Destination Store

07/09/2026

Unlocking your night time economy - the 3 keys to success.

📍 Carl at City Nation Place Australasia 2026

01/09/2026

The DS Download: August
August was another big month of strategy, content, conferences, stakeholder conversations, pitch work, award nights and, of course, questionable running decisions.

Here’s what kept us busy:

🌟 Carl spent time in Lithgow / Visit Seven Valleys, speaking with stakeholders from across the region as part of their Tourism and Events Services Review.

🌟 Oly and Charlotte headed to the Gold Coast for Urbanity, hosted by The Urban Developer, diving into conversations around human-led precincts, curated site tours and development feasibility.

🌟 Ben and Hayley travelled to Greater Port Macquarie to capture content with local businesses and tourism experiences for the Local Secrets Series, now featuring across Port Macquarie’s social channels.

🌟 As a sponsor of this year’s City Nation Place Australasia, DS took to the stage, with Carl and Charlotte presenting on how to unlock a destination’s night-time economy. The whole team also joined the conference, making it a great few days of learning, connection and team time.

🌟 The team continued its work with the Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner, running masterclasses and coaching sessions with selected business collectives across the state. The sessions will continue into September as night-time economy initiatives begin to come to light.

🌟 Many hours were spent working on a pitch for a huge project in the Pacific, and boy do we have our fingers tightly crossed for this one 🤞

🌟 Carl and Charlotte attended the Mumbrella Travel Marketing Awards with our friends from Visit Mackay Isaac, Queensland, Australia, where our Free Spirit campaign was named a finalist. We didn’t come away with the silverware this time, but we’re proud to be in the mix. On to the Queensland Tourism Awards we go.

And it wouldn’t be a DS wrap without mentioning the team’s latest running exploits. Hayley took on City2Surf, while Corey booked a one-way ticket to the hurt locker taking on the TCS Sydney Marathon.

Legends.

27/08/2026

Tonight we’re at the Mumbrella Travel Marketing Awards, where our Free Spirit Road Trips campaign for Visit Mackay Isaac and Mackay Isaac Tourism is a finalist for Travel Brand of the Year – Destination.

We’re in some seriously good company, alongside work for Tourism Australia, South Australian Tourism Commission, Hamilton Island and Tourism Tasmania.

Free Spirit Road Trips brought together a great team across Mackay Isaac Tourism, Fred&Co Advertising, Destination Store, Leonards Advertising Media and MARK FITZ, so it’s pretty special to see the work recognised on this stage.

Representing the crew tonight are Carl and Charlotte, David Lucas from Fred&Co and Andrea Busiko from Mackay Isaac Tourism.

Whatever happens tonight, we’re very proud of this one🤞

14/08/2026

A week on, and plenty to digest from another fantastic City Nation Place Australasia conference.

We were proud to once again partner with the City Nation Place team, with this year’s conference jointly delivered alongside Mainstreet Australia .

We have been long-time supporters CNP’s work. Many of the conversations and trends around place branding and place development that we first heard discussed at CNP in London years ago are now firmly taking hold here in Australia. It was great to see those conversations continue to evolve, with place leaders from across the country sharing ideas, challenges and lessons.

We were also delighted to take the stage and share some insights from our work with the Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner and destinations across Australia, exploring the role of after-dark initiatives in place activation. Night-time activations can often be seen as a quick win for bringing places to life, but they shouldn’t be the automatic solution. Our session challenged attendees to first consider their place, their audience and their objectives, and whether an after-dark initiative is actually the right fit before jumping into programming

A big thank you to the City of Gold Coast for hosting, to Clare and the CNP team for another thought provoking few days, and to everyone we had the chance to connect with.
We are already looking forward to next year.

24/07/2026

A few days behind the scenes in Port Macquarie.
This week, we hit the road to capture fresh content, catch up with local tourism operators and experience more of what makes Port Macquarie-Hastings such a special place to visit.

The purpose of the trip? As well as experiencing the destination, Ben and Hayley were there to capture a new content series for Port Macquarie’s social channels.
The series marks a shift from our usual destination-led storytelling. Instead of simply telling visitors what to see and do, we asked the people who know Port Macquarie best: local business operators.
There were four key reasons behind the approach:
1. Trusted local recommendations
People working in cafés, pubs, accommodation, attractions and visitor experiences speak with countless visitors every day. Their advice carries real weight in person, so we wanted to bring those trusted recommendations to video.
2. A connected tourism industry
The series showcases businesses from across the region while involving operators directly in the storytelling. It reflects an industry working together to create the best possible visitor experience, rather than simply competing with one another.
3. A series audiences can follow
Recurring video formats with a consistent theme are performing well across Instagram and TikTok. Once audiences understand the concept, each instalment feels familiar while offering something new, giving them a reason to watch for the next one.
4. Real people and real conversations
In an age of ugly AI posters, over-filtered images and captions filled with far too many em dashes, it was refreshing to create content featuring real people, real conversations and the occasional awkward moment on camera.
Just kidding. You were all naturals!
A huge thank you to everyone who welcomed us, shared their time and helped bring the destination to life. You’ll see the content rolling out across Port Macquarie’s visitor channels over the coming months.
And Ben and Hayley’s favourite parts of the trip?
Ben: A seriously good burger at COAST Lighthouse Beach
Hayley: Feeding the meerkats at Billabong Zoo an experience she won’t forget anytime soon!

25/06/2026

Big things happening on the Gold Coast this August.

We're proud to once again be a sponsor of City Nation Place Australasia × Mainstreet Australia - two great conferences joining forces on 6–7 August 2026, and it's shaping up to be a seriously good two days.

Place branding, destination marketing, economic development, placemaking, great speakers, great people, and of course great conversations.

As a sponsor, we have a 25% discount code to share. Spots are filling up, so worth booking sooner rather than later.

🎤 City Nation Place Australasia x Mainstreet Australia
📆 6-7 August
📍Sofitel, Gold Coast Queensland
🎫 Grab your discounted ticket here bit.ly/CNPxDS
ℹ️ Full conference details citynationplace.com/australasia

We’re looking forward to this one. If you do make it, make sure to come find us!

18/06/2026

AI is changing how people plan travel - fast 💨

When visitors ask AI where to go, what to do and where to stay, the answer depends on the quality of what already exists online.

For destinations and tourism operators, owned channels are no longer just marketing assets. They are the foundation for being found, trusted and recommended.

Charlotte has unpacked what this shift means for destinations, tourism operators and the channels they rely on to be found

Read it here 👉 destinationstore.com.au/ai-planning-era-demands-better-owned-channels

56% of U.S. leisure travellers used AI for at least one trip in the past twelve months, according to Phocuswright research published in March 2026. That’s a jump from 43% just nine months earlier, representing the fastest shift in how people discover and plan trips that the travel industry has see...

06/06/2026

The DS Download: May

May kept us moving, with plenty of time on the road, campaign launches, strategy work, events planning and one very impressive marathon finish.

Here’s what kept us busy last month:
🌟 Carl and Charlotte were on the road rolling out the Night-Time Economy Program for business collectives, visiting Bathurst, Lennox Head, Murrumbateman, Murwillumbah, Tamworth and Wagga Wagga, with four more collectives to visit in July and August.
🌟 Ben visited Greater Port Macquarie to present to the Greater Port Macquarie Tourism Association Pon the new destination campaign and how local businesses can get involved.
🌟 Oliver attended the Australian Placemaking Summit in Sydney, connecting with ideas and conversations shaping the future of places and communities.
🌟 We finalised the Discover Richmond Valley Destination Management Plan, which is being presented to Richmond Valley Council next week.
🌟 Carl had a long-overdue catch-up with our awesome creative partners, Swell Design Group, in Canberra.
🌟 We launched the latest Where Time Does Wonders campaign for Greater Port Macquarie, running until the end of August. The campaign taps into the insight that travel is no longer just about getting away, it’s about getting something back.
🌟 We kicked off a signature events campaign for Visit Mackay Isaac, Queensland, Australia and Mackay Isaac Tourism, promoting selected key events happening over the next six months.
🌟 And not technically work, but definitely worth celebrating: Corey completed his second marathon taking part in the Great Ocean Road Running Festival. Go Corey!

We know what you’re thinking: how do they have time to run marathons? Honestly, we’re not sure either.

But if you need support with marketing strategy, destination management planning, brand strategy, campaigns or social media management, get in touch. We’d love to chat.

30/05/2026

The power of growing a vegetable garden

29/05/2026

POV: This is what one of our social teams camera rolls looks like