 
It wasn’t the first time that New Zealand’s MEETINGS tradeshow more or less put the other major annual C&I industry shows that fill our calendars to shame – and I suspect it won’t be the last.
Not only did the two-day affair held in Auckland draw a record crowd to its largest collection of exhibitors to date, but it also proved that the flow and focus that buyers are looking for need not be compromised even when the event is fast burgeoning in size and popularity.
In 2007, New Zealand’s only annual C&I tradeshow offered 350 registered day buyers and 177 hosted buyers the chance to speak face-to-face with 176 exhibitors from around the country, making it the biggest MEETINGS to date. Despite the increased scale and additional foot traffic, the tradeshow still ran just as smoothly as we’ve come to expect after 11 consecutive years of successful, spacious, well-thought-out and informative MEETINGS experiences.
The fact that it is near impossible to find someone who can really flaw the event is a sure-fire sign that organisers, Forum Meeting Planners (FMP) Ltd, are getting it right. Buyers from New Zealand, Australia, United States, China, India and Thailand shared positive feedback on the tradeshow, while exhibitors were pleased with the level of inquiries received from quality buyers.
To quantify the success of the show, MEETINGS 2007 convenor, CEO of Conventions & Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) CEO, Alan Trotter reported that around $25 million worth of C&I business was booked during the two days, with a further $164 million worth of business planned and now well on the way to being realised.
One exhibitor signing up business at the show was Auckland-based Louise Ryburn, general manager of Celebrity Speakers (NZ) Ltd.
“We received so many good leads, and in a lot of instances we needed to check the availability of different speakers and entertainment on the spot because the buyer definitely wanted to secure a booking,” Ms Ryburn said.
She was also impressed that buyers honoured their appointments across the two days.
“At past tradeshows, we’ve had some no-shows, but we had no problem with that this year! We also had lots of good day buyers go past and they’ve all taken away our material.”
Entertainers Greg Ward and Brett Tutheridge from Ward & Tutheridge were similarly happy with the quality of hosted buyers and day buyers dropping by their stand.
“There was a good mixture of really well qualified buyers who were all looking for venues and entertainment for their conferences and events. We’re meeting with Australians predominately. We chose them specifically as we’re breaking into that market now,” Mr Ward said.
Also honing in on buyers hailing from Australia was Robyn Hodgson of Auckland-based Exhibition Hire Services. She said that the number of Australians walking through the exhibition was much higher than last year’s MEETINGS held in Christchurch.
“We do a lot of work for Australians that are travelling over to New Zealand with conferences that need trade exhibitions alongside them, so it’s good to see there are more Australian buyers coming through this year,” Ms Hodgson said.
Exhibitors once again lifted the professionalism of the tradeshow by providing some pretty impressive stands, themed to a particular product or location. From Millennium Hotels and Resorts’ liquorice allsorts-shaped chairs and prize wheel, New Zealand Destinations’ huge inflatable igloo-shaped stand, to Rotorua-based Skyline Skyride’s stand which was one of their actual gondolas, it was hard to pick a favourite!
MEETINGS 2007 took up two whole floors of SKYCITY Auckland Convention Centre, and while it was easy to lose your bearings and forget which floor you were on, ample signage ensured no one was lost for long. However, with MEETINGS growing in size, organisers may need to start thinking about larger venue options in the years to come – the event seems to be outgrowing the available spaces! The 2008 event is set to be held in Christchurch at the spacious Westpac Arena.
In addition to the tradeshow, this year’s MEETINGS program also included an information seminar, run by CINZ and Tourism New Zealand, which addressed the industry’s engagement in C&I activity in North Asia and India, and several social functions, including a lunch at St Matthews hosted by Millennium Hotels and Resorts, and a red-carpeted final night dinner held at the awe-inspiring Auckland Town Hall, Auckland Convention Centre at THE EDGE.
Sydney-based buyer
Ian Walsh, managing director/executive producer, G1 Productions
“New Zealand is rapidly becoming a great alternative to the Gold Coast. I was pleased to see the medium meetings market (500-1000 pax), being catered for. We just need to hope that the airlines can get behind the destinations to make New Zealand more accessible for delegates. And as always the Kiwis know how to have a good time and work together to get your event over to New Zealand, no matter what the destination.”
Auckland-based buyer
Andrea Duggan, conference and event operations manager, LexisNexis
“MEETINGS was an excellent opportunity to meet face to-face with both existing and prospective suppliers to discuss the conference and event needs we have on the horizon. I came away motivated with fresh new ideas, armed with up-to-date product information and having met some fantastic new people. As per last year the social functions were a real highlight and a great opportunity to network in a fun, relaxed environment.”
Auckland-based buyer
Jayne Richardson, membership events and support co-ordinator, New Zealand Institute of Management Auckland Inc
“I really enjoyed MEETINGS. The main benefit for me was seeing suppliers all in one place instead of making lots of phone calls or trawling websites to see what might work. I have clients with differing needs around in the main centres of New Zealand and this enabled me a good overview for a variety of venues.”
Queensland-based buyer
Jackie Rouleston Stuart, director - sales and marketing, Event Production Management (Aust) Pty Ltd
“As I used to be involved in the New Zealand C&I industry, I’ve had the privilege of attending MEETINGS on many occasions. After leaving New Zealand four years ago, this year was my first opportunity to return. It was fantastic to experience the continuing development of the industry firsthand, to meet an exciting and enticing range of new suppliers and to re-connect to so many old friends.”
Christchurch-based exhibitor
Bryan Pearson, chief executive, Vbase
“MEETINGS is a great format for interacting with the industry and connecting with buyers and opportunities, and presenting what we have to offer to buyers from New Zealand and Australia – and there are even some buyers from further afield. Business flowed almost immediately after MEETINGS held last year in Christchurch, and a lot of very strong leads that were followed up and converted into good business beyond that. I’m sure we’ll see similar results from this year.”
MEETINGS kicked off with an impressive welcome function held in an unassuming location on Auckland’s waterfront on July 24. Organised by Auckland-based in-house event management company, The Orange Group, the event gave more than 600 guests the chance to enjoy a drink and catch up with colleagues before the exhibition’s official opening.
The event was staged at Orams Marine at Westhaven, a dry boat storage facility by day and function venue by night. Guests were greeted on arrival by waves of colourfully-lit boat sails at the entrance to the venue, and once inside, they gazed up in awe at the 17-metre-high stacks of boats flanking both sides of the facility. A talking point was the 3.4-by-3-metre papier-mâché Mooi chandelier suspended above guest’s heads, which is said to be worth NZ$14,500.
Stu Robertson, director of The Orange Group said his team of eight had two-and-a-half hours to bump into the working storage facility – the last boat to be returned that day was at around 5pm, water still dripping from its hull. The venue’s high ceilings also posed a challenge, as everything needed to be rigged up from the roof and pulled up with block and chain. However, the testing yet coordinated effort from the organisers paid off, and the makeover to the venue was spectacular.
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