The 15th Incentive Travel & Conventions, Meetings Asia (IT&CMA) event, which now teams up with the Corporate Travel World Asia-Pacific conference, will be calling Bangkok home until 2012 after a successful 2007 exhibition.
Neglected by Australian venue operators and event suppliers (see editorial page 6), IT&CMA is definitely keeping hosted buyers and the majority of participating exhibitors happy with its mix of seminars, social events and pre-scheduled appointments.
The Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld in the heart of the city worked extremely well for the event, offering plenty of space for the exhibition component, presentations and media conferences. CentralWorld offers meetings facilities in excess of 10,000 square metres with a ceiling height of 13.5 metres and the ability to accommodate up to 6000 delegates in a single pillarless environment.
It was the 15th year of the event meaning there were plenty of new initiatives including a pre-show night tour at Siam Niramit which was a hit with many hosted buyers.
Prior to the start of the event organisers had 1325 pre-registered delegates, including 16 hosted buyers from Australia, and 320 exhibiting companies. There was a definite buzz on the exhibition floor for much of the program, with many exhibitors recording strong interest from buyers.
“We want to emphasise the quality of buyers and not the number of buyers,” said managing director of show organiser, TTG Asia Media, Darren Ng.
A keynote presentation by Joel Makower entitled The Environment Challenge: A New Mindset was well-attended and well-received by delegates. Mr Makower addressed the rising concerns on energy security and climate change as well as the opportunities and obstacles faced by businesses in turning environmentally friendly.
“Nearly every aspect of travel is being viewed through a green lens, from transportation to tourism, hospitality to conference venues,” Mr Makower said.
“But there’s no single standard – as with so many other sectors, there’s no definition of `how good is good enough’. That makes it a challenge for even the most committed companies to be seen as green.
“Nearly ever sector is facing similar challenges. The result is that today’s travel industry customer can arrive with a wide range of interests and expectations.”
The majority of exhibitors spoken to by mice.net were positive about IT&CMA in 2007.
Rica A. Beuno from the Department of Tourism in the Philippines said they were getting some good, strong leads and the quality of buyers was high.
Director of sales at the Celadon Palace in Vietnam, Kim Chi Nguyen, was also positive.
“This has been very fruitful for us. We have met a lot of potential clients from around the world and we will be here next year,” she said.
The Celadon Palace in Ho Chi Minh City will open in mid-2008.
Kenji Matsuzawa from the Sapporo Convention Bureau in Japan said pre-scheduled appointments were strong and interest in Japan appeared to be high.
The lone venue exhibitor from New Zealand, Vbase, represented by Jo Robinson, was less than positive, saying they would be reviewing their involvement in 2008.
Singapore-based buyer
Stephanie Gilchrist
Operations manager – international, corporate meeting solutions, American Express Global Corporate Services.
“This was my first visit to IT&CMA and it was definitely the show in which to meet and network with bureaux, hotels and other vendors from Asia and Japan. I made some valuable contacts discovered new incredible destinations and products. The venue, whilst initially confusing to find was centrally located and easy to walk to from many of Bangkok’s hotels. The undercover walkway that takes you over major intersections is a wonderful idea, and for conference organisers, can save dollars that would normally be spent on transport.
“A main theme throughout the event was going green - this is a hot topic globally for everyone in MICE however it seems not all the vendors have embraced it practically. I continue to be surprised by the number of vendors who bring multitudes of brochures to trade shows when in reality most buyers are more than happy with a CD ROM. It is unfortunate but in many cases the CD is removed from the vendor collateral to be packed in luggage and the rest of the collateral ie: brochures, maps, etc, are left behind in the hotel room for disposal. I would love to see the MICE vendors embrace the concept of green meetings in 2008 across all shows.”
Sydney-based buyer
Virginia Percival
Director, The Conference Event & Function Specialists
“Wow, being here in the sparkling new 23 level - Bangkok Convention Centre (BCC) is a great honour being one of 16 hosted buyers from Australia, which has been made possible by the wonderful sponsors. TTG Asia are doing are great job and with the assistance of the delightful Thai hospitality has made the program work so well. The security entering and exiting the BCC is impressive and a credit to the organisers and I must say I am most impressed with the security throughout Thailand, even at my hosted hotel, the Grand Hyatt Erawan…we can all learn a lot from this as security today is paramount. I am so excited to have the opportunity to meet with so many people from all around the world and to have one-to-one meetings with key participants.”
Perth-based buyer
Murray Skea
Manager groups and leisure, Globetrotter Corporate Travel
“I attended IT&CMA & CTW for the first time as a hosted buyer and would definitely like to attend next year. It was a great opportunity to meet DMCs and suppliers from all over the world and although the 20 minute sessions were short, you were able to gain vauable information and forge a relationship in that short time. I was surprised by the excellent conference facilities available in Bangkok and the new exhibition centre is world-class.”
Show organisers placed a strong emphasis on the social program of IT&CMA with events that went a long way to going beyond traditional Asian-style festivities.
At the opening ceremony and welcome cocktail function held at ZEN at CentralWorld the focus was on Western-style entertainment, creative cocktails, and tasty food more akin to a stylish Western event than an Asian establishment.
Similarly, the late-night function hosted by Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts and TTG Media was more about letting your hair down than experiencing Thai culture.
IT&CMA in 2008 will again be paired with the Corporate Travel World Asia-Pacific conference. It will be held at the Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld from October 7 to 9, 2008.
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