Centaur Exhibitions announced last week a series of initiatives and additional investment designed to secure substantial increases in the hosted buyer, trade visitor and exhibitor communities within the show.
With the appointment of new hosted buyer recruiters, ever-more focused marketing and additional staffing resources, hosted buyers are set to rise by more than 50% to 750 including a notable increase from within the UK. New recruiter organisations include Global Cynergies, the global site selection agency, tasked with bringing in a substantial group from within the UK and mainland Europe.
The education programme will include core elements for the corporate and agency sectors with additional sessions tailored for the PA and marketing agency audiences. The highly commended Association Conference will again take place at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre on 7 July, 2014 and is set to double delegate numbers. Linda Pereira, executive director of CPL Events has been confirmed as conference chair and will be advised by a specialist panel convened from the association sector.
Plans are underway for the exhibitor community, both from the UK and internationally, to significantly expand. Turkey has already confirmed, and with countries such as Sweden increasing the size of their stand, they will be joined shortly by an array of new international destinations. The UK sector of the show is also experiencing growth with key destinations already confirmed and showing their confidence by increasing their presence at the show.
Steve Knight, event director, commented: "This is a show created for meetings professionals by meetings professionals – everything we do is guided by our desire to serve this sector well and create a show worthy of the industry."
"Last year’s show saw more than 6,740 pre-scheduled appointments take place across the three days through the hosted buyer programme alone and we expect this to rise to in excess of 10,000 this year. The feedback regarding the quality of these buyers and the walk-on business confirms a successful launch event and with continued financial investment and extra team resource, we believe the 2014 show will stand in a class of its own."
