Wellington’s newest concert and conference venue – Shed 6 – was opened by Prime Minister John Key at a cocktail function attended by Show Me Wellington delegates last night.
 
The revamped waterfront warehouse will temporarily replace the Town Hall while it is out of service for three years for seismic strengthening.

The new venue looks like a storage shed on the outside but has been transformed on the inside. Featuring retractable walls to create four different areas, the shed has retractable grandstand seating for concerts, and maximum standing room for a performance of more than 1000.

Opening performance at Shed 6 last night
 
“More than 150 events have been booked across the next two years for Shed 6 and the adjacent TSB Bank Arena,” said Positively Wellington Venues Chief Executive Glenys Coughlan.

The Shed 6 opening took place amidst the action of the Show Me Wellington trade show, a destination exhibition that has attracted around 600 professional conference organisers and event managers to check out the 100+ local businesses on show.
 
Coughlan says Wellington is working hard to lure events that might have been held in Australia or other New Zealand locations to the capital and Show Me Wellington is an important part of this process.

Show Me Wellington in full swing
 
“We’re aiming to significantly grow the number and value of events that Wellington hosts by actively competing with other destinations like Auckland, Melbourne and Sydney.
 
“Wellington already hosts around 70 Australian business events or performances, including association conferences and show seasons, each year but there’s massive opportunity for growth – to double or even triple this number,” said Coughlan.
 
The Convention Activity Survey for 2012 showed that of the 20,000 multi-day conference delegates that came to New Zealand, around 1500 attended events in Wellington.