Boosting the tempo

Pleased with their MICE performance so far, TCEB is pretty confident that its support schemes will continue to appeal

According to a Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) spokesperson, performance for Thailand’s business events industry from the first to third quarter in financial year 2018 was “impressive”.

Thailand’s MICE sector posts growth with signals of strong market confidence; The Grand Palace in Bangkok pictured

During the same period, the number of delegates grew 20.3 per cent to 910,912 year-on-year. Meanwhile, the generated revenue grew 8.5 per cent to 68,898 million baht (US$2 billion) year-on-year.

Within the MICE sector, the segment that revealed the strongest growth was incentives, which posted a 24 per cent growth in overseas delegates (213,943 vs 265,384) and a 15.9 per cent growth in generated revenue (13,142 million baht vs 15,232 million baht).
TCEB offers a range of support schemes, which has brought in new business.

For instance, the support scheme in the meetings and incentive sector, entitled “Meet Mega”, has been relatively successful in attracting mega-size groups. This year, TCEB has welcomed a total of eight mega groups – from direct marketing companies in the Asia-Pacific – that have held their events at certified venues in Bangkok, Pattaya and Hua Hin. Group sizes ranged from 3,500 to 20,000 pax, and resulted in a total of 65,280 delegates and generated 5,510 million baht in revenue.

Next, in the associations sector, 11 bids in the fields of medicine, engineering, IT and zoology, have been won by Thailand as of 1H2019. They are expected to bring in around 14,700 attendees and revenue of 1,227 million baht.

Meanwhile, the government agency’s support has also brought in a number of exhibitions for 2018 such as the SILMO Bangkok – The ASEAN Optical Fair, Label Expo Southeast Asia, and Medical Devices ASEAN.

For 2019, CPhI South East Asia, a pharmaceutical tradeshow, has already confirmed its call at Bangkok. To be held at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center, the event is expected to draw more than 6,000 attendees and 270 exhibitors.

TCEB’s president, Chiruit Isarangkun Na Ayuthaya, earlier this year shared that the bureau has aligned its efforts with the country’s new economic policy to drive competitiveness in 10 key local industries – known as the 10 S-Curve industries – through business events.

The 10 S-Curve industries are integrated medical services, future automotive, smart device, health tourism, biotechnology, food processing, robotics, aviation and logistics, biofuel and biochemical, and digital services. In this regard, TCEB has been collaborating with overseas and local partners to bring in business events from these industries into the kingdom.

Medical Devices ASEAN 2018, as a trade event for the integrated medical services industry, received TCEB assistance. TCEB supported IMPACT Exhibition Management in bringing more than 4,000 medical professionals around the region to attend the exhibition that highlighted technology and innovation in medical devices.

Other recent successes include SIGGRAPH Asia, CEBIT ASEAN Thailand, and Future Energy Asia 2018. SIGGRAPH Asia, the continent’s largest conference and exhibition on computer graphics, interactive techniques, digital content welcomed some 6,500 attendees from 58 countries in November 2017.

Next, oil-and-energy event Future Energy Asia 2018 will take place from December 12-14.
TCEB’s spokesperson said: “We are still looking for partners to bring in events from the 10 S-Curve industries and roll out support schemes. Our target partners are government agencies, especially the ministries related to the 10 S-Curve industries, and overseas organisers and local suppliers.”

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