A roaring success: New convention centre wows public on first day

Exhibition openings don't get much more epic than standing at the gates of Jurassic World.

It takes you half a second to realise that everything is made of Lego, part of 'Brickman' Ryan McNaught's latest exhibition.

But it's not just the 1.5 tonne T-Rex that's wowing patrons, but where Jurassic World has been unveiled - at Wellington's brand new convention centre, Tākina.

Brickman, a legend of the Lego community, says: "I've been very lucky in life to see lots of different exhibition centres and lots of amazing places, but the facilities here [at Tākina] are unbelievable. It's pretty awesome."

At Tākina's opening event earlier in the week, Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau says she was initially a sceptic of the project.

"I was probably one of its biggest critics. I was probably one of the first to say what a waste of money. I was wrong," she admits.

"After walking through this, looking at the business plan, this is going to have a hugely positive impact on our local economy."

A sentiment echoed by the hospitality sector.

Hospitality NZ's chief executive Julie White says it now puts Wellington on the map for international investments.

"It is so beneficial for a city like Wellington to have it. In actual fact, it's a must-have. We will now be able to compete on the global scale."

Tākina's project director, Danny McComb, has overseen the build from inception to opening day and says there's a tremendous amount of pride involved.

And they're already in high demand, with exhibitions locked in until the middle of next year, while more than a hundred multi-day conferences have been confirmed in the first year, with others already booked in for 2028.

McComb says that's a huge positive for a new centre because

He says they've also attracted international conventions that have never been to Wellington before.

White says having a convention centre that now caters to international audiences is a game-changer.

"What we call the 'business events' actually has the largest dollar investment per day. And not only do they (convention attendees) spend more per visitor, what tends to happen is they go home, and then they come back as an international visitor around New Zealand and come back with their family."

She says that economically speaking, having a convention centre of this standard is phenomenal and importantly, enduring.

The Jurassic World by Brickman exhibition runs until mid-October.