*Photograph By Shane Van Boxtel/Image Studios
Amy Albright was more than happy in her 20-year career with the Oshkosh YMCA when she was urged to “throw her hat in the ring” to become her home city’s next convention and visitors bureau director. That was five years and one global pandemic ago. Today she’s leading an organization that has not only rebounded from the shutdown, but is thriving, changing and growing. And her passion for all things Oshkosh hasn’t changed.
Insight: You’re counting down to a rebrand of the Oshkosh Convention and Visitors Bureau, right?
Albright: We had been talking about rebranding prior to COVID, and you can imagine “Event City” as a tagline during a pandemic just really doesn’t work. So we needed to. The [ARPA] dollars we’ve received are being put into this rebranding effort, which in my opinion couldn’t be a better use of those dollars from a tourism perspective for our community.
We’re working really hard on it right now, and we’re really trying to focus more on year-round and what Oshkosh has to offer all the time — not just from an event perspective or summer perspective, which is what everyone thinks about.
Besides the relief dollars, what role did the pandemic play in moving you in this direction?
I would say one of the positives that came out of COVID was really that “support local” movement where you’re being a tourist in your own town. Tourism has evolved. It used to just be “heads in beds;” that’s all you would hear. And we need people in hotel rooms; we’re funded by the hotel tax. That is never not going to be a thing, but on the other hand people are starting to realize that tourism really is the same thing as quality of life, is the same thing as recruiting new employees to an area.
What has the comeback looked like in Oshkosh? EAA AirVenture had record attendance this summer.
When COVID hit, everyone thought it was going to be short term. And that was the worst part, not knowing. When AirVenture was canceled [in 2020] that was probably when we knew it was going to be a severe hit to our budget.
Wisconsin has fared very well. We’re very fortunate, and our state has been very progressive in thinking about how to reinvest in tourism. 2020 was obviously terrible with no AirVenture, and I think 2021 still felt weird; some of our big events like AirVenture, Lifest, the Waupaca Boat Ride volleyball tournament still did very well in 2021. But it felt like you couldn’t talk about it, like there was this cloud of “can people be next to each other; can we show if there’s people there?” It was just really strange. So in 2022 we saw them in droves. I think people are realizing this is a big part of their life that they don’t want to miss — an annual pilgrimage to Oshkosh, camping with friends. I kind of get goosebumps thinking about people being able to return to that and people being able to have that experience. So in a way [the strong rebound] surprises me, but I’m pleasantly surprised. And if it could just continue on this trajectory, that would be great.
I also think there were a lot of people who thought businesses were just going to say they’re going to do [conferences] virtual, save the money. We’ve found that businesses were the slowest to rebound because they were worried about what are the optics of having [events]. What if people get sick? What is that going to look like? But that is now rebounding, too, and gatherings like family reunions, weddings, all of those things that are huge drivers for bringing people to town are back. With a vengeance, I would say.
Okay, so someone has 48 hours to spend in Oshkosh. What do you tell them to do?
Well, if it’s June through October you have to go to the farmers market on Saturday mornings. Start your morning off with one of the best farmers markets in the state, probably the country. It’s marvelous. It’s just such a great vibe. There’s some great restaurants downtown to have brunch. Head over to The Paine and experience those gardens. Maybe that night, go to one of our supper clubs. We’ve got great trails, great golf courses. We have a brand-new, light-up mini golf course, Glow in the Park. Rent a boat. Hop on the new tiki boat if you’re here in the summer. We now have a pedal tavern that I just experienced two weeks ago, and it was just a ball. We have a really awesome antique mall and a couple of really great vintage shops if that’s your jam. There’s also Ardy and Ed’s, which [has] the roller skating carhops and root beer. I would just say there’s a lot to discover in Oshkosh. I could go on. Really, there’s something for everybody.
What’s Oshkosh’s best-kept tourism secret?
I think it’s funny that I’m gonna say this, but I think it’s EAA. People think of EAA as AirVenture once a year. And that one week a year is incredible. It’s 650,000 people. It’s people from all over the world. It’s amazing. But they are out there all year round doing amazing programming. From their museum to their events they bring in, to their event space, to this $6.5 million addition they put on for pilot proficiency, they are driving business all year round and I think people forget about that, particularly our own residents.
What keeps you motivated in your work?
My roots are [in Oshkosh]. I also married someone who owns a small business in Oshkosh. I think I’m just seeing a lot of momentum; I call it the snowball. I feel like the snowball is starting to roll, and there’s just a lot of things falling into place through the hard work of people for many years: the revitalization of our downtown, the dedication to our parks, just passion for the community from within. I’m motivated by others as well that are excited by what Oshkosh is and what it’s to become.
