I noticed a lot of construction going on in this part of Goyang city, particularly in the areas around KINTEX Convention Center. What’s brewing?
Yes, there is a lot of construction around KINTEX. The city government is working on a project to develop a broadcasting complex. The south-west of KINTEX will have a collection of broadcasting studios to support numerous companies.

Goyang city will also welcome CJ LiveCity, led by CJ ENM, the South Korean entertainment group that produced (Oscar-winning 2020 film) Parasite. This will be a huge K-entertainment complex that will include an arena with 40,000 outdoor terrace seats and 20,000 indoor seats, as well as a theme park.

Another area around KINTEX is also being developed as a free-trade zone that will attract and host international companies.

Once these zones are completed, Goyang will get an intellectual capital boost and stronger power to attract international meetings.

What are Goyang’s key industries, and will the broadcasting complex investment change the mix?
Goyang used to have a strong agricultural industry but with the expansion of Seoul (20 minutes away by car), Goyang has been developed as a supporting residential city. Goyang now has the largest population in northern Gyeonggi Province, with more than a million people living here.

As a result, the city has to be self-sufficient. Goyang has chosen to pursue the intellectual capital route and is establishing mega complexes for related businesses. The city is keen to grow its medical, digital technology and content-related industries.

The city government’s investment in growing the broadcasting and media industry is paying off well. So far, many broadcasting systems and film studios have moved to Goyang. We have MBC (Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation), SBS (Seoul Broadcasting System), CJ, JTBC (Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company) offices and studios here now. You could chance upon a movie or drama being filmed as you walk down our streets!

Our medical industry is also developing fine. Goyang is home to six general hospitals and a national cancer centre.

As you know, we have the largest convention centre (KINTEX) in South Korea right here in Goyang, so MICE is also a strategic industry for the city. Our Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism designated seven Global Convention Complexes around the country, and Goyang is one of them. To qualify for this status, cities must have a mega convention facility, entertainment and shopping facilities, and accommodation supply. Goyang has all of these, all integrated across two million square metres of land.

Another key industry for Goyang is the drone industry. We have an aviation university here, which has a huge UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) training centre close by. (We are supporting) the country’s plan to launch passenger UAV (drone taxis) in the near future.

While these modern industry developments are underway, Goyang’s flower (horticulture) industry remains huge. More than 10 per cent of South Korea’s flower industry is located here in Goyang.

KINTEX Convention Center itself is due for expansion too. Back in 2020, the centre announced plans to open a third exhibition hall by 2024. Any updates?
Construction was supposed to commence in 2021 but inflation set in and made the project a lot more expensive than what was initially planned. KINTEX has three major shareholders – the central government, Gyeonggi Province, and Goyang City – and they are working on getting more funds for the construction. This process takes time. Meanwhile, the design of the new KINTEX building is being reviewed. Construction will begin early next year and be completed in 2027.

Let’s talk more about Goyang’s status as a Global Convention Complex city. What advantages does this recognition bring to the city?
As a Global Convention Complex, we get 50-50 funding from both the central and city government every year to promote the city for business events.

The funding is used to conduct various programmes in Goyang, such as a complimentary shuttle trolley service to and from KINTEX, hotels and the city centre where shopping centres and restaurants are. This service is provided when conventions are in town, and it improves commuting convenience for event attendees.

Previously, the fund was used to produce a series of films that showcase key facilities in the city that convention planners value. These films are made available to any businesses needing to promote Goyang for business events.

Goyang CVB also tapped the fund to launch an incubation centre to grow local business event firms. It now supports 25 companies.

How do you foresee the future of business events development for Goyang?
I believe that a successful business events destination must engage its own civil community. International events that are hosted in the city must benefit the people living there.

As the CVB, we have two campaigns (slogans) – Asia’s Leading MICE Destination and Sustainable Capital of Korea – that reflect our vision for Goyang.

When I started as managing director with the CVB in late-2016, I signed Goyang up for the Global Destination Sustainability Index (GDSI), which is a benchmark for sustainability strategies in business events and business travel. GDSI carefully evaluates each city’s sustainability achievements through four pillars – Environmental, Social, Supplier and Destination Management performance. We had to complete more than 50 questionnaires and back our responses with proof; it was tough.

In 2021, we established a sustainability committee comprising academia, local government, CVB and civil society, and this committee crafted a five-year sustainability strategy with the support of GDSI. The strategy sets out goals, vision and action plans for Goyang. Following that, we wrote a sustainable events manual and distributed it to all event organisers.

To further encourage event organisers to conduct their activities more sustainably, Goyang CVB provides additional subvention support to events that fulfil at least three out of six requirements. We support about 20 events every year, and almost every one of them qualifies for additional support due to sustainability fulfilment.

Last year, we established KPIs specifically for sustainability performance and are using these to monitor and measure events hosted here in the city.

We are now looking at third-party sustainability certification. Goyang CVB is consulting now on the acquisition of the ISO 20121 sustainable events standards. Perhaps, within this year, we will see hotels, PCOs and the Goyang CVB getting certified.

Let’s talk about the Goyang Destination Week, which is now into its seventh year. How did this come about?
I came from the business events industry (MCI Group from 2009 to 2015, and a member of the Korea MICE Association and Korea MICE Convergence Leaders’ Forum), and I saw CVBs hosting MICE Days every year to engage with the industry. I thought that was too brief.

When I became Goyang CVB’s managing director, I was determined to create a more substantial event that would bring more attention to Goyang. People knew about KINTEX, as it is the largest convention centre in South Korea. They also knew about Ilsan, the new city for living. But not many knew about Goyang that both KINTEX and Ilsan are part of.

My priority then was to have more people know about Goyang, and to do that I needed to expand the scope of events that are held here. Faced with a tight budget to accomplish these goals, I tapped into my personal network and invited some international speakers. As an ICCA member, I also decided to leverage ICCA’s power to establish and promote the event. That was the start of the Goyang Destination Week. It was a two-day event, comprising the ICCA Asia Destination Roundtable for DMOs. We had about 60 people that year.

This year, Goyang Destination Week stretched across five days. On the first day (August 22) we had Goyang MICE Day, which was for 200 local citizens who are not from our industry. We provided an introduction to the business events industry, entertainment, a site visit to KINTEX, and a small meal coupon for participants to try some restaurants around KINTEX.

On the second day, we had the Asia Pacific Business Events Youth Challenge. We attracted proposal submissions from 50 teams across 10 countries, and for the finals, we had eight competing teams from five countries. We also invited 60 youths from South Korea to attend the event. In all, this event had about 200 attendees.

On the third day, we hosted the International Destination Competitiveness Forum, held in person and online. We had 300 offline participants and 100 online.

On the fourth day, we had the ICCA Asia Pacific Business Development Forum for 200 participants. (The last day of the Goyang Destination Week was a city tour for international attendees.)

Would Goyang Destination Week evolve further to take in other events under its banner?
We are open to different forms of events parked under Goyang Destination Week, as long as they bring valuable content to our participants. Last year, we had Global Destination Sustainability Movement workshops for about 45 to 50 GDSI members from Asia-Pacific.

Goyang MICE Day is the first for us, and I think it is a worthwhile initiative. We will do it again next year. It was actually an idea from the Goyang MICE Alliance, which comprises both the corporate and civil committees. The latter is made up of citizens and MICE experts, and they were the ones who suggested this activity for the citizens. Goyang CVB supported Goyang MICE Day with funds.

The Asia Pacific Business Events Youth Challenge was also very promising. It is in its second edition now, and last year it had only a dozen proposal submissions. Participation tripled this year, so we are confident of strong interest next year.

The International Destination Competitiveness Forum is a signature event of the Goyang Destination Week, and has been in existence since 2017. It will continue to be part of Goyang Destination Week.

Goyang CVB signed an MoU with Business Events Sarawak on August 24 to collaborate on producing and promoting future issues of the International Journal of Business Events and Legacies. Which business event do you have in mind for content contribution?
I think Goyang Destination Week will make a good legacy case study. Through the Goyang Destination Week, more citizens got to know about the business events industry and want to be involved in it.

Do you see some senior people on the event staff here at the forum? There are senior people who are now interested in being part of business events, and we provide them with training so they can be employed for simple jobs on a contract basis.

Goyang Destination Week creates the opportunity for young people in Goyang to see business events in action and inspire curiosity in the profession, and also to emphasise that business events are not merely a segment of tourism.

I’m very happy that Goyang Destination Week is able to do all that for the city and its people.