Encore Event Technologies APAC orchestrated an unparalleled experience for 10,000 Chinese visitors during the 2023 Amway China Leadership Seminar in New Zealand.
This article highlights how Encore’s innovative approach to event creative, technology and production set a new industry benchmark, delivering an unforgettable journey that combined technological wizardry with cultural immersion.
The challenge
Over two months, 10,000 delegates were flown in 12 waves to New Zealand for the seminar, showcasing Amway’s commitment to recognising top performers. The program featured a series of events and excursions across Auckland and Queenstown, rewarding excellence and fostering brand allegiance among attendees.
Creative inspiration
The superscale events which took up more than 6,000 work hours included 155sqm LED screens, fifteen 20k projectors, 80 table projectors, eight curved screen projectors, four floor projectors, six semi-trailers hauling equipment and even an ice rink.
The concluding gala events held at the Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland and then the second streams at the Queenstown Ice Arena for the event highlight of the trip, treated guests to a spectacular night full of creative, technological wizardry and heart pumping entertainment.
Technological innovation
Encore’s technical expertise was showcased through the utilisation of cutting-edge equipment, including the L-Acoustics L2D Loudspeakers, setting a new standard in audio delivery. The event boasted superscale setups, including LED screens, projectors, and specialised effects, creating an immersive environment that captivated guests.
Production excellence
Managing the logistics of such a large-scale event was a significant undertaking for Encore, requiring meticulous planning and coordination. The production team dedicated over 6,000 work hours to ensure seamless execution, from rigging to immersive screen content creation.
Economic impact
Beyond its experiential success, the seminar had a substantial economic impact, generating an estimated NZ $40 million for the local economy. Encore’s collaboration with Auckland Convention Group and Queenstown Convention Bureau facilitated pre-event activities and accommodation arrangements, maximising the delegate experience.
Cultural celebration
The gala dinners held at the Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland and Queenstown Ice Arena were the highlight of the seminar, showcasing Aotearoa New Zealand’s culture and spirit. Encore’s creative approach incorporated lighting, sound, and visual elements to celebrate contemporary Māori culture, leaving a lasting impression on attendees.
The result
Encore’s involvement in the Amway China Leadership Seminar exemplifies the transformative power of business events. By seamlessly blending technological innovation with cultural celebration, Encore created an experience that transcended traditional event boundaries, leaving a lasting impact on attendees and the host communities alike.
The Encore NSW team delighted 1,150 Amway Taiwan VIPs with a breathtaking, Australian-themed gala dinner as the pinnacle event of the 5 day major Asian incentive. The incentive gave Encore the opportunity to showcase their ability to deliver technically demanding live events encompassing the breadth of their audio visual services. It was an action-packed event with a host of performances to keep the crowd entertained. This included a VIP vintage car parade, aerial artists, a water-skiing stunt show, petting zoo, performances by several dance troupe and a spectacular fireworks display to end the night. Running alongside this was a stunning display of AV at its best. We brought to life the gigantic rock wall, projection mapping stunning Australiana-themed content and vistas, turning the once bare wall into a visual and theatrical journey. It provided the perfect backdrop the event and made a lasting impression.
Encore were engaged by Encompass to produce an exciting, dramatic extravaganza for over 1000 Honda India employees and dealers, including a cocktail function, business session and gala evening. The Honda Motorcycles India Dealer Incentive was produced with merely 2 weeks of lead time from confirmation to show day, leaving Encore to go into overdrive to see it delivered seamlessly. The theme of the incentive event needed to incorporate the company’s values and theme of RAW 6.0 (Reach, Acquire & Win), with a key component to showcase the new range of motorcycles’ ability to easily transition from city to outback. The end result was a turn-key event solution provided by Encore, from AV and lighting through to entertainment and production with the aim of providing guests with a money can’t buy experience, proving Honda to be a world class company.
Encore amped up their premium concept design capabilities at the Conventions & Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) Gala Dinner, exhibiting custom hexagon-shaped screens onstage at this year’s event. The impressive visual displays ensured the CINZ brief was reflected strategically throughout the space, and complemented the stunning interior decorations which tied in the ‘mosaic’ theme beautifully. Encore (formerly Staging Connections) have worked closely with CINZ for eight years, and as such, were given full creative licence to design the event.
CINZ hold the dinner to showcase to international guests what the New Zealand conference and incentives industry has to offer, and this year did not disappoint. Heather Cornish, CINZ Event Director, later said of Encore’s involvement, “Just wanted to send you a formal note to say THANK YOU for your amazing support of MEETINGS – we really appreciated it. Your personal commitment is very much appreciated. As a sponsor, you play a crucial role in the success of this project – we simply cannot pull off MEETINGS to the standards we aspire to without your generous support so thanks again.”
Amway China returned to Australia for the sixth time with more than 6,000 guests for their annual 2019 Leadership Seminar, this time held in Cairns. Seven waves of guests attended the 4-day seminar and incentive program between 21 March – 15 April 2019. Designed and organised by Encore, the business sessions and concluding Gala Program treated guests to a spectacular experience including a special blended reality sequence created using layered multimedia, holographic effects and choreographed robotics show with a live performer.
The challenge was designing a never-before-seen experience for a well-travelled client whom has seen almost everything. Amway China chose the Australian Artillery and Armoury Museum (AAAM) as the venue to add an unexpected element to the program. As the largest privately owned collection of military vehicles in the Southern Hemisphere, it offered guests a rare tank show experience. At 4,280 square metres, the venue was also large enough to accommodate the production equipment for both the gala and business sessions, catering and other suppliers.
The Rainforest to Reef theme allowed Encore to design four distinct experiences: rainforest, beach, reef and river. Each environment was themed using a 270-degree screen that wrapped around the venue walls, customised soundscapes, roaming performers and reef-inspired table styling which incorporated lighting design. A key performance brought each environment to life and were each enhanced with creative technical production.
The ‘rainforest’ environment included a thunder and lightning performance by the Million Volt Man, one of the most extreme live performers who uses high-voltage Tesla coil in his stunts. For the ‘river’ component, Encore created a custom ‘Fish Medley’ act which included singing and dancing animated fish on computer-controlled robotic LED screens that moved with the music. The ‘beach’ environment included an artistic Fabric Ballet performance featuring 18 DMX controlled fans with choreographed dancing, while ‘reef’ featured a game simulation of an underwater treasure hunt made possible using a range of AV techniques. The journey saw a live performer participate in the underwater adventure using layered multimedia with a holographic mesh screen, LEDs and choreographed robotics show.
The end result was a memorable gala dinner that ended the international incentive on a high. Encore show producer Andrew MacColl said guests were blown away by the 270-degree multimedia projection, holographic projection and synchronised robotics.
“The creative event design was matched with cutting-edge use of technology to create an amazing experience for guests,” he said.
“Working in such a unique venue had its challenges, but also many benefits in that it allowed our team the opportunity to maximise their creativity to bring to life a blank canvas. Special Event Director, John Schryver, designed a truly unique and immersive experience which will undoubtedly be remembered long after the event. The team bought his design to life and delivered the series of events flawlessly.”