The UFI Board of Directors has elected Monica Lee-Müller as president of UFI for the 2021/22 period.
The UFI Presidential Trio for the 2020/21 term will therefore comprise:
– Monica Lee-Müller (Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management) (HML); Hong Kong), incoming president
– Anbu Varathan (Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association; India), president 2020/21
– Mary Larkin (Diversified Communications; US), outgoing president
Monica Lee-Müller
This decision becomes effective at the conclusion of the 87th UFI Global Congress, which runs from November 15-20, 2020.
Lee-Müller has been the managing director of HML since July 2012. HML is the private company responsible for the management and operation of the 306,000m2 Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, where about 1,000 events are held there every year.
She has been active in UFI for many years, supporting the association’s mission and driving developments, especially on diversity and sustainability projects. Lee-Müller has also served as a board member of UFI for the past 12 years.
UFI’s recent presidents were from South Africa (Craig Newman 2018/19), Italy (Corrado Peraboni 2017/18), Germany (Andreas Gruchow 2016/17), Russia (Sergey Alexeev 2015/16), Colombia (Andrés López-Valderrama 2014/15), and France (Renaud Hamaide, 2013/14).
Yearning to take off on the next incentive trip or team building exercise as working from home takes a toll on physical and mental health?
In assisting planners for the next corporate getaway – be it to connect with one’s inner soul or embarking on an exhilarating adventure in the great outdoors – Gangwon Provincial Office presents a selection of retreats and activities that allow guests to rediscover themselves, and emerge refreshed.
Park Roche Resort & Wellness
Located in Jeongseon, Park Roche Resort & Wellness is located in a village named ‘Sugam’ – where a protagonist is said to have fallen into deep sleep on a rock – resonates with the resort’s unique selling point in recharging the body and mind through deep sleep.
Sugam Lab, a collaboration between the resort and Ace Bed R&D Institute, matches body type measurements to individual bedding for a guest’s duration of stay. Body composition and stress level measurements are then used to recommend personalised wellness programmes and outcomes analysed with a scientific approach.
Wellness programmes are also divided into three themes, starting from improving one’s daily habits, to reigniting passion and motivation, to revolutionary mediation techniques. Guests are also encouraged to participate in activities that calm their mind; for instance, painting stone or patterning mandala, practicing calligraphy and making herbarium.
Donghae Mureung Health Forest
A forest where no one would object losing themselves in, guests traverse a skywalk-type bridge to access this sanctuary; while soaking up sweeping views of the Mureung Valley, a must-see destination for its commanding scenery.
As South Korea has an established sauna culture, the highlight in visiting Donghae Mureung Health Forest would be to experience its themed alternative offerings featuring local produce (e.g. Salt Cave), and Oxygen Healing Room equipped with round-the-clock oxygen generators.
Guests may also choose from a variety of single-day or overnight (of up to 4) programmes. While single-day programmes lean more to craft making, overnight programmes can accommodate from 2 – 8 pax. Sit back and enjoy the views of the beautiful lake garden, sign up for healing or detoxing programmes led by well-trained instructors, or visit the Oseonnyeotang Outdoor Pool, which draws water from the Mureung Valley, in summer.
Yangyang Surfyy Beach
Blessed with a geographically coastal location, it’s surf’s up at South Korea’s first private beach for surfers located in Yangyang’s Hajodae beach.
There is something for everyone here, from surfing lessons to sussing out local produce at the traditional Yangyang Market – taking place every five days – get there early to beat the snaking queue for the stall peddling fish cake boiled in red crab broth.
For visitors who seek some zen from the hipster vibe, go to Naksana Temple, one of the few Buddhist monasteries overlooking the east coast and experience a variety of temple stay programmes such as Dadam (dialogues over a cup of tea) with monks.
Chuncheon Chosunilbo Marathon
Chuncheon Chosunilbo Marathon is nicknamed Legend of Autumn for taking runners on a scenic route
The 2nd oldest marathon in Korea held every October coincides with the autumn season. Organise a team run to take in scenic Chuncheon; as the marathon course – adorned in maple leaves – meanders along captivating views of Soyanggang River, Lake Soyang and Lake Uiam. Half, full and 10km courses are available.
Having come to the capital city of Gangwon, bond at Soyanggang Skywalk, an observatory facility set over Uiamho Lake. The 156m walking path made of transparent glass offers visitors a thrilling experience as if they were walking on the lake.
For more information on other destinations and activities in Gangwon, email Nuri Kim, tourism marketing manager, Gangwon Tourism Kuala Lumpur Office at kim.nuri@ymail.com.
Indonesian exhibition organiser Dyandra Promosindo will be organising Dyandra New Adventure (DNA) in October, an event that will comprise three exhibitions and a music concert happening concurrently at the Jakarta International Expo.
Scheduled for October 2-4, 2020, DNA will be a combination of Create By IFEX (Indonesia International Furniture Expo); IIMS (Indonesia International Motor Show); Property Weekend Fiesta; and Infinite Live! concert.
IFEX was previously B2B, but it has been modified to appeal to both B2C and B2B for this upcoming event
Create By IFEX will be staged on an area of 4,800m2, with around 150 exhibitors expected. Meanwhile, IIMS expects to bring attract more than 90 exhibitors, while the Property Weekend Fiesta will see over 200 participating developers. The music concert, Infinite Live!, will involve both domestic and foreign musicians, and will be held in the outdoor area that’s good for 5,000 people.
Taking up a total of 41,000m2 of space, DNA targets to attract a total of 95,000 visitors, and aims to generate 80.4 billion rupiah (US$5.7 million).
When asked about the motivation behind the massive event, Hendra Noor Saleh, president director of Dyandra Promosindo, said: “For more than four months, there has been no business. To kickstart the industry, we need to create a large momentum.”
And this momentum was sorely needed, as it will not only attract attention, but also foster new optimism, which will in turn help to revive the badly-hit industry, he added.
“With this in mind, we decided to hold DNA by putting four different industries into one event. This is a risky undertaking, but I feel that we should do something now to kickstart the sector,” Henda explained.
And although the industries and target markets differ, Michael Bayu believes that their “ecosystems are inter-related”, and by creating a cross audience, “visitors will be able to enjoy themselves as there are many things they can see in one venue”.
To entice exhibitors, Dyandra Promosindo has set a competitive booth price, to “help the industry bounce back”, shared Michael.
For The Indonesian Furniture and Craft Association (HIMKI) – the co-owner of Create By IFEX – DNA is an alternative for handicraft and furniture businesses to market their products after IFEX, a B2B furniture and craft exhibition supposed to be held in March was cancelled.
Abdul Sobur, secretary-general of HIMKI, shared that the concept of the exhibition has been changed to target the domestic market, instead of solely being B2B.
“The B2C portion will make up almost 85 per cent, while the B2B exhibition will be held virtually,” he added.
For Paulus Totok Lusida, chairman of Real Estate Indonesia – co-owner of Property Weekend Fiesta – said DNA provides fresh hope to lure potential buyers, and reach developers and markets outside the Jakarta metropolitan area.
Similarly, Property Weekend Fiesta will also feature a hybridised format which will see a festival, as well as an online exhibition that will last two weeks from September 28 to October 11.
Hendra asserted that DNA will follow basic health and safety protocols for guests’ safety, such as having a crowd controller, limiting the number of individuals at a booth, and installation of a gangway with a minimum width of three metres. DNA will also be using technology to implement non-cash payment systems and e-tickets.
offer event professionals easy way to organize multi-city hybrid meetings more effectively
Malaysian venue operators have reported a pick-up in enquires, and along with them, a growing interest in hybrid and virtual events.
This comes not long after the government gave the green light for business events – such as seminars and conferences – to start from July 1, with the exhibitions sector given the go-ahead on July 15.
The domestic MICE scene is showing gradual signs of recovery; Kuala Lumpur pictured
Christy Woon, director of sales & marketing for Hotel Maya Kuala Lumpur shared that event organisers were asking the hotel for production studio set-ups in order to do live streaming sessions, as well as virtual reality productions.
Meanwhile, Sofitel Kuala Lumpur Damansara’s assistant director of events, Emral Kuek, shared that the property has received a number of requests for physical meetings for 15 delegates or less.
She added: “Organisers for groups above 20 are opting for virtual meetings using Zoom, Webex and so on.”
Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre’s general manager, Alan Pryor, agreed that the venue has seen growing interest from organisers for hybrid and virtual events, and he expects this demand to continue moving forward.
Pryor added that conferences, especially those that will take place from now until the end of this year, will “likely proceed, with many adopting a hybrid format”. Currently, the Centre has successfully hosted several small corporate meetings in July, with more upcoming.
When asked about the outlook for the meetings industry, Pryor said there will be a continued focus on domestic business events, adding that “it will probably take at least a year or two for business events, especially those with international attendees to make a comeback”. However, he acknowledged that this is also dependent on the global situation.
Woon also agreed that domestic events will lead the way through to 1H2021, where companies will request for venues with more space to conduct staff trainings.
Last week, Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau unveiled a Meet in Malaysia campaign, where one component is focused on encouraging domestic MICE events.
MCB continues to work towards securing future international business events for Melbourne
Melbourne has been chosen as the host city for three business events – The International Trade Union Congress 2022, The International Conference on Social Work in Health and Mental Health 2022, and The International Geographical Congress 2028.
Combined, these business events will deliver an A$24.8 million (US$17.8 million) economic contribution to the state, almost 15,000 room nights to boost the Victorian hotel and accommodation sector, and drive 3,750 delegates through the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre doors.
MCB continues to work towards securing future international business events for Victoria; Melbourne pictured
Melbourne Convention Bureau’s (MCB) CEO Julia Swanson said: “While we are presented with a challenging landscape, I’m pleased to say that MCB continues to secure international business events for Melbourne which will play a significant role in Victoria’s economic recovery in the years ahead.”
Since the onset of the pandemic, the majority of this year’s events have been rescheduled, taking a toll on many players in the business events industry. Currently, 70 per cent of planned events have been rescheduled to 2021.
But Swanson believes that news of these wins will provide a boost in the sector, and instil ongoing confidence in attracting future international business events to Victoria.
MCB is also continuing to identify, negotiate and secure the business events pipeline spanning out as far as 2028.
To make Singapore’s Covid-19 private-public sector Industry Resilience Roadmap (IRR) recovery more robust and sustainable, key players say the focus must be on end-to-end digitalisation and establishing an approval body, big government funding and banking support to see small- and medium-size enterprises (SME) through “this challenge of a generation”.
Commenting on how Covid-19 had increased demand for digital event products, industry veteran, event technology champion and founder of miceNeurol, Kenny Goh, said such products are different and require new design and re-engineering to meet the demands of the approval authorities, attendees, presenters and sponsors.
MICE stakeholders in Singapore indicate the industry needs a lot more support to tide through this period; Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands pictured
Goh believed physical, virtual and hybrid events can all take place, but must be created digitally from start to finish and with digital accreditation of attendees being the key.
“From a business perspective, this reset is hellish for incumbents but heaven sent for those who have been championing digital-driven MICE,” he commented, adding that the monthly cost to hire one or two digital architects and engineers was around S$8,000 (US$5,757).
Goh also saw the need for an approval body to support organisers by giving in-principle approval for unique product concepts that meet the spirit of the law but not the letter of the law.
Having the approval body connected to authorities like the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Health was important, Goh opined, as it would allow innovative organisers the ability to develop and deliver events in the new normal that may require a lot of tweaks.
Meanwhile, Edward Liu, group managing director, Conference and Exhibition Management Services, said “government help is crucial” for industry recovery and new investment is needed.
He proposed a S$100 million events industry fund to bankroll key and sustainable events that will in turn help SMEs and PMETs (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) in the events ecosystem affected by Covid-19.
Liu continued: “More help should also be given to SMEs to apply for bridging loans at zero or low interest rate as Singapore banks have done well over the years. Banks here are now charging three per cent and it is not low enough. Switzerland’s rate is 0.5 per cent and it should be no more than one per cent.”
Frequent travellers will lead the way in the recovery of the aviation industry
The coronavirus pandemic has brought global travel to a halt, but nearly three in four frequent flyers (71%) are ready to return to travel either immediately or within the next three to six months, according to a new survey from Collinson’s Priority Pass.
The global survey also reveals that unpredictable factors such as quarantines and border controls represent travellers’ top concern about returning to air travel – 74% identify this as a worry, and accordingly, half of travellers are willing to pay for a Covid-19 test to help ease travel restrictions.
Frequent travellers will lead the way in the recovery of the aviation industry
Andy Besant, director of travel experiences at Collinson, said: “The fact that most frequent travellers are prepared to return to air travel within the next half-year or even sooner is astounding. It means that if governments, airports and the travel industry can collectively take the right steps, we may see a near-normalisation of air travel far sooner than many predictions that set out recovery taking as long as until 2023.”
This is the biggest brand-executed survey about global air traveller sentiment in the Covid-19 era. Over 22,000 frequent flyer members of the Priority Pass programme were surveyed about recent changes to their air travel behaviours and expectations, and what measures would restore their confidence and get them back to the skies.
The Priority Pass member data further reveals that the airport lounge is seen as a high-value service to those ready to fly.
Almost seven in 10 travellers are willing to pay for access to an airport lounge where social distancing is maintained and the majority of travellers (57%) plan to use their airport lounge access more than they did before the coronavirus outbreak. When asked about overall concerns for the journey, a full 74% have no concerns about the airport lounge. Looking at the retail side, 16% of frequent flyers plan to increase their pre-order of shopping and food services.
In terms of the overall airport experience, travellers want and expect a contactless journey.
Eighty per cent of travellers would like to see contactless payment options across the journey the next time they travel, and 58% want access to real-time heatwave maps of the airport to avoid crowded areas. Around one in three travellers also cited an interest in “click & collect” services for shopping and food, travel apps with better functionality and airport information, and the use of digital queuing amongst airport retailers to limit in-store numbers.
Andy added: “The perception of the airport lounge is changing in the Covid-19 era. Frequent flyers now see the lounge as not only a place for refreshments and amenities, but also a necessary part of the journey where they can feel safe and at-ease. Our survey results leave no doubt that frequent flyers want to make more use of lounge access.
“Contactless experiences are likewise key to boosting traveller confidence, hence our recent initiatives to spearhead the contactless airport journey via new airport lounge standards and safer, touch-free experiences in the airport lounge.”
Todd Handcock, president Asia Pacific at Collinson, said: “Collinson’s global findings match up with the trends we’re seeing in Asia-Pacific, where the survey found that two in three frequent flyers (66%) are ready to return to travel within the next six months… Robust, standardised testing procedures and high levels of trust between nations are key to recovery, with the survey also showing that nearly half of APAC travellers (44%) are willing to pay for a Covid-19 test at the airport in order to ease restrictions.”
He added: “Another key finding for Asia Pacific is the fact that 52% of travellers expect to use their lounge access more than before the pandemic and 68% would be willing to pay for access to a lounge where guest numbers are controlled and social distancing is maintained. In addition, of all markets surveyed, APAC travellers are the most confident in the safety of the lounge with 78% citing no concerns around the airport lounge.”
Gopinath concludes: “We believe in the power of meeting face-to-face but know this isn’t always possible. Still, we want to make sure our global community can take part and make their voice heard from wherever they are.”
Registration is now open for the 59th ICCA Congress in Kaohsiung, which will take on a hybridised format from November 1-3, 2020.
Themed Transforming Global Events Together, the congress aims to bring the ICCA global community together to create the Kaohsiung Protocol, a framework that identifies major trends and key strategies that will enable the international meetings industry to thrive, now and into the future.
ICCA wants to ensure the global community can take part and make their voice heard, hence it’s offering three different ways to join this congress
As part of the Congress, all participants can be involved in a six-week online pre-Congress Road to Kaohsiung programme, identifying major trends, key strategies, new ideas, formats and technologies for the future of global events.
ICCA has collaborated with Maritz Global Events on the format of this year’s congress, where delegates can choose to attend the events held live in Kaohsiung, a gathering at regional hubs, or virtually.
In lieu of such uncertain times, ICCA is also offering a flexible and adaptable approach to registration and the accompanying fees. This means delegates can sign up now but change their registration type later.
Singapore Coffee Association (SCA), in partnership with Food&HotelAsia (FHA), will be staging the first virtual edition of Singapore (Micro-Lot) Specialty Coffee Auction on October 1, 2020, in conjunction with International Coffee Day.
The micro-lot coffee auction will serve as a platform to allow global speciality green bean producers to make strategic ventures into Asia’s growing coffee market. Coffee producing countries from South-east Asia, South America and Africa are expected to take part to showcase their beans in Asia.
The first virtual coffee auction will be able to reach a larger audience of potential buyers
Up to 300 bidders are expected to attend, and the auction will showcase some 40 lots of speciality coffee up for bids.
Supported by Enterprise Singapore (ESG), it is the first time the Singapore (Micro-Lot) Specialty Coffee Auction will be held in a digital format. And through its partnership with FHA, the online auction will be able to reach more potential international bidders.
Sophia Ng, director, trade, Enterprise Singapore said: “For our Singapore companies, the auction presents an opportunity to connect and expand their network with international and regional buyers in the coffee trading industry. International and regional coffee traders can also leverage the auction to increase trade and better access the region.”
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel’s latest hotel to join its luxury Asia Pacific portfolio is located in Japan’s Nikko National Park, set amid a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The hotel’s 94 guestrooms and suites all feature a private balcony that flows seamlessly with an engawa lounge area, while facilities on-site include four F&B venues – The Japanese Restaurant, Lakehouse, The Bar, and The Lobby Lounge.
Guestroom Lakeview Suite
Treat incentive winners to a session at the Spa at The Ritz-Carlton, Nikko, in one of the four treatment rooms. This is the first Ritz-Carlton property to feature authentic Japanese hotsprings, and there are indoor and open-air baths to choose from, where waters have been drawn from the nearby Yumoto Onsen.
As wellness will be order of the day due to the pandemic, guests will be interested to know that a nightly meditation is available. Every day at dusk, the lobby area will be transformed into a place of spiritual respite, offering a moment to reset and appreciate the day that has passed. Upon departure, guests will receive a sacred omamori (Japanese amulet), their own keepsake memento and a wish for safe travel.
There is also a wide selection of outdoor pursuits to choose from for incentive groups, ranging from cycling through protected wetlands to meditating under waterfalls.
Indoor activities meanwhile, include learning the Japanese skill of furoshiki wrapping, witnessing a mystical temple fire ceremony or enjoying the sounds of drums and Japanese flute music at a sacred ritual ceremonial dance.
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.
