Melbourne motor show cancelled

Citing declining support from manufacturers and plummeting attendance figures, organisers have been forced to cancel the 2013 Australian International Motor Show, which was due to open in Melbourne in June.

In a statement, Russ Tyrie, event director of the Australian International Motor Show, said, “We have made the decision to not proceed with this year's Show based on a consensus view of the Automotive Industry to focus limited marketing budgets in 2013 on firm specific activities rather than an industry based Motor Show. In not proceeding with the Show in 2013, Australia is following a global trend that has been apparent for several years, where cities do not always have a Motor Show. This trend is evident in the recent suspension of Motor Shows in London, Zagreb and Amsterdam”.

It can cost manufacturers up to $2million to build and operate a motor show stand for 10 days and many have been choosing not to attend.

To help eliminate some of these costs, the Australian International Motor Show alternates between Melbourne and Sydney in a deal that was set up in 2009.

However, brands are still finding it too expensive and at last year’s Sydney show, Audi, BMW and Ferrari stayed away.

Attendance from the public has also dropped away over the last 15 years. The Sydney show peaked in 1998 with over 250,000 visitors, but this figure has nearly halved to the 135,000 that attended in 2012. Melbourne has suffered a similar decline in attendance from a peak of 250,000 in 2004 down to 155,000 in 2011.

The Sydney show is next due to run in 2014.