CEO Update: April 2025

24 Apr 2025 / Melbourne Royal News

During April, Melbourne Royal welcomed to Melbourne Showgrounds more than 16,000 delegates for Amway China’s Leadership Seminar, the largest incentive program to ever come to Australia and the largest outbound incentive from China.

Six waves of delegates, each with up to 2700 delegates visited Melbourne Showgrounds during April to attend business sessions and a gala dinner to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Amway China’s Leadership Seminar. The last event day at Melbourne Showgrounds is on Monday 28 April and I thank Carl Wen, Director of Special Events, Amway China and his team for choosing Melbourne Showgrounds as their celebration venue.

Amway China’s Leadership Seminar has been a wonderful opportunity to showcase the versatility of Melbourne Showgrounds and our highly experienced and talented Melbourne Royal team along with our quality service providers such as Dean & McPherson catering and Encore Event Technologies.

Our Melbourne Royal team worked in close collaboration with Encore and Dean & McPherson to ensure every detail was meticulously planned and executed to create memorable and impactful events for Amway China’s 30th-anniversary celebrations.

Remarkably for each of the six gala dinners held in the Grand Pavilion, Dean & McPherson catering plated and served three courses to 2700 guests within 55 minutes. The menu featured crayfish for entrée, wagyu beef for main course and an amazing limoncello dessert.

Encore transformed the Grand Pavilion into a dining setting like no other, featuring expansive video screens, incredible theming and fabulous Australiana entertainment for delegates to enjoy. 

Grand Pavilion, Gala Dinner

 

Livestock Pavilion, Leadership Summit

 

Amway China’s Leadership Seminar is estimated to generate $100 million in economic impact inclusive of the delegates staying at eight hotels across the city, generating approximately 32,000 hotel room nights. I congratulate Melbourne Convention Bureau Chief Executive Julia Swanson for successfully winning the bid for the event to be held in Melbourne.

The event has attracted significant international attention, helping to amplify the profile and reputation of Melbourne Showgrounds as a premier international event venue.

 

Happy New Membership Year

Membership subscriptions are now open for the year ending 31 March 2026.

Melbourne Royal membership offers extraordinary value with a range of unique benefits and privileges across our events, competitions and programs, including the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show. 

In addition to enjoying great value and benefits at the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show, your membership subscription will help support Melbourne Royal continue to successfully celebrate agriculture, cultivate world class events and strengthen communities.

To join or renew your membership, visit melbourneroyal.com.au

 

Nominations for Elected Directors

Applications are now open for suitably qualified members to join Board as an Elected Director and make a valuable contribution to support our organisation. Applications are encouraged from appropriately qualified professionals with significant experience serving on a Board as a non-executive director.

Any Melbourne Royal member who is seeking to be a candidate as an Elected Director must:

  • be a financial member as at 31 May 2025 for the current financial year (1 April 2025 – 31 March 2026); and
  • have the suitable qualifications, skills and experience to discharge the functions of a non- executive Director as determined by the Board;
  • be nominated by two other Melbourne Royal members.

Applications close 5pm, 31 May 2025. Further information is available here. 

 

Entries opening for Blue Ribbon Competitions

Entries are progressively opening for Blue Ribbon competitions to be held at 2025 Melbourne Royal Show from 25 September to 5 October.

Woodchop entries are now open, and Horses in Action will open on 29 April, with more sections to follow in the coming weeks - check the website for updates and details.

I sincerely thank members of our Competitive Section Committees for the time they have generously devoted to assisting us maximise the appeal and success of their respective competition Schedules for the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show.

 

Judging the world’s best beers at Melbourne Showgrounds

Judging of the 2025 Australian International Beer Awards, the largest beer competition in the world judging both draught and packaged beer, will take place from 6–9 May at Melbourne Showgrounds.

We are most grateful to Tina Panoutsos, Warren Pawsey, and Justin Fox who will lead a world class judging panel made up of 75 global brewing professionals. Each of the judges bring unique skills, industry insights and sensory strengths to successfully judge more than 2300 beers over 4 days.

The world’s best beers will be announced at the 2025 Trophy Presentation Dinner on Thursday 15 May in the Victoria Pavilion at Melbourne Showgrounds and you are welcome to attend the night of nights for the beer and brewing industry. Tickets sell out fast for this event, so if you enjoy a beer or two, be quick to secure your tickets.

Cheers

Brad Jenkins, Melbourne Royal CEO