MAHI TAAPOI
Sustainable Tourism Development
John Panoho and Peter Phillips have been long-term advocates of clustering as a means to build capacity and capability among small Māori tourism operators, particularly those in less-visited parts of the country. Clusters of tourism operators can build critical mass, share learnings and skills, develop collaborative products and cross-sell experiences. Clusters are also effective units through which to channel support that may be available from government agencies and NGOs and through which to interact with Regional Tourism Organisations.
Māori Tourism Cluster Development
Copyright Mahi Taapoi, 2008-12. All Rights Reserved.
Mahi Taapoi is the specialist tourism development arm of Dialogue Consultants Ltd, Auckland and Wellington, Aotearoa-New Zealand
Māori Tourism Business Facilitation
Māori Tourism Marketing Review
Māori Tourism Cluster Development
While contracted to the Auckland University of Technology John and Peter worked with Te Tai Tokerau Māori Tourism Association to revive its flagging fortunes and develop a systematic approach to development which saw it expand rapidly from six to sixty members and from being virtually defunct to an effective organisation with a range of programmes and a Memorandum of Understanding with Destination Northland. Among various development initiatives was a training needs survey which set priorities for upskilling both the small business owners and their staff.
A presentation entitled “100 Years of Tourism - Māori tourism cluster development” (click here to download 7.4MB pdf) provides the diagnosis of the issues then facing Māori tourism. In particular it shows the way that Māori were used to differentiate Aotearoa-New Zealand as an exotic destination, while at the same time the overwhelming emphasis was on the country as a “scenic wonderland”(slide 4). The abrogation of Māori themes continued into the 21st century with mainstream coach operators presented as Māori tourism experiences (slide 5). There was a useful assessment of the issues in 1984-5 (slide 7) but 15 years later the same issues were still to be addressed (slide 8). The rest of the presentation sets out some or the arguments for cluster development.
The TTMTA strategic plan for 2001-4, prepared by Peter, (click here to download 1.4MB pdf) embodies some of the key themes which were developed to meet the needs of emerging Māori tourism operators at the time. Many of these concepts remain valid today despite the changes that have occurred in both the wider economic and social environment, in tourism visitation to Aotearoa-New Zealand, and developments by tourism operators.
