Visit Virginia's Blue Ridge 2021 Annual Report - Geared for Recovery

2021 ANNUAL REPORT VISIT VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

Geared for

RECOVERY

Economic Impact of

Travel and Tourism p. 1

VBR TWENTY24 and Inaugural IRONMAN p. 6

Continued Success for VBR Sports p. 8 BE A #TRAILSETTER

MESSAGE from the

Chair & President

Participating Localities:

Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge was “Gearing Up for Recovery” as we navigated throughout 2021. The main focus was to seek out every possible source of funding in order to stimulate the Virginia’s Blue Ridge travel and tourism economy, assist in recovery for the lodging industry, support restaurants, and drive traffic to our many attractions.

Virginia’s Blue Ridge is blessed to have extraordinary outdoor assets and group sports opportunities, which were incredibly popular during the pandemic. We are fortunate that our beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and sports facilities, managed by dedicated park and recreation departments, were open to visitors looking for a safe, socially-distanced place to get outside. These resources helped our industry survive, and in some situations, even thrive during 2021.

BOTETOURT

Salem

Roanoke

ROANOKE

We are eager to work with our jurisdictional partners and over 1,500 private industry partners to create conditions for a dynamic recovery. Together, we will capitalize on opportunities that will drive leisure tourism, attract sports groups, as well as grow the meetings business. It is our hope that the COVID-19 endemic will be a reality during 2022.

SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE

FRANKLIN

Thank you for your support as we all begin the process of “Gearing Up for Recovery” during 2022.

W. Lee Wilhelm, III Chair

Landon C. Howard President

Tourism tells the world who we are, where we are, and why they would want to be in Virginia’s Blue Ridge.

Many visitors will become future residents, which means growth in jobs and businesses.

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Travel Expenditures Impact Local Economy A New Foundation for Measuring Our Recovery: Pre-2020

2020

ECONOMIC IMPACT DATA

ONWARDS

NEW, MORE PRECISE DATA

compiled by US Travel Association

A NEW WAY TO MEASURE ECONOMIC IMPACT

collected by a partnership between US Travel Association & Tourism Economics

as we recover from the pandemic

Data is different and no longer comparable to previous reports

$462.75

$0

(IN MILLIONS)

2016

$826

2017

2018

2019

Definitions: Direct Impacts: economic value created by visitors at the point of

$332.67 $719.89

$666.21

$650.61

$520

$260

INDIRECT & INDUCED

transaction in key travel sectors Indirect Impacts: additional economic value created as goods and services are purchased as inputs in key travel sectors

$493.11

$780

DIRECT SPENDING

$739.25

$1,040

$1,253 $513.26

$1,129

$1,217 $497.12

$1,099 $448.19

$1,300

Induced Impacts: additional value created from wage income (direct or indirect) from spending

2020

in key travel sectors

Direct Spending by Category:

$493.11 MILLION

FOOD & BEVERAGE

$156.28 MILLION

LODGING

RETAIL

$100.00 MILLION

$62.67 MILLION

RECREATION

$57.93 MILLION

VisitVBR.com · 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

TRANSPORTATION

$116.22 MILLION

1

SOCIAL MEDIA &

Geared for

RECOVERY

Marketing

Generating key content about our partners and promoting it through social media has become more vital to our visibility and maintaining market share.

VisitVBR.com Website Traffic:

OVER 4,700 UNIQUE VISITORS PER DAY

UNIQUE VISITORS (users)

SESSIONS (total visits)

1,722,383

74%

VIEWED THE WEBSITE ON A MOBILE DEVICE

2,260,168

22%

VIEWED THE WEBSITE ON A DESKTOP COMPUTER

PAGEVIEWS

3,617,722

4%

VIEWED THE WEBSITE ON A TABLET

SOCIAL:

Visit VBR continued to grow its strong presence on social media to more than 218,000 followers across a variety of platforms, generating over 37 million impressions and over 3.1 million engagements, nearly 1 million more engagements than in 2020.

Views: 645,429

Top Video:

MINUTES WATCHED WHICH IS 11,567 HOURS OR 482 DAYS

VIEWS

694,020

2

351,186

VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE – NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS

Top Featured Events on VisitVBR.com: The Visit VBR website was one of the region’s primary resources for showcasing the return of in-person events in 2021. It featured unique content that showcased many of the destination’s signature events, including:

Illuminights at Explore Park:

43,176 PAGE VIEWS

Concerts by Canoe Series at Philpott Lake:

34,887 PAGE VIEWS

Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower Festival:

31,588 PAGE VIEWS

New Initiatives:

Black History & Culture

A new section of the website showcasing Black History & Heritage was featured for Black History Month with digital campaigns. During the month of February, the campaign generated over 10,000 pageviews and nearly 28,000 engagements on social media.

Leave No Trace & Sustainability

Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge became an official Community Partner with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics – an organization focused on environmental stewardship and sustainability. As part of its marketing and branding efforts, Visit VBR is committed to educating visitors and locals about the importance of responsible recreation and helping keep our local trails and public lands beautiful and accessible.

VisitVBR.com · 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

LOVEworks Art

Visit VBR introduced a new LOVEworks page to the Arts & Culture section of its website. Showcasing the 25 LOVEworks art displays around the region, the page features a special map of the locations, a self-guided bicycle route created in partnership with RIDE Solutions, and beautiful imagery, which have become an integral part of marketing campaigns.

3

PUBLIC

Geared for

RECOVERY

Relations

The world continues to hear about Virginia’s Blue Ridge! As more people returned to travel in 2021, our destination remained top of mind in the media, appearing in over 300 articles.

As more people returned to travel in 2021, Virginia’s Blue Ridge remained popular in many national and international media outlets.

309 ARTICLES PRODUCED

124

50+

135

NUMBER OF MEDIA HOSTED/VISITED

MEDIA OUTREACH LEADS Articles featuring VBR and its partners appeared in top-tier publications such as Garden & Gun, AAA World Magazine, Forbes, The Washington Post, Travel+Leisure, and more.

ARTICLES

APPEARED INTERNATIONALLY ACROSS THE UK, CANADA, INDIA, GERMANY, AND BEYOND

NOTABLE COVERAGE: THE ROANOKE RIVER 2021:

3rd PLACE

2022:

1st PLACE

USA TODAY

10 Best - Reader’s Choice Award for the

BEST URBAN KAYAKING SPOT IN NORTH AMERICA

How to Explore Roanoke has become an 8 Places to Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge arts & culture hotspot – Along Virginia’s from Roanoke & worth the drive Blue Ridge Parkway AAA World Magazine

4

New York Times

Southern Living

Key Events Visit VBR’s PR team hosted 85 travel writers and social media influencers in market through individual and group tours. The PR team interacted with an additional 39 media contacts through pitching events in Atlanta and Milwaukee. Public relations put on three successful group media tours in 2021.

Hosted 17 Travel Writers for SATW:

Black Travel Digital Session (BTDS)

Society of American Travel Writers Eastern Chapter Meeting

Roanoke City Arts Commission member, Macklyn Mosely, presented to media during the BTDS in partnership with Visit VBR and Virginia Tourism Corporation.

Attendees received a tour of the Black Dog Salvage warehouse and Stone House by owners Mike Whiteside and Robert Kulp.

JUNE 16, 2021

Hosted a summer camp for 30 female fitness social media influencers:

Camp Flex & Flow

JULY 7 - 11, 2021

Hosted in-person appointments with 15 top-tier travel writers:

Atlanta Media Event

AUGUST 12 - 16, 2021

NOVEMBER 9 - 11, 2021

Group shot at The Preserve on Crooked Run.

Visit VBR represents Virginia’s Blue Ridge in Atlanta.

VisitVBR.com · 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

5

THE INAUGURAL

CARILION CLINIC

IRONMAN 70.3 VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

SUNDAY, JUNE 6, 2021

ALL 50 STATES

+ 7 COUNTRIES REPRESENTED WELCOMED OVER

1,600 ATHLETES

1.2 MI SWIM IN THE

CARVINS COVE RESERVOIR

56 MI

BIKE COURSE THROUGHOUT VBR & THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY

13.1 MI

RUN ALONG THE ROANOKE RIVER GREENWAY

FINISH LINE at RIVER’S EDGE PARK RUTH E. CARTER

AFROFUTURISM

IN COSTUME DESIGN AT THE TAUBMAN MUSEUM

Academy Award-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter is an expert storyteller who harnesses the power of visual communication to share vital narratives exploring culture, race, and politics.

Creating costumes for generation-defining films, such as Black Panther, Coming 2 America, and Do the Right Thing, she brings vibrancy, nuance, color, and texture to each of her paradigm-shifting characters.

6

Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design presents more than 60 costumes, as well as sketches and ephemera, illustrating her in-depth historical research and design process. The Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge Foundation provided support in the amount of $5,000 to promote Ruth E. Carter’s tremendous accomplishments to Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs).

TEAM

TWENTY24 VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

Women’s Pro-Cycling Team Relocates their Base of Operations to Virginia’s Blue Ridge Leaders of Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge and the Virginia Tourism Corporation announced Team TWENTY24, a diverse team of female professional and junior cyclists, will officially relocate their base of operations from Idaho to Virginia’s Blue Ridge. The team’s name will now be Virginia’s Blue Ridge TWENTY24 (VBR TWENTY24).

EARNED

For more than 17 years, America’s premier women’s cycling team has been responsible for developing and managing many of the most successful American female cyclists, establishing a consistent pipeline for talented road, gravel, and Zwift eSports athletes.

14

OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC MEDALS

“

The vibrant cycling culture in Virginia’s Blue Ridge makes it a natural fit for Team TWENTY24. The rich mix of outdoor gravel and road assets solidifies VBR as a premier cycling destination for our athletes. indicated NICOLA CRANMER, Founder & General Manager of TEAM TWENTY24.

”

“

Our first year in Virginia will have a strong focus on connecting with the community, developing our new athletes through training camps on the beautiful and challenging roads of the region.

”

17

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

+ COUNTLESS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

TEAM UNIFORM DESIGN

7

Geared for

RECOVERY The VBR Sales team continued to research, collaborate, and regroup with clients, finding success in encouraging groups to work together to ensure the health and safety of all. These best practices provided clients with the information and resources they needed to host successful events.

Virginia’s Blue Ridge (VBR Sports) kicked off 2021 with a strong start by hosting several annual indoor events, including VHSL Wrestling, ODAC Indoor Track and CCA Cheerleading. As spring approached and temperatures began to warm up, so did outdoor sports. The Blue Ridge Marathon, ODAC Baseball and Softball Conference Championships and many others began a great run of events for our region. VBR Partners once again pulled together a strong softball portfolio by hosting several championships for NCAA, USA Softball and NSA. Diversity in sports continued to be a focus for our region and together with our municipalities and counties, we were able to host the Carilion Clinic IRONMAN 70.3 in Virginia’s Blue Ridge, NCAA DIII Lacrosse National Championship, Blue Ridge Harvest Tour, Creature from Carvins Cove Enduro and the Strongman National Championship. Overall, 2021 proved valuable in restoring sports tourism for our area and showcased our collective ability to host events in a safe and successful manner.

SPORTS RECRUITMENT EFFORTS: TEAMS · Atlantic City, NJ - Fall 2021 Sports ETA (Fall) Symposium · Birmingham, AL - Fall 2021

36

LEADS GENERATED

37

EVENTS BOOKED

US Sports Congress · Frisco, TX - Fall 2021

22,913 TOTAL ROOM NIGHTS

FOOTBALL OFFICIALS CONFERENCE

ODAC SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

Featured Events:

8

Foot Levelers Blue Ridge Marathon

Virginia’s Blue Ridge Go Cross – Cyclocross

Strongman National Championship

SALES &

Meetings

While the meetings market was slower to return to pre-pandemic numbers compared to sports or leisure, Virginia’s Blue Ridge saw notable successes. This year offered our destination team including hotel partners a chance to practice safe in-person meeting and declare new strategies for future growth. The need for in-person meetings continued to be at the forefront of our industry and the pandemic inspired us to be stronger together. VBR continued to support the meetings market with incentives, services, and other resources planners needed. We remained flexible in supporting our clients, open to new ideas and delivered inspiring communication about our destination. VBR leadership encouraged the formation of the VBR Healthcare Conferences & Meetings Advisory Group. The advisory group provided direction to assist the sales team in targeting healthcare-related conferences and meetings to meet in Virginia’s Blue Ridge. We were honored to have several committee members representing Carilion Clinic, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, and Virginia Tech. Overall, VBR hosted or assisted several meetings from corporate, association and SMERF markets in 2021. Together with our hotel partners, we delivered on our promise to re-imagine how in-person meetings can work and be successful.

CAPITAL DISTRICT KIWANIS CONVENTION

2021 MEETINGS:

RECRUITMENT EFFORTS:

VSAE Fall Conference

CONNECT DC

RICHMOND, VA FALL 2021

WASHINGTON, DC FALL 2021

Virginia School Administrators Football Officials Conference (ODAC) Ruritan National Summer Leadership Conference Capital District Kiwanis Convention Virginia Sheriff’s Association Annual Conference

14

LEADS GENERATED

15

MEETINGS BOOKED

6,960 TOTAL ROOM NIGHTS

VisitVBR.com · 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services Conference Virginia Society for Technology in Education Conference Ironsmith Films – Trapped Daughter The Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association of Fish & Wildlife

9

DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT &

Geared for

RECOVERY

Partnership

Balancing workforce needs and sustainability were priorities to VBR partners. VBR continues to provide resources and marketing during recovery.

Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge is dedicated to promoting this region as a destination to visitors. Our 1,500+ Partners that make up our story of who we are and why people want to experience what we offer is what sets us apart. While dealing with the constant uncertainty of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge still had many new businesses open and become a partner of ours. It’s because of the support from our tourism partners, and many thanks to the investment from our local governments (Cities of Roanoke and Salem, as well as the Counties of Roanoke, Botetourt & Franklin), Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge is able to offer FREE partnership for tourism-related businesses located within those local governments. We also represent businesses within an hour radius of Downtown Roanoke through annual memberships. Visit VBR Partners are essential because each year, they increase our knowledge, expertise, and resources available in this region, to then be able to reach a greater audience in attracting future visitors.

1,529

PARTNERS IN 2021

93

NEW PARTNERS

NEW NOTABLE PARTNERS IN 2021: · Avid Hotel by IHG Salem · Chris’s Coffee & Custard Roanoke City

The Lemon Hotel

10

Paint Bank, Craig County

· The Liberty Trust Hotel Roanoke City (Opened 2022, but partnered 2021)

· Sweets by Shaneice Roanoke City

RND Coffee

Vinton, Roanoke County

· The Preserve at Crooked Run Fincastle, Botetourt County · The Coves at Smith Mountain Lake Union Hall, Franklin County

Faithful Country Creations

Buchanan, Botetourt County

Engagement:

VBR Cheers Trail Check-ins:

3,295

VBR Cheers Trail T-shirts sent out:

406

VBR Savings Pass Redemptions:

148

Destination Development:

Roanoke River Greenway Extension

Virginia Welcome Center Study Tour

Wayfinding Kiosk

Mac and Bob’s

New Pickleball Courts

ROANOKE CITY & SALEM

VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF TRANSPORTATION

Blue Ridge Parkway Superintendent Welcome Reception

VRLTA (VIRGINIA RESTAURANT

EXPLORE PARK

LODGING AND TRAVEL ASSOCIATION)

RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR

VisitVBR.com · 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

DOWNTOWN ROANOKE

ROANOKE COUNTY RIBBON CUTTING

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PURPOSE OF THE FOUNDATION: A. To leverage and develop the Virginia’s Blue Ridge region’s recreation-related and outdoor assets to encourage healthy, active engagement through recreation.

B. To strengthen the community narrative centered on recreation and the outdoors.

ANNUAL REPORT

C. To develop physical amenities as well as festivals and event offerings that enhance quality-of-life for residents and visitors alike.

D. To contribute to the economic development of the Virginia’s Blue Ridge region.

Projects:

Roanoke Arts Pop!

Wayfinding - Carvins Cove

Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge Foundation Trustees W. Lee Wilhelm, III

James E. Taliaferro, II

Bob Rotanz

McNeil Roofing, Inc. President

City of Salem

Mac and Bob’s Restaurant

Shirley B. Holland

Robert S. Cowell, Jr.

Susan E. Short

City of Roanoke

Virginia Tech

Carilion Clinic Secretary

Doug Blount County of Roanoke Treasurer

Barton J. Wilner Entre Computer Center

12

Established November 15, 2016

Gary Larrowe County of Botetourt

Christopher L. Whitlow County of Franklin

Daniel R. O’Donnell County of Roanoke

Administration Landon C. Howard Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge

VBR

BOARD OF DIRECTORS W. Lee Wilhelm, III

Team

Doug Blount

McNeil Roofing, Inc. Chair

County of Roanoke Treasurer

Shirley B. Holland

Barton J. Wilner

Carilion Clinic Secretary

Entre Computer Center Past Chair

Dave Andersen

Lisa D. Garst

Ann Blair Miller

John Shaner

Kimberly Blair

Michael Hamlar

Daniel R. O’Donnell

Susan E. Short

Lynne Pearo Boone

Catherine (Cate) J. Huff

Dominion Lodging Roanoke College

ABoone Homes, LLC

Salem

Hamlar-Curtis Funeral Home Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore

Roanoke Regional Partnership

Virginia Tech

Roanoke County (1/2019 - 1/2022)

James E. Taliaferro, II

Kirtesh Patel

City of Salem

David L. Johns

TRU by Hilton Roanoke Hollins

Gary Larrowe

City of Roanoke

Robert S. Cowell, Jr.

Stephen Lemon

Rockydale Quarries Corporation

Whit Ellerman

Annette Lewis

Robertson Marketing

Dawn Tanner Erdman

Peter Lewis

William Farrell

Mark S. Lucas

John Carlin

WSLS-TV 10 (NBC)

Richard L. Caywood, P.E. County of Roanoke City of Roanoke

Cardinal Bicycle

Roanoke City Representative Berglund Automotive Group

Ferrum College

County of Botetourt Martin, Hopkins & Lemon, P.C. Total Action for Progress (TAP) Apple Ridge Farm

City of Salem Parks & Recreation

Lucas L. Thornton

Hist:Re Partners, LLC

Anita J. Price

David B. Trinkle, M.D.

Ken Randolph

Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine

David Robertson

Joyce Waugh

Bob Rotanz

Christopher L. Whitlow

Ssunny Shah

John B. Williamson, III

Roanoke Regional Chamber

Mac and Bob’s Restaurant Baymont Inn & Suites Salem

County of Franklin

RGC Resources, Inc.

Mill Mountain Technologies

STAFF Administration

Sales & Marketing continued

President

Public Relations Manager

Landon C. Howard Heidi R. Bowling

Director of Operations/Assistant to the President

Marlee Richardson

Partnership & CRM Manager

Sales & Marketing Debora Wright

Vice President of Sales & Marketing

David Aldridge

Director of Marketing

Kathryn Lucas

Kristine McCormick

Outdoors Experience Manager

Rachael Van Liew

Meeting Sales & Services Manager

Grayson Bond

Sports & Sales Coordinator

Destination Development / Visitor Services

(part-time) * Jane Smith

Visitor Services Lead VISITOR SERVICES SPECIALISTS: Marlene Efkeman Linda Franklin Chris Kessler Ray Keys

WEEKEND (PART-TIME): Ahondryea Brooks

Catherine Fox

Weekend Visitor Services Lead

Holly Marden

VISITOR SERVICES SPECIALISTS: Heidi Miller Wayne Sanburn

John Oney

Vice President of Destination Development

Shannon Terry

Events Coordinator (part-time)

Director of Sales

Visitor Information Center

*Note: VBR Visitor Center is operated

Creative Design Senior Manager

and staffed seven days a week

VisitVBR.com · 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

13

Be a Part of Virginia’s Blue Ridge TWENTY24 THE BEST WOMEN’S CYCLING TEAM IN THE USA

THE ROAD TO PARIS FOR WOMEN’S CYCLING STARTS IN VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE Support Virginia’s Blue Ridge Women’s Cycling Team Empowering Women, Championing Diversity and Promoting Fitness

ADVERTISING + PUBLIC RELATIONS

To learn how you can support Virginia’s Blue Ridge TWENTY24, visit VBRTWENTY24.com

Jennifer Valente Olympic Medalist World Champion