Niseko Tourism Announces Its Event Sponsorship Program

Niseko Tourism would like to use its expertise to help Niseko events get off the ground.

To this end, Niseko Tourism has debuted its Event Sponsorship Program.

While announced in its most recent 21 September member newsletter, the program has been underway since the summer and has already assisted several events.

The impetus for sponsoring events came when the Niseko Tourism event subcommittee realised earlier this year that without additional government subsidies, the on-hand budget was challenging for creating an event from scratch and would be of better use towards assisting many other events.

Acme Wu, Chief Marketing Manager at Niseko Tourism, said that the help Niseko Tourism provides generally comes under its area of expertise, meaning promotions and marketing.

With this kind of assistance, said Wu, event organisers are free to concentrate on event logistics.

To receive support, interested parties can submit a proposal which the Niseko Tourism event subcommittee evaluates based on the criteria – to quote its recent newsletter – that the event “showcases the beauty, culture and experiences that make Niseko a world-class destination.”

If the event is deemed worthy of support, the level of funding is then decided, which is typically JPY100,000 (US$670) to JPY150,000 (US$1,004).

The Niseko Tourism Event Sponsorship Program has already assisted this year’s Niko Niko Festival and the Hirafu Matsuri (Hirafu Festival), which, in part due to the assistance of Niseko Tourism, was a two-day festival this year for the first time.

The Niseko Dance Festival, a salsa event that took place over 15-16 September, received planning assistance from Niseko Tourism and, due to its success, Niseko Tourism is speaking with the organiser – the founder of the Japan Salsa Association, Mika san – about another salsa event in March and possible sponsorship of that event.

Other potential sponsorships include initiatives by NAMBA (Niseko Area Mountain Bike Association) which recently opened the The Twin Peaks Bike Park and events with Rhythm Japan at its Niseko Rhythm Base Activity Centre.

Niseko Tourism is funded by public funds and by private funds provided annually by participating businesses, at different categories of support depending on the type of business and size.

One challenge is a drop off in events from March until June, as during this time the Japanese fiscal year is restarting and it is very difficult for event organisers to receive government subsidies.

This period, which also matches the time between the region’s peak season and offseason (something known in the tourism industry as “shoulder season“), has long been identified as a challenge by Niseko Tourism.

“There are so many events we want to happen from March to June so why not use our funds which don’t have a time restriction?,” said Wu.

“Hopefully we can invest even more funds next year to keep this growing because it really benefits all the members.”

For Inquiries:
Niseko Tourism
Tel: 0136 21 2551
Email: [email protected]

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