In 2011, the Town of Bracebridge hired Roger Brooks of Destination Development International (DDI) to conduct a community assessment of Bracebridge through the eyes of a first time visitor.
Mr. Brooks' credentials are impressive. He has worked with 1000+ communities throughout North America and into Europe. He brings with him expertise as an objective facilitator who is not biased towards specific businesses or themes. DDI is extremely knowledgeable about the tourism industry and what is currently working in the marketplace.
The results of his initial visit are included in the Community Assessment and Findings Study. One of the primary outcomes from this report was the need for BRACEBRIDGE to create a focus for tourism development.
A Brand Development Team has been created to review the results of over 500 surveys that were completed by the local community. The input came from the following people:
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61% reside within the urban area of Bracebridge; 22.6% reside within the rural area; the remainder within Muskoka or outside of the region
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95.3% are permanent residents
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59.6% are female; 40.4% male
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62.3% of the respondents were over the age of 45; 26.3% between the age of 31 and 45; and 11.4% unde the age of 30
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27.5% owned their own business; 20% retired; 22.9% worked for a public company; 18% work for a private company
Thank you to all those who participated in the survey!
The group will be working through those results to narrow down brand ideas for Bracebridge.
Here are some background materials on the initiative.
Minutes of Destination Development - Stakeholder Committee September 29th , 2011; November 21, 2011
Staff Report - ED008-11 - Destination Development - Brand Redevelopment
December 30th Memo - Brand Redevelopment - Next Steps