The total number of association meetings handled by IAPCO members during 2013 rose from 2,607 in 2012 to 2,826. Whilst governmental meetings continued to fall from their peak in 2011, of 707, to 609 in 2013, corporate meetings reversed the downward trend to rise from 3,280 to 3,329.
This all shows signs of an economic turnaround, green shoots of an industry recovery, further endorsed by the fact that IAPCO members managed 2,718,797 participants during 2013, an increase of just under 6% on the previous year, with the average number of participants per event increasing by 16.5% from the low of 2011 (345) to 2013 (402).
Room nights have risen by a staggering 20%+ from 2012, perhaps indicating a return to service providers from the impersonal online facilities.
But this has all come at a cost to employment, with the number of full time employees engaged by IAPCO members falling by 11% from 2011 to 2013.
The economic impact remains staggering. In 2013, IAPCO members organized meetings that contributed to an approximate 4.4 billion euros to local economies.
Full survey results.
