Mayor Wants "Authentic Duluth" After City's Tourism Marketing Contract Ends With Twin Cities Firm
DULUTH, Minn. — The city of Duluth’s multi-million dollar tourism marketing contract with a Twin Cities-based firm will expire at the end of the year. And now, newly elected Mayor Roger Reinert says he believes the contract should come back home. “I fundamentally believe as a Duluthian that we have the creative talents in our community to tell our own... The city of Duluth, Minnesota, is ending its multi-million dollar tourism marketing contract with a Twin Cities-based firm, Bellmont Partners, at the end of the year. New Mayor Roger Reinert believes the contract should return to Duluth. Reinert has initiated a working group to review all marketing companies for the next contract through a Request for Proposal. Currently, the company is paid $1.8 million a year through Duluth’s Tourism Tax revenue, which he believes should come full circle. The Tourism Marketing Working Group aims to create an RFP that best supports tourism entities and ensures that every tourism marketing dollar contributes to the city's future.
Published : 4 weeks ago by Dan Hanger in Travel
Mayor Wants “Authentic Duluth” After City’s Tourism Marketing Contract Ends With Twin Cities Firm
DULUTH, Minn. — The city of Duluth’s multi-million dollar tourism marketing contract with a Twin Cities-based firm will expire at the end of the year. And now, newly elected Mayor Roger Reinert says he believes the contract should come back home.
“I fundamentally believe as a Duluthian that we have the creative talents in our community to tell our own story,” Reinert said.
You’ll recall in 2021, former Mayor Emily Larson chose Bellmont Partners our of Edina, Minnesota to market Duluth. That meant Visit Duluth was out after 85 years as the city’s sole marketing agency. Visit Duluth would later downsize to what it is today – a visitors center with a focus on attracting conventions.
At a press conference Wednesday, Reinert said he has launched a working group to review all marketing companies that apply for the next contract through a Request for Proposal.
Right now, Bellmont Partners is paid $1.8 million a year through Duluth’s Tourism Tax revenue – revenue Reinert believes should come full circle, including the contract. Reinert said he wants to ensure the plan aligns with the goals and objectives of the city including both the tourism industry and the City of Duluth’s goals. The marketing efforts help more than just tourists and tourism sites.
“I fundamentally believe, and I said this over and over again during the campaign, that it’s hard to tell an authentic Duluth story if you’re not a Duluthian. So, we have a ton of talented, creative people that already live in this community. So I am hopeful as they pursue their work and consider the RFP, that we will end in a place where tourism tax dollars that are generated in Duluth end up being directed and spent in our community as well,” Reinert said.
Meanwhile, the Tourism Marketing Working Group is being led by Karen Pionk, the general manager of the Sheraton Duluth Hotel. The goal of the group is to create an RFP that best supports tourism entities, and to ensure every tourism marketing dollar contributes to Duluth’s residents and its future.
“We’ll also be very mindful of doing some sort of outreach where we are engaging other community partners or citizens within the community to get their feedback and weigh in before we start to make any decisions or look for those specifics of changes,” Pionk explained.
Reinert said the tourism plan will help everyone in the community, not just tourism sites. When tourists visit and the experience is a good one, Reinert said the city’s brand grows stronger and so does the business retention and business recruitment.
Visit Duluth’s $650,000-a-year contract is also up at the end of December and will be up for consideration through the RFP process.