THE 2015 OXFORD CHEESE TRAIL

Transcription

1 THE 2015 OXFORD CHEESE TRAIL

2 DEFINING FOOD TOURISM Any tourism experience in which one learns about, appreciates, and/or consumes food and drink that reflects the local, regional or national cuisine, heritage, culture, tradition or culinary techniques. IT S NOT A MEAL. IT S A MEMORY. Erik Wolf, World Food Travel Association

3 GIVING THE PEOPLE WHAT MOTIVATIONS OF FOOD TOURISTS THEY WANT

4 ATTRACTING THE FOOD TOURIST - WIIFM Expand Audience New Products + Experiences to Market Increase Visitation Increase Revenue Create New Partnerships Business

5 CHARACTERISTICS OF FOOD TOURISTS Interested in origin of products Above avg. expenditure Value goes beyond price Adventurous Highly loyal Masters of social media Want the VIP treatment They want to be told a

6 GIVING THE Tourists want to experience local food PEOPLE WHAT as a souvenir experience and a way THEY WANT to connect with the local culture. - Rebecca Sims

7 SHOW & TELL TASTE 81% of respondents indicated ability to try locally sourced products was important when choosing a culinary activity TOUR 43% of respondents look for guided tours when choosing a destination TAKE AWAY 67% of respondents indicated option to take home products was important when choosing a culinary activity 2013 Ryerson University: Profile of the Ontario Culinary

8 FOOD TOURISTS AREN T JUST COMING FOR A MEAL... ACTIVITY PARTICIPANTS IN ANY FOOD ACTIVITY % PARTICIPANTS IN NO FOOD ACTIVITY % VISIT HISTORIC SITES OUTDOOR ADVENTURE GO TO THE THEATRE VISITING GARDENS GOLFING GO TO MUSIC FESTIVAL GO TO A SPA Source: Tams Study

9 FOR THOSE WHO THINK YOUNG: FOR THOSE WHO THINK ATTRACTING THE YOUNG: THE MILLENNIAL MILLENNIAL TRAVELLER

10 FOOD TOURISTS ARE GETTING YOUNGER F&B is the biggest deciding travel factor for Canadians (2012 TIAC/ Deloitte survey) 83% of Canadian travelers under 45 share their experiences through social media (2012 TIAC/Deloitte survey) Annual purchasing power of Millennials est. at $170B (ComScore) By 2020, Millennials will represent HALF of all global travel spending ( The Rise of the Millennial Traveler

11 WHAT ARE MILLENIALS LOOKING FOR? CHARACTERISTICS Experiential, immersive travel experiences Co-creation, collaboration, curation Content, constant communication Information about where their food is coming from Restaurant tips from friends TRENDING Communal dining Farm-to-table experiences Small batch, artisanal products For many young chowhounds, their edible adventures involve a mix of high and low, exotic and local, tough-to-book it restaurants and undiscovered gems The Globe & Mail, August

12 GIVING THE THE 2015 PEOPLE OXFORD WHAT CHEESE TRAIL THEY

13 WHY OXFORD? WHY CHEESE? Canada s Dairy Capital Home to Canada s first cheese factory Produce the most dairy milk in Ontario Tied with Perth County as having most dairy cattle in province Ingersoll Cheese Museum THE MODEL Pay to Play (Stakeholders Pay) Criteria Based Application Process Full and Associate Memberships Available TARGET MARKETS Food Tourists Residents VFR Market Nearby Regions (Kitchener-Waterloo, London, Stratford

14 Best Practice APPLE PIE TRAIL: COLLINGWOOD & BLUE MOUNTAINS Est Award-winning 33 stops Restaurants, bakeries, cideries, museums, farmers markets, culinary schools, accommodations Legend with info about apple varieties QR code Sponsors Adventure packages Biking Fishing Spa packages Gondola

15 Best Practice VERMONT CHEESE TRAIL Vermont Cheese Council Vermont Cheesemakers Festival Awards, recipes, blog Resource section lists associate programs For Chefs / For Retailers section Distribution information Search by type of milk or cheese Members: Cheesemakers (32) Associate Members (16) Farmers Market Agricultural Museum Retailers Other Farm Classifications

16 THE OXFORD CHEESE TRAIL BENEFITS Increased revenue Drives traffic Build partnerships Support Oxford s agricultural sector Participate in the local food movement Build regional pride Networking opportunities Leverage marketing and promotional opportunities New experiences to market Increased market

17 HOW CAN I JOIN?

18 COME ONE, COME ALL The Food Tourism Value Chain Accommodations Attractions Beverage Producers Culinary Schools Farmers Markets Festivals & Events Growers & Producers Restaurants Retailers

19 CRITERIA TO PARTICIPATE Use local cheese or dairy (or a strongly related product) Promote and clearly label Oxford cheese/ dairy products Provide visitors with easily accessible information about the Trail Be open for min. of 8 months/year and hold regular hours for a min. of 3 days/year Maintain a clean, welcoming space Educate staff to speak about the product and Trail in a passionate, engaging manner Cross-promote other Trail members and the experiences being offered Meet tourism market readiness criteria

20 CRAFTING YOUR SIGNATURE CHEESE EXPERIENCE

21 WHAT COULD I OFFER? Cheese pairings Fresh cheese curds Cheese rolling competition Heritage tours Vat tastings Guided flight of aged cheeses Cheesemaking classes Cooking or baking classes Recipes Ice cream making demonstrations Branded Oxford Cheese Trail cheese boards Locally made cheesecake Fondue parties Grilled cheese sandwiches Celebration of weekly curd release Picnic/Ploughman s

22 ARE YOU A CHEESE MAKER? Create a dedicated retail space Offer samples! Pair cheeses with other regional products (e.g. preserves, bread, maple syrup) Offer cheesemaking classes Partner with a chef for a cooking demonstration Partner with a local entertainer to provide programming on weekends Three Shepherds (Vermont) 3 day cheesemaking classes Schoolhouse Market with picnic supplies Shelburne Farms (Vermont) Aged cheddars Agri-environmental education centre Guided tours Inn on-site for dining and accommodations

23 ARE YOU A RESTAURANT? Offer a Build Your Own / Mix n Match Cheese Board Suggest cheese pairings with an Ontario beverage Identify local cheeses on menu Host a Meet the Cheese maker dinner Serve a smaller item featuring cheese to encourage visitors to make multiple Trail stops Host cheese tastings for staff Organize a staff field trip to a local cheese maker Cheesewerks (Toronto) Feast ON designee Board member loyalty program Bi-monthly trivia nights with food trivia Retail space

24 ARE YOU A RETAILER? Offer cheese tastings or flights Sell branded Oxford Cheese Trail cheese boards Host a Meet the Cheesemaker demo day Partner with a chef to do a cooking demonstration Create a cheese-themed in store display Encourage guests to share photos Offer BYO picnic lunches featuring Oxford cheese Provide list of nearby picnic spaces Crème Fraiche Market Café (Toronto) Commitment pledge on website with promotion of local sourcing Pop up farmers market Workshops Our Farmers section Sell Oxford cheese! Social media, newsletter

25 ARE YOU AN ATTRACTION? Create educational signage Communicate history of cheese production in the region Host tours, classes Partner with a food truck to add F&B Add a colourful cow statue on site with a QR code to check in Encourage visitors to take selfies to be entered to win Host a pop up farmers market or cheesethemed event Cheese rolling competition Chef cook-off Curd festival National Historic Cheesemaking Center (Wisconsin) Working cheese factory on site June is Dairy Month Tours Cheesemaking Days

26 ARE YOU AN ACCOMMODATION? Associate membership Offer local cheese at breakfast Serve local cheese board at check-in Use branded Oxford Cheese Trail cheese boards Promote Trail to guests and provide map Organize staff field trip to visit local cheese maker ARE YOU AN EVENT? Add farmers market with local cheese vendors Add food vendors / trucks with local cheese Create Say Cheese! photo booth Cooking with Cheese demonstrations Cheesemaking classes Cheese curd eating competition

27 GET THE WHEEL ROLLING Fill out an Application Form Information to provide: Contact Details Expression of Intent Type of Business Type of Experience Contact Tourism Oxford for suggestions IMPORTANT: STATEMENTS OF INTEREST MUST BE RECEIVED PRIOR TO JULY 10, 2015.

28 YOUR FEEDBACK MATTERS. MEREDITH MAYWOOD Tourism Specialist, County of Oxford JULIA GILMORE Product Developer, OCTA