. The Passion for Food fair andvarious other events will be timed to coincide withthe Swedish Seafood Award to encourage morepeople to discover our fantastic food traditions. Itwill hopefully also attract foodies tourists who arepassionate about food.

Marketing campaigns

Food and restaurants were also a theme of theSwedish Cities campaign. Swedish restaurantswith Michelin stars were marketed in Germany,

Great Britain and Italy as part of a unique packagechristened Star-studded dining, with the oppor-tunity to eat at four different Michelin-starred res-taurants in one evening. Press vis its were organisedand PR lms were specially produced with theassistance of restaurateurs.

Foreign press

Food and gourmet experiences always play animportant part when Gteborg & Co invites foreignjournalists to the city. A typical event may combinefood experiences at restaurants in Gothenburgcombined with lobster shing in Bohus province.Over the course of the year, articles on food in theregion have appeared in Feinschmecker (Germany),the Wall Street Journal (US), In Viaggio (Italy) andMondo (Finland).

PR activities

Food also plays an important role in PR and cus-tomer activities. One example is the now traditio-nal Gothenburg Day that is organised jointly withRegion Vstra Gtaland whenever the GothenburgSymphony Orchestra plays at Stockholm ConcertHall. In May 2009, over 200 people were invited tosample a Taste of Gothenburg and attend a concert.


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In 2009, co-operative agreements were extendedbetween Gteborg & Co, LFV and the Association ofLarge Hotels (Storhotellgruppen). Both agreementsrepresent cornerstones in the task of making Goth-enburg accessible to tourists and visitors to events,congresses and trade fairs. The development of low-cost air travel is still vital to bring in visitors fromlarge parts of Europe and the rest of the world. Thenew initiative that City Airline is planning to start in

spring 2010 is therefore extremely encouraging.Climate issues are putting pressure on airlines to

present environmental improvements, which bringsopportunities for increased train travel from Sweden,Norway and Denmark. Gteborg & Co is carrying outseveral marketing campaigns, often with hotels andcarriers as major partners. Good travel connectionsand accommodation options also make travellersfeel more welcome. A city that is difcult to reach isunlikely to feel welcoming.

Here are some examples of campaigns and im-provements in accessibility in 2009.

Flights

Gothenburg has two international airports offeringover 60 direct ights. In spring 2010 City Airlinewill launch new services to Gothenburg from Rome,Barcelona, Malaga, Alicante, Palma and Athens. TheGothenburg-based airline then intends to build upan wide-reaching network with a large number ofairlines, with Gothenburg at its hub. This massive

commitment is unique in Europe and will have abig impact on our region, making it accessible in anentirely new way.

The Carrier Wanted project, which aims toattract more direct ights, is a joint initiative by LFVand Business Region Gteborg.

Trains

In collaboration with Visit Sweden, Gothenburg hasbeen marketed in Denmark and Norway, with localassistance from rail carriers DSB and NSB. The aimwas to package journeys that include train travelfrom our nearest neighbours. Train links north toOslo are currently being extended, which will lead toa signicant improvement.

Through the Trade & Industry Group, Gteborg& Co participates in an EU project called COINCONorth, one of the main goals of which is to improveinfrastructure and collaboration between Oslo andGothenburg.

Ferries

Tourism from Denmark has increased considerablythanks to the favourable exchange rate. Many Danescome to Sweden to shop. Stena Line has changed itstimetable to make it possible to travel from Frede-rikshamn to Gothenburg and back on the same day.

Stena Line is a partner in marketing campaignsin both Denmark and Germany.

AN OPEN CITY THAT WELCOMES PEOPLEAccessibility is a key factor in the competitiveness of a city that is located far up in the north of

Europe. Gothenburgs development as a destination depends on rail and road links, ferries andair routes. Having sufcient hotel capacity to cope with big events is of course also essential.


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Environmental measures

Guidelines for environmental certication, for orga-nisers of events and meetings:

Bottled water and disposable items were elimina-

ted from ofces

Electricity consumption is monitored andenergy-saving measures have been introduced

Consumption of ofce paper was reduced bymore than 10 per cent

Better routines introduced for waste manage-ment and recycling

More bikes bought for the use of staff and morebusiness journeys made by public transport

Routines introduced for environmental informa-tion and training of new employees

Environmental declarations required from majorsuppliers

Environmentally certied events

Gothenburg City Race, with a clear environ-mental prole that sets an example to the rest ofthe racing world, was held for the second year atFrihamnspiren in central Gothenburg

Gothenburg Culture Festival and the Leve Klotet(Living Planet) gala, which was devoted entirely toactivities that encourage a sustainable lifestyle

Way Out West, an internationally celebrated mu-sic festival with a clear environmental focus, washeld for the third time in Slottsskogen city park

ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURAL DIVERSITYAll human activity affects the environment, and it is important to reduce our negative impact

as much as possible. Gteborg & Co takes active measures to support the environment andsustainability in all the activities and events in which it is involved. We consider and respectthe environment in all our activities and decisions. Gteborg & Co has held an environ-

mental certication since 2008. The rst environmental audit was carried out in 2009 andthe company was re-certied by Gothenburg Environmental Administration. Gteborg & Co

works actively to combat discrimination and to promote equal rights for everyone.

Diversity and equality

In autumn an equality and diversity group was setup to manage the preparation of an action plancovering this area. All employees have receiveddiversity training.

The company supports and collaborates withorganisations in the region that contribute to ahumane, attractive and sustainable Gothenburg.During the Culture Festival a Host Project wasconducted jointly with the public housing compa-nies in the Framtiden group, and 200 young peoplewere trained as hosts.


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Together with the West Sweden Tourist Council, theMedia Centre shows off the city and the region tovisiting press. This means, for example, that we cancombine lobster shing in Bohusln province with

TV is the most powerful medium and has the greatestimpact. Under the Gteborg Plus partnership a com-mitment was made to the Newsmarket news portal,which supplies video material to TV channels all over

the world. Seventeen video clips from Gothenburgand west Sweden were published and broadcast to 23million viewers in 42 countries.

Lobster safari and music

Good editorial exposure is generally an effective wayof reaching many people, and carries high credibility.It reinforces the image of the destination and thebrand.

The Chinese magazine MG surprised us with afantastic 46-page report on Gothenburg.

The German magazine Feinschmecker travel-led from Gothenburg to Fjllbacka in a quest forgood seafood. The Danish newspaper Nordjyskeinterviewed Gustavo Dudamel for a full-page articleheaded Musics answer to Obama. Norwegian ma-gazine D2 carried an 11-page article on the HasselbladPrize. The Wall Street Journal went on a lobster safari.

On TV in February, the biggest travel programmein the Netherlands, 3 op Reis, showed a long featureon Gothenburg. Beyond Travel was a big TV seriesin China that was produced in collaboration with theSwedish consulate in Shanghai, Visit Sweden and theSwedish Institute. The result was 10 programmes of25 minutes each that featured a great deal of materialfrom Gothenburg.

The together city

In autumn, some 30 meetings were held in connec-tion with Swedens presidency of the EU. The MediaCentre was responsible for project management ofmedia and communications activities on behalf of

GOTHENBURG IN THE MEDIAThe word media no longer just means the press, radio and TV. It now includes a string ofchannels on the Internet such as social networking sites, blogs and web magazines. In 2009

the Media Centre worked with all these channels as well as producing its own material on

YouTube, Flickr and Newsmarket.

gourmet events in Gothenburg, or a GothenburgChristmas City market with Christmas dinner andwestern Swedish hospitality. Lifestyle events, cuisine,design, culture and shopping are recurring themes.


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the City of Gothenburg, Region Vstra Gtaland andthe County Administrative Board under the motto

The together city. Delegates and foreign journalistsreceived information about our city and the region

before and during every meeting.

Swedish media

Events in Gothenburg are frequently covered by theSwedish media. Here is a selection of events that wereseen on Swedish TV or heard on radio in 2009. Theyall received widespread coverage in the press as well.

MAYEVETSI2009WEREWI DELYCOVEREDBYSWEDISHRADIOADTV.HEREISASELECTIO:

P3 Gold Music Awards, 17/1, Scandinavium Swedish Song Contest, 7/2, Scandinavium Gteborg Horse Show, 2528/2 Scandina-

vium Pop Idol auditions, recorded in March, Eriks-

bergshallen Sweden v. Brazil, Football, 25/4 Gamla

Ullevi arena Sweden v. Malta World Cup qualifer, 10/6 UEFA Under-21 2009, 1529/6 Gamla Ullevi

arena

STCC, Gothenburg City Race, 56/6, Fri-hamnspiren

Lotta at Liseberg, summer, Liseberg amuse-ment park

Finland v. Sweden Athletics, 2930/8, UlleviStadium

Pop Idol, Semi fnals, Scandinavium, 4/12 Music Aid, 1420/12, at Storan Theatre Dinner Ideas on TV4 morning programme,

1423/12 Lottas Christmas at Liseberg, Nov/Dec Gothenburger o the Year, 16/12, Nordstan

shopping centre Frlunda v. Frjestad, ice hockey, Ullevi

Stadium, 28/12 Eldsjlsgalan 30/12, Lisebergshallen

plus Che o the Year, Samsung AthleticsGala, Dreamhack, Metaltown, GothenburgCulture Festival, Way Out West, EU summitmeetings, and more.

During a Gothenburg Christmas City, well-

known Gothenburg chefs presented dinnerideas on TV4s morning programme.Here, Hkan Thrnstrm shows how to pre-pare honey-glazed ribs with peppered apples.


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Around a year ago it was decided that an integratedapproach was needed and that a modern new identityshould be created for Gteborg & Co as a company,

launched during Gothenburg Culture Festival.All communication that comes from Gteborg &

Co and the City of Gothenburg contributes to build-ting the image of the company and the destination.

It is important to be consistent and clear so that theimages of the brands we convey are as harmoniousas possible. The goal of the graphic prole is thatit should aid communication and, among otherthings, convey the values and characteristics thathave been agreed.The new graphic prole will govern all communica-tion by the company and all marketing by the cityand destination Gothenburg. It creates a familiaridentity that will be recognised and strengthen theimage of our city.

Graphic manuals

The graphic manuals that were produced duringthe year describe how we use the brand graphicallyand serve as guidelines that specify the way thingsshould look. They enable us to create the asso-ciations we want people to make with our brand.Using the brand consistently will help us to becomeeven more competitive.

Launching the new prole

The new prole for destination Gothenburg wasrst used at the opening of Gothenburg CultureFestival in August. The new logo could be seenduring the day at the tourist information ofces, onroad signs leading into the city and at GothenburgLandvetter Airport, among other places.

A ve-metre long model of the logo was unveiled atStoran Theatre by Gran Johansson, Chairman ofGteborg & Co.

GOTHENBURGS NEW PROFILETogether we are creating an image of GothenburgInternationally, Gothenburg is a small destination and competition for tourists, events and

large conferences is tough. It is important to present a strong, clear and consistent image of

the destination Gothenburg.

and for Gothenburg as a destination.The new graphic prole was produced in collabora-tion with the design agency Happy F&B, and was


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Continuing to develop our visualidentity

It is through collaboration that the city develops,

and in an effort to improve the competitive strengthof destination Gothenburg in the long term wecollaborate with other destination stakeholders.One link in this work is creating a powerful andconsistent image of Gothenburg through a commongraphic identity. A number of destination s take-holders in Gothenburg can therefore use the gologos together with Gothenburgs new logo inaccordance with guidelines from Gteborg & Co.The rst to use the new communication conceptwas the City of Gothenburgs Cultural AffairsAdministration. One of the initiatives taken in

collaboration with Gteborg & Co was a campaignpromoting Gothenburg as the theatre capital.

Beta version of new goteborg.com islaunched

In October a beta version of goteborg.com waslaunched with a fresh design and new features. Thenew website makes it easier for visitors to get abroad picture of whats happening in Gothenburg,as well as making it easier to plan and book traveland to share their own recommendations.The new site was produced in collaboration withCPB, who did the design work, and Visit Techno-logy, who handled the technical aspects. The betaor test version was launched at the same time asa Gothenburg Christmas City. Development workon the site continued over autumn and winter. Thenal release of goteborg.com will be in spring 2010.


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Management

Responsible for the overall, long-term, strategic task of developingGothenburg as a destination.Management is also responsiblefor overall business developmentand selected strategic projects and

partnerships. The management team is made upof the heads of the various business areas and staffdepartments. The CEO also has overall responsib-ility for all staff.Managing Director: Leif Nilsson, CEO

Meetings

Gothenburg Convention Bureau(GCB) is the international name ofthe unit that works to attract morecongresses, exhibitions, conferencesand corporate meetings to Gothen-burg. Gteborg & Co acts as a link

between meeting organisers and local companiesin the meetings industry, as well as local decision-makers. Collaboration agreements have been drawnup with over 90 member companies that representthe tourism industry in Gothenburg.Employees: 9 Manager: Lennart Johansson

Leisure travel

Gteborg & Co works to market,package and promote Gothenburgas a tourist destination over thelong term. In its marketing role, G-teborg & Co collaborates with hotels,carriers, Liseberg amusement park,

Universeum Science Discovery Centre, GteborgOpera House, Got Event, museums, theatres, sight-seeing companies, restaurants, trade and industry,events organisers and many others.Employees: 9 Acting manager: Lars hrman

intended as a leading platform for collaboration on desti-

nation development that meets international standards.

CEO

BOARD

Research &Development

Media centre Marketing Visitor ServiceAdministration,HR, Legal, IT,

Finance, Security

CollaborationCommunication

InternationalCollaboration

MEETINGS

COMMITTEE

LEISURE TRAVEL EVENTSTRADE & INDUSTRY

GROUP

COMMITTEE COMMITTEE COMMITTEE

LarshrmanLeifilsson LennartJohansson

ORGANISATION


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Events

Gothenburg intends to be one ofthe leading events cities in Europeby offering a rich and diverse range

of events. The department attractsnew events, develops new ideas,supports and develops regular

events, assists and collaborates with arenas andorganisers, and project manages its own events.Employees: 19 Manager: Svante Hjertn

Trade & Industry Group

The Trade & Industry Group is aplatform for collaboration betweentrade and industry, organisa-

tions, regional municipalities anduniversities. The group focuses ontrade and industry, the learning

environment and events. The group includes aroundtwenty large companies in addition to the City ofGothenburg, the Association of Local Authorities forthe Gothenburg region, Business Region Gteborg,Chalmers University of Technology and the Univer-sity of Gothenburg.Employees: 4 Manager: Birgitta L-fverholm

International CollaborationGothenburg is a member of inter-national networks that have beenset up to exchange experiences andknowledge, such as European CitiesTourism (ECM) and Delice Goodfood cities of the world. The unit

also takes care of company-wide agreements andbusiness development.Manager: Camilla Nyman

Research & Development

As part of the strategic task of des-tination development we need agreat deal of information. Every year

we carry out special analyses, surveysand studies, often in collaborationwith the Centre for Tourism at the

School of Business, Economics and Law in Gothen-burg. The aim is to raise our level of knowledge aboutthe tourism industry throughout Sweden.Employees: 2 Manager: Ossian Stiernstrand

Administration

The unit supports the companysbusiness areas and service units in the

areas of nance, law, human resources,IT and security, so that the companycan manage its activities as efciently aspossible. Administration also promotesgreater awareness of nancial require-ments and the need for environmentalefciency throughout the organisation.Employees: 11 Manager: Lars hrmanFinancial manager: Gunilla Hammer

Communication

CollaborationAll communication, whetherinternal or external, must be for-mulated with the aim of meetingour ultimate goal, to strengthen theGothenburg brand. Co-ordination

of communication is a strategic resource for mana-gement and the company in the communicationseld.Manager: Therese Brusberg

Media Centre

Exposure in the national and inter-national media through the pressservice and organised press visits

increases interest in Gothenburg asa destination. The Media Centre alsoserves as a service unit for the whole

company. Its work includes planning and implemen-tation of targeted press activities, follow-up activitiesand analysis.Employees: 4 Manager: Stefan Gadd

Marketing

The department consists of an in-house bureau and web bureau that

design and produce the companysmarketing communications on behalfof the companys various businessareas. The web bureau is responsible

for Gothenburgs ofcial destination guide, goteborg.com, and creates several campaign sites each year.Employees: 13 Manager: Agneta Forshufvud

Visitor Service

The tourist information centres inGothenburg have won several prizes

for their excellent service. Around600,000 customers are assistedeach year by the tourist informationcentres at Kungsportsplatsen and

in Nordstan shopping centre, as well as the contactcentre and chat lines on goteborg.com. Brochuresdistributed by the tourist service provide informa-tion to visitors in around 80 strategic locations.Employees: 17 Manager: Annelie Karlsson

StefanGadd

AgnetaForshufvud

OssianStiernstrand

AnnelieKarlsson

Camillayman

BirgittaLfverholm

ThereseBrusberg

SvanteHjertn

GunillaHammer

Larshrman


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Board of Gteborg & Co

GunnelAhoViceChairman(Con.)CityofGothenburg

GranJohanssonChairman,(Soc.Dem.),CityofGothenburg

LennartMankertManagingDirector,TheSwedishExhibitionCentre

LennartOlaussonManagingDirector,BusinessRegionGteborg

MatsWedinManagingDirector,Liseberg

BjrnSandmarkHeadofCulturalAffairsCityofGothenburg

ThomasTorkelssonManagingDirector,GotEvent

AndersLarssonRepr.CityfreningentradeassociationDirectorofMarketingordstan

BengtLindeRestaurateur,Babar

RichardFredrikssonManagingDirector,QualityHotel11&Eriksbergshallen

ClaesBerglundRouteDirector,StenaLine

MarkusOddestadHotelManagerHotelRoyal

MatsilssonChairman,Trade&IndustryGroupVicePresidentABVolvo

LarsRehnman(coopted)ManagingDirector,niverseum

OlleSundin(coopted)ManagingDirector,GroupAirportsDivisionGteborgLandvetterAirport

BrjeRdesjHeadofEducation,GothenburgRegionAssociationofLocal

Authorities

JoacimCarlssonAreamanagerGothenburg,VicePresidentWestSwedenCham

berofCommerce

GranBengtsson(coopted),DeputyCountyGovernorofVstraGtaland

LeifilssonCEO,Gteborg&Co

SabineSndergaardSecretaryoftheBoardPresidentLaw&Solution

SiwFranznStaffrepresentative,Gteborg&Co

DESTINATION DEVELOPMENTTHROUGH BROAD COLLABORATION

Networks provide fresh ideas and motiva-

tion, and promote development. For two

decades Gteborg & Co has served as a plat-

form for collaboration that allows the public

and private sectors to meet and develop

Gothenburg as a destination, and a city of

learning and events.

This approach of involving many different parts ofthe city, its institutions and industry, is a model for

success that many have tried but few have man-taged to copy. Commitment and willingness to worktogether only develop out of working towards thesame goals over the long term.Each of the business areas of Gteborg & Co has acommittee made up of representatives of ownersand partners. These committees guide much ofthe practical work of each of the business areas:Meetings, Trade & Industry Group, Leisure traveland Events.The boards overriding task is to establish businessplans and take other strategic decisions, as well as

contributing expertise and trend analyses based ontheir respective professional roles.The board and the various committees are presen-ted here.


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LottaVahlneniversityofGothenburg/SchoolofBusiness,EconomicsandLaw

LennartMankertManagingDirector,TheSwedishExhibitionCentre

HkanBeskowCityofGothenburg

JohanCarlstenChalmersniversityofTechnology

LeifilssonGteborg&CoCEO

ChristerJohanssonGothenburgRestaurantAssociation

inniLidnSJ

BjrnRydevikSahlgrenskaAcademy

LenaStvmoTheLFVGroup

MagnusHallbergTheAssociationofLargeHotels

MalinFranckTheAssociationofLargeHotels

TorkildBerglundSAS

lricaCrambyGteborgConventionCentre

TereseWibeckTheAssociationofGothenburgHotels

LennartJohanssonGteborg&Co

MarieJacobssonCongrex

HenrikSvenssonMCI

Meetings Committee Gteborg & Co


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JerkerDellbladTheAssociationofLargeHotels

RonnieHallgrenGothenburgCityTheatre

BertSaluaarTheAssociationof

GothenburgHotels

LennartBlimanTheAssociationofLargeHotels


PeterHanssonGteborgOperaHouse

MatsWedinLiseberg

ThomasTorkelssonGotEvent

PetterllbergTheSwedishExhibitionCentre

BjrnSandmarkGothenburgCultureCommittee

SvanteHjertnGteborg&Co

BirgittaLfverholmGteborg&Co

HelenaWessmanGothenburg

ConcertHall

AnnaFalckGothenburgBookFair

LarshrmanGteborg&Co

CarinaHalvordniverseum

JerkerDellbladTheAssociationofLargeHotels

MatsWedinLiseberg

KristianAndreassonTheAssociationofLargeHotels

CharlotteLjunggrenStenaLine

PelleJohannissonLiseberg

BertSalurTheAssociationofGothenburgHotels


Leisure Travel Committee Gteborg & Co Events Committee Gteborg & Co


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EricilssonThePortofGothenburg

EvaLejdbrandtChalmersniversityofTechnology

AndersBergbrantAstraZeneca

MagnusErsmanSwedishPropertyFederationGothenburg

MalinEngelbrechtCastellum

MariaPalmobelBiocare

MatsDynevikSkanska

OlleSundinGteborgLandvetterAirport

BoAronssonGothenburgRegionAssociationofLocalAuthorities

SivBondensBrinkTheniversityofGothenburg

JohnolofOlssonTheGothenburgTradeAssociation

ManneAronssonCC

BjornThorsteinsrudHandelsbanken

MatsEngstrmordea

HenrikBrttemarkPosten

AnnCharlotteWidnSAS

BengtG.JohanssonSCAHygieneProducts

LennartSondnSEB

IngalillstmanSKF

JoakimKenndalStenaLine

CaritaKalnSwedbank

ClaesLarsssonTeliaSonera

BirgittaLfverholmGteborg&Co

BengtMagnussonVolvoCarsSweden

PetterllbergTheSwedishExhibitionCentre

Trade & Industry Group Committee Gteborg & Co

LeifilssonGteborg&CoViceChairman

MatsilssonVolvoChairman

LennartOlaussonBusinessRegionGteborg


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ANNUAL REPORTAnnual Report for the nancial year 1 January 2009 to

31 December 2009

The Board of Directors and the CEO of Gteborg & Co Trffpunkt AB herebysubmit the following Annual Report.

All amounts are in SEK unless otherwise stated.

DIRECTORSREPORT

Ownership

Gteborg & Co Trffpunkt AB is owned by Gteborg & Co Kommunintressent

AB (50%), Gothenburg Region Association of Local Authorities (15%), WestSweden Chamber of Commerce and Industry (5%), Swedish Exhibition andCongress Centre (5%), Stena Line AB (5%), Association of Large Hotels (5%),City Association (5%), Association of Gothenburg Hotels (5%) and SHR/Goth-enburg Restaurant Association (5%).

Gteborg & Co Kommunintressent AB is owned in turn by the City of Gothen-burg (55%), Liseberg AB (15%) and Got Event AB (30%).

Operations in 2009

Gteborg & Co Trffpunkt AB has the task of marketing and taking part in the

development of Gothenburg as a tourist, knowledge and event city. The com-pany shall be an internationally leading cooperation platform for destinationdevelopment. It is owned jointly by the municipality and the business sector.

Despite the global nancial crisis and recession, Gothenburg tourism suc-ceeded in meeting its growth targets in 2009 for the 18th consecutive year. Weestimate that visitors spent approximately SEK 23 billion in 2009, and that thesector therefore created nearly 17,000 full-time equivalent jobs in the Gothen-burg region.

In 2009, Gteborg & Co was responsible for several major events, such as theUEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, the International ScienceFestival, Gothenburg Culture Festival and Gothenburg Christmas City.

It was also a big summer for music, including ve major concerts at UlleviArena.

International marketing campaigns for the destination of Gothenburg were im-plemented in Norway, Denmark, Germany, Italy and the UK, often in collabora-tion with Visit Sweden. Strategic cooperation with Region Vstra Gtaland todevelop the GotehenburgPlus concept is in progress.

Cooperation between Gteborg & Co and Got Event increased during the year,in accordance with the new ownership directives and ownership agreementdecided in 2008. Gteborg & Co is responsible for attracting events, marketingand sponsorship, while Got Events is responsible for the operation of arenas

and the technical production of events.

The global recession had a negative impact on ordinary business travel. How-ever, private travel was strong in the high seasons (summer and Christmasmonths). Swedes holidayed at home to a greater extent, while foreign visitorsbeneted from the exchange rate, which increased tourism particularly fromour immediate neighbouring countries. Overall, the decline in business travelwas offset by the increase in private travel.

The fact that 2009 was such a strong event year for music, sport and culturewas of tremendous importance.

With regard to future development, the company prioritises participation in thefollowing areas:

increasing accessibility by stimulating the development of new train, airand ferry services

increasing efforts to attract cultural, entertainment and sports events aswell as congresses, trade shows, meetings and corporate activities


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increasing marketing of the destination in strategic markets together withthe City of Gothenburg, Vstra Gtaland region and the tourist industry

creating long-term agreements for events

developing and renewing the major arenas and facilities in the city.

Performance and nancial position

The following table shows the companys performance with regard to somecentral earnings measures and key ratios (amounts in SEK thousand):

2009 2008 2007 2006

Operating income 248,429 213,937 224,309 279,937

Proft ater fnancial items 1,317 497 1,277 9,135

Total assets 78,898 66,084 91,593 133,231

Equity/assets ratio* 22.3% 26.6% 20.3% 14.1%Average number o employees 112 103 102 112

Sales per employee 2,218 2,077 2,199 2,499

*Equity + 73.7% of untaxed reserves/total assets

Tourist development in the Gothenburg region

2009 2008 2007 2006

Total tourist sales SEKm 22,700 23,000 22,780 21,600

Market share o commercial hoteland youth hostel nights 10.7% 11.1% 11.3% 11.5%

Number o employees in travel andtourist industries 16,500 16,900 16,600 15,660

Forecast gures for 2009. Outcome for other years.

Proposed appropriation of prots

The following prots are at the disposal of the Annual General Meeting:

Proft brought orward 7,199,198Net proft or the year 8,565

Total (SEK): 7,207,763

The Board of Directors and the CEO propose that the prots be appropriated sothat SEK 7,207,763 is carried forward.

ICOMESTATEMET

Note 2009 2008

Operating income 1 248,429,255 213,936,825

Cost o services sold -43,693,746 -45,944,451

Other external costs 2-3 -140,480,048 -113,364,520

Personnel costs 4-5 -62,308,319 -56,682,842

Depreciation o property, plant and equip-ment 6 -1,048,111 -840,550

Total operating expenses -247,530,224 -216,832,363

Operating proft 899,031 -2,895,538

Interest income 434,122 3,408,476

Interest expense and similar proft/lossitems -16,072 -16,069

Proft ater fnancial items 1,317,081 496,869

Appropriations 7 183,735 1,389,470

Deerred tax -6,204 -13,815

Tax on proft or the year -1,486,047 -1,870,094

Net proft or the year 8,565 2,430


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BALACESHEETNote 31 Dec 2009 31 Dec 2008

ASSETS

Property, plant and equipment Equipment 6 2,762,236 2,761,570

Financial assets

Shares in associated companies 8 350,000 350,000

Other shares and interests 9 146,000 146,000

Total non-current assets 3,258,236 3,257,570

Documents

Göteborg & Co - Annual report 2009