New Zealand’s capital, Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, is set to host New Zealand’s largest business events showcase MEETINGS 2023 next week, the first time it has been held in the city.
Staged by Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA), MEETINGS will be held on June 21 and 22. And for the first time in four years, buyers from international markets including Asia and North America will also be in attendance.
The buzzing showfloor at the 2022 edition
Over 100 buyers from Australia, 134 hosted buyers from New Zealand and 10 from international markets including North America and Singapore will attend. Up to 300 day buyers from Wellington and around New Zealand have also registered.
Over the two days, and across two floors at Tākina, buyers can pre-schedule appointments of their choice from 224 stands across 19 regions of New Zealand.
Many Australian-hosted buyers are set to stay on and discover more with the support of Air New Zealand and regional business events bureaux. They can choose to visit Auckland, Taupō, Rotorua, Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, Marlborough, Christchurch and Canterbury, Dunedin, Queenstown and Southland/Fiordland.
A range of professional development sessions are also part of MEETINGS. They include the Tourism New Zealand Knowledge and Destination Hub, Celebrity Speakers Showcase, and a Professional Conference Organisers (PCO) Masterclass.
Registrations are still open for day buyer positions. The event is free to attend.
Loren Christie will move to BestCities Global Alliance as managing director, effective July 1.
He takes over from Lesley Williams, who led the BestCities team for three years.
In his new role, Christie will oversee BestCities’ operations, prioritising the alliance’s focus on legacy and sustainability to advance the global impact of meetings events.
Christie brings to the position over 25 years of experience in travel, tourism and business events. He has held various leadership roles with Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Destination Toronto, and has spent 20 years in broadcast television. During the past three years, he has built a consulting business that provides project management and solutions for the hospitality, travel and tourism industries, with a focus on legacy, impact, and promoting equity, diversion and inclusion.
Park Regis Singapore has appointed Kenny Yeo as its new general manager.
He will lead the strategic direction, business performance, and operations of the hotel in his new role.
With over 24 years of experience, he joins Park Regis Singapore from Oasia Hotel Novena and Oasia Hotel Downtown where he served as hotel manager for five years.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) has announced several senior management appointments, all effective from September 10.
Tan Kai Ping, currently executive vice president finance and strategy and chief financial officer, will be appointed executive vice president operations and chief operations officer. He will be responsible for SIA’s cabin crew, customer services and operations, engineering, and flight operations divisions.
From left: Tan Kai Ping and JoAnn Tan
JoAnn Tan will take on the role of senior vice president finance and chief financial officer. Currently senior vice president of marketing planning, she led SIA’s efforts to restore network connectivity and capacity after borders re-opened, as well as played a role in deepening strategic partnerships with multiple airlines around the world.
Divisional vice president digital, Dai Hao Yu, will be promoted to acting senior vice president marketing planning. Having joined SIA in 1998, he helped lead the SIA Group’s digital transformation in his current role.
Meanwhile, executive vice president operations and chief operations officer Mak Swee Wah will retire on September 9 after 40 years with the company.
Linda Reddy has been appointed as the new hotel manager at Hilton Singapore Orchard.
A seasoned veteran with over 25 years of hospitality experience, Reddy’s most recent stint was general manager of Hilton Sandton, a position she held since 2019.
In her new role, she will oversee a wide range of duties at the hotel, including its MICE and wedding offerings.
A firm believer in the power of teamwork and shared vision, Reddy is also passionate about championing the advancement of women in hospitality and executive positions, to create a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce.
With tourism in general on the road to recovery, Jeju Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) is eyeing Asian markets that showed strong interest before the pandemic struck in 2020, as well as keeping a close watch on new sources.
“While China was the largest producer before Covid-19, South-east Asia was already seen as a new growth market. We engaged in bidding and promoting to countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Post-Covid, Singapore has emerged as a new market, while Taiwan is also a major contributor, Byeon Deok-Seung, chairman of Jeju CVB, told TTGmice.
Jeju Folk Village is on Jeju’s list of Sustainable Unique Places
In addition to incentive trips, Jeju CVB is also seeing demand for more corporate meetings. He added: “There is special support for organisers who choose our Unique Venues and Unique Activities. In addition, the Green MICE Support Program is the first project in Jeju to provide subsidies for sustainable, eco-friendly events.”
Efforts seem to be paying off. So far this year, Jeju has secured two groups from Taiwan, two from Singapore and five from Malaysia, with more enquiries coming in as air travel capacity increases.
Besides advertising and public relations, Jeju CVB will be participating in major tradeshows such as IMEX Frankfurt, IT&CM Asia in Bangkok, and ITB Asia in Singapore. These overseas promotions help Jeju CVB relay the range of support available from bidding, promotion and hosting to using Unique Venues and MICE-linked tourism products or Unique Activities.
Under the Unique Venues initiative, Jeju has identified 13 parks and gardens, cultural complexes, active sports venues and luxury hotels. In addition, there are 15 Unique Activities comprising experiential programmes featuring Jeju’s nature and culture, such as the Haenyeo women divers; female divers who dive into the sea without any equipment to harvest seafood.
The scale and amount of financial assistance vary across international conventions/conferences, corporate meetings and incentive tours. Events that meet sustainability guidelines may also receive additional funding.
International Convention Center (ICC) Jeju is South Korea’s only resort-style convention centre, located in Jungmun Tourist Complex.
ICC Jeju offers views of Mount Halla in its backyard, and the Pacific Ocean at its doorstep
Recent events include the 59th Orient and Southeast Asian Lions Forum in November 2022 which drew 8,500 delegates, including 1,500 from overseas. Another three global and Asian congresses this year are set to draw thousands of delegates.
“ICC Jeju provides a one-stop service for MICE events. We operate convention facilities, PCO/PEO service for conferences and events, and F&B service directly. So it is possible to accommodate organisers/planners’ various requirements,” explained Sungmi Jang, marketing manager, ICC Jeju.
On the sustainable front, ICC Jeju has installed multiple 751kw solar power generation facilities – the largest in scale on the island. The panels produce approximately 790,590kwh of electricity per year, saving approximately 100 million won (US$77,170) in electricity bills annually.
ICC Jeju also has plans to construct a new building with exhibition space and small meeting rooms, with completion expected in 2025.
Major hotel brands like Shilla and Lotte – the 500-key Lotte Hotel Jeju is a Unique Venue – are located in the south, providing planners with a range of five-star accommodation and meeting facilities.
Shinhwa World Water Park
Further west, Jeju Shinhwa World (JSW) – Jeju’s largest integrated resort – is also riding on the business events revival. JSW comprises four five-star hotels, more than 40 dining outlets, premium shopping centre, meeting facilities, theme park, water park and casino.
“While the majority of MICE bookings are still from domestic event planners, we are seeing significant growth in interest as well as actual bookings from Asia-Pacific, such as Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and Hong Kong in particular,” shared Shinae Lee, JSW’s senior director, sales & marketing.
This is partly attributed to how Jeju’s profile on the world stage has been elevated, thanks to K-dramas and K-films that were broadcasted during the pandemic, noted Lee.
“JSW is looking forward to working more closely with Jeju CVB to promote Jeju among global MICE event planners. With improved infrastructure and two integrated resorts, the other being Dream Tower, it is a good time for the industry to work together to promote Jeju as the perfect bleisure MICE destination,” Lee concluded.
Theo Ocks has been named the new commercial general manager of Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford. He will spearhead the strategic business direction for the hotel in his new role.
He has extensive experience from resorts to conference and urban hotels across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and was most recently the vice president of business development at Resorts World Sentosa.
Renest Hotels and Resorts has appointed Abhishek Bhatnagar as the general manager of their newest property Renest Kumbhalgarh.
In his new role, Bhatnagar will oversee and coordinate all aspects of the resort’s operations.
He has over 18 years of experience in the hospitality industry, having previously worked with various hotels in Udaipur, Rajasthan, and a nine-year-long tenure at the HRH Group of Hotels.
Taiwan is confident that its business events sector will rebound beyond 2019 this year, as recent business events activities in the destination reveal pent-up demands materialising into business.
Speaking to visiting media on the recent Meet Taiwan Open Arms’ Taiwan Pulse fam trip, Jerchin Lee, managing director of Meet Taiwan, said: “Taking the Computex Taipei exhibition – which took place from May 30 to June 2 – as an example, we see that although the (size of the show) is 70 per cent of that in 2019, this year’s total visitor count has grown by 60 per cent compared to 2019.”
The recently-held Computex 2023 was well attended
Computex organisers revealed that the four-day event attracted 47,594 professional attendees from 150 countries, where the top 10 countries visitors hailed from were Japan, the US, South Korea, China, Thailand, Hong Kong, Vietnam, India, the Philippines, and Indonesia.
With more large-scale events such as Semicon Taiwan 2023, World News Media Congress 2023, and the 35th Conference of the International Society of Environmental Epidemiology scheduled to take place this year, this will bode well for the industry’s swift recovery.
As such, Lee indicated that the outlook for the business events industry was promising, and could even surpass 2019 figures.
In 2019, the number of foreign participants in business events activities in Taiwan was 314,446 people, where economic benefits generated by foreign participants in exhibition activities amounted to NT$35.6 billion (US$1,160 million).
As for target market segments, Lee revealed: “In the (meeting segment), many of the associations are based in Europe and the US. Therefore, Taiwan will strive to attract these international conferences to be held here.”
Meanwhile, to attract more international conferences, Taiwan will also be leveraging its technology, science, and medical advancement industries.
Lee added that Taiwan will also be focused on attracting more events and participants from north-east and south-east Asia due to the short flight times of under six hours.
“These countries possess high-potential markets with large populations, making them crucial focus areas for Taiwan.”
In 2021, Taiwan also founded the Asia Convention Alliance along with Thailand, Malaysia and South Korea. The alliance aims to strengthen relations, and facilitate the exchange of knowledge between member countries through collaborative ventures. There is also a goal of hosting and bidding for more conventions, as well as organising joint conventions in member countries on a rotational basis.
Tasmania’s capital of Hobart has received the go-ahead for a new waterfront stadium, thanks to a A$240 million (US$162.5 million) injection from Australia’s Federal Government.
The Australian Government commitment of A$240 million completes the total funding requirement of A$715 million. The Tasmanian Government has announced a commitment of A$375 million, while the Australian Football League (AFL) will contribute A$15 million.
An aerial view of Hobart, Tasmania’s capital
This funding will go towards developing the Macquarie Point Arts, Entertainment and Sports Precinct, which includes development of the stadium. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2025, with a slated opening of 2029 as the home ground for Tasmania’s first AFL team, which is currently in development.
It will also enable Tasmania to compete for arts and cultural events including major concerts, conferences, exhibitions and sporting fixtures, whose organisers currently do not consider Tasmania as an option due to the lack of world-class venue facilities and capacity constraints.
Aside from possibly delivering A$2.2 billion to Tasmania’s economy over 25 years, it is expected that at least 44 events – 28 new to Tasmania – could be hosted at the new stadium, with around 587,000 attendance per year, including 123,500 overseas and interstate visitors.
During construction of the stadium, A$300 million in additional economic activity and 4,200 jobs will be created, while A$85 million in additional economic activity and 950 jobs per year will be created during stadium operations. Opportunities in the precinct around the stadium will create up to 6,720 jobs.
The Macquarie Point Development Corporation is currently preparing a Precinct Plan for the site.
A polished urban retreat designed for business travellers, Hyatt Regency Kuala Lumpur at KL Midtown combines thoughtful design, seamless service, and exceptional facilities.
The five-star property excels in backing its expansive facilities with seamless service and personalised attention, setting the benchmark for luxury in Bangkok.
With over 24 years of experience, he joins Park Regis Singapore from Oasia Hotel Novena and Oasia Hotel Downtown where he served as hotel manager for five years.
In her new role, she will oversee a wide range of duties at the hotel, including its MICE and wedding offerings.
He has extensive experience from resorts to conference and urban hotels across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and was most recently the vice president of business development at Resorts World Sentosa.
He has over 18 years of experience in the hospitality industry, having previously worked with various hotels in Udaipur, Rajasthan, and a nine-year-long tenure at the HRH Group of Hotels.
