10 years of being Architects of Inspiring Experiences

By Roslyn McLeod OAM, Arinex Founder and Chair

Exactly ten years ago, Arinex was born.

On 4 July 2009, we combined our two previous companies, Tour Hosts and The Meeting Planners, to become Arinex.

The rebrand was a year-long process and a proud moment for me, to see staff taking pride and ownership in this new identity and all becoming actively involved to allow for a seamless transition to Arinex. Anyone else who has been through a rebrand knows the extensive work involved; from the creation phase, search for the right name with an available Domain, design of the new logo and brand look and feel, to the extensive implementation, which involves updating every piece of digital and print collateral. It is expensive and it is time consuming, but done well it is rewarding and satisfying.

We chose Arinex which is derived from Architects of Inspiring Experiences. This summarises what we aim to do in all of our events – to create an inspiring experience. The iconic pink that used to only belong in our uniforms was transferred into our logo and design and has become part of our identity.

Of course this anniversary is just one milestone in an extensive history for our company, which began with me as a Japanese speaking tour guide for Tourism Australia before we opened our first office in 1973 and a meetings specialist in 1976. Just like every decade since we have evolved in response to market demand.

Tour Hosts grew to become a full service event management company and our fate was sealed.

Over the years we opened offices in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth and employed additional staff in remote locations around Australia for a full national team. We now employ 85 staff and our early days of interpretation is still reflected in our diversity of staff; we speak more than 20 languages collectively, including Thai, Spanish, Mandarin, French and many more.

We are supported with an international network of Partners through INCON – International Convention Network – and we are active in IAPCO and ICCA, the global industry association.

We have built fantastic relationships with many suppliers and partners both across Australia and internationally; Hyatt Regency Sydney, our recent stand partner at IMEX Frankfurt, generously baked our special cake to celebrate our 10-year rebranding anniversary.

As we look forward, our objective is to continue evolving and growing – offering the latest technology and an unmatched quality of service – in order to create inspiring experiences.

We look forward to working with you to create your own.