Peter Tichy has been appointed opening general manager for the Radisson Blu Resort Cam Ranh Bay in Vietnam.
With more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Tichy has previously managed four of Radisson Blu’s hotels, as well as properties under its sister brand, Park Inn by Radisson.
Tichy has also managed and successfully launched new hotels in Russia, Sweden, Germany, Ukraine, Egypt, and Nigeria.
The business events segment is still very new to the Sultanate, and getting it off the ground will require destination specialists to overcome several hurdles.
An inbound agent who wished to remain anonymous lamented that convincing organisers to hold their event in Brunei is not easy, as the local currency is strong. At the same time, delegates have to adhere to the laws of land, which prohibit alcohol consumption, even at private gatherings. Furthermore, the lack of night entertainment, shopping, world-class attractions and theme parks of international standard also makes it difficult to pitch Brunei as an incentive destination.
So challenging is Brunei for MICE that even domestic companies head overseas for their incentive programmes, noted the agent.
However, inbound agents have found ways to circumnavigate these hurdles.
Khirul Zainie, managing director of MegaBorneo Tour Planner, shared that since it is difficult to sell Brunei as a mono destination for business events due to the lack of attractions, his company combines Brunei with the two Malaysian states on Borneo Island – Sabah and Sarawak – and/or with Kalimantan, the Indonesian portion on the island of Borneo.
He added: “We have marketing representatives in Poland and the Czech Republic who help us market Borneo Island as an incentive destination to Eastern European business event organisers.
“There has been so much negative news about Brunei in media reports, that it has also created curiosity among longhaul markets in Eastern Europe. People are curious enough, and are willing to include Brunei in their business events programme to experience the destination for themselves.”
Khirul said the orangutans are a highlight, with delegates eager to not only see the primates but also be involved in related corporate social responsibility programmes, such as learning about the challenges of orangutan rehabilitation into the wild and work done at the sanctuaries.
“The island of Borneo also has many tribes and live a different lifestyle from that of the West. Business event delegates from the West find this fascinating and are keen on visiting the Iban longhouses in Brunei and the multi tribal experiences of Borneo,” he said.
Caroline Ang, executive director of Bonasia Holiday, who targets the Chinese market, said her pitch focuses on Brunei’s pristine rainforests and its nature-based attractions.
Ang shared that Chinese incentive groups to Brunei are usually from small and medium-sized enterprises, with no more than 100 participants.
“When we pitch Brunei as a destination, we have to be creative as we are competing with other destinations on price. We have to throw in value-adds,” she said, adding that more inter-governmental support is needed for Brunei to grow its business events potential.
Khirul opined that Brunei could tap the large Muslim travel market for MICE.
“The Muslim market is growing around the world and we cannot ignore it. We should tap this segment by targeting Muslim majority countries such as Bangladesh. We have had a few high-end groups from Bangladesh in the past, and I see the potential for further growth,” he said.
For Mohd Iswandi Maaruf, director of operations with Mulia Hotel, the formation of an active convention bureau is imperative for Brunei. The bureau needs to go out, and promote the destination and bid for international events, as well as educate and train local players.
Brought to you by Borneo Convention Centre Kuching
Sarawak has been gaining momentum as a choice city for business events over the past two years. According to the annual statistics report by the International Congress and Convention Association, Kuching, which is the capital city of Malaysian state of Sarawak, was ranked 28th in the list of Most Preferred Cities For Business Events out of more than 90 cities. In 2017, it was ranked 75th on the same list.
Contributing to Kuching’s burgeoning reputation as a business events destination are the numerous prolific conferences and events that were held in Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) since its inception in 2009. BCCK, which celebrates its landmark 10th anniversary this year, is the first international purpose-built convention centre in Borneo. The centre hosted more than 1,600 events and welcomed more than two million visitors from around the world over the past decade.
Injecting buzz into Kuching
Some of the major events that BCCK has hosted include the International Energy Week, 17th Continuing Professional Development Series Diabetes Asia Conference and the 23rd Asian Television Awards. This dynamic influx of events have channeled growing tourism revenue and visitorship that have raised the profile of Kuching. Over the past six years, BCCK has generated more than RM266 million (S$86 million), boosting Sarawak’s economy.
Datuk Hajjah Raziah binti Mahmud-Geneid, BCCK’s chairman, recalled that expectations were high when the convention centre started 10 years ago.
She said: “The entire state of Sarawak was eagerly looking on to see what we could do, and ten years down the road, the results speak for themselves. With our excellent team, support from the government, Board of Borneo Isthmus Development and local stakeholders, we have managed to elevate and showcase Sarawak as a phenomenal business events destination on an international stage.”
Making an impactful mark on the world map
Over the years, BCCK has been awarded internationally-recognised quality standard certifications. Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson, BCCK’s executive director, said: “Last year, the centre was lauded with the sought-after AIPC Gold Quality Standards Certification, which represents excellence in convention centre management. BCCK is the second convention centre in Asia that is recognised by AIPC, which is a global network of more than 185 leading convention centers in 60 countries.”
BCCK’s Halal-certified kitchens, including its 120-seat Raintree Restaurant, have received certifications include ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System and HACCP, which defines the effective control of food safety.
Having met customers’ satisfaction, BCCK has also received the ISO 9001 Quality Management System certification in 2013. Last year, the convention centre was also recognised with its third ISO certification, ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems standard, which recognises environmentally-responsible practices — a nod towards the global sustainability movement.
“The entire state of Sarawak was eagerly looking on to see what we could do, and ten years down the road, the results speak for themselves.”
– Datuk Hajjah Raziah binti Mahmud-Geneid, Borneo Convention Centre Kuching chairman
Innovating beyond a decade
Paying homage to nature, the distinctive architecture of BCCK is inspired by the rainforest trees of Borneo — the rooftop is fashioned after the native ririk leaf. With 7,435 square metre of rentable exhibition hall space, BCCK is one of the largest convention centres in Borneo. Its highlight facilities include the Great Hall that seats up to 5,000 people theatre-style.
2020 will be a momentous year for BCCK as it will be organising the inaugural Asia Pacific Tourism Expo & Conference, which congregates practitioners and professionals from the tourism and hospitality industry. The venue of the annual conference will alternate between BCCK and other venues in Asia-Pacific.
Eric van Piggelen, BCCK’s chief executive officer, said: “To spark innovative practices and collaborative opportunities, BCCK has set up a new think tank group, which comprises a home-grown team of creative individuals, who endeavour to find fresh solutions to empower the business events industry for the next 10 years and beyond.”
Borneo Convention Centre Kuching’s key achievements
Frank Trampert has been appointed as managing director & CCO, EMEA & APAC, Sabre Hospitality Solutions.
In this role, Trampert will be responsible for the financial performance, customer engagement and overall growth of Sabre Hospitality Solutions across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific.
Having joined Sabre in January 2017 to lead the company’s Asia-Pacific region, Trampert first oversaw the growth of Sabre Hospitality Solutions within the region, until he took on an interim role earlier this year to include EMEA within the territories he was accountable for.
Prior to joining Sabre, Trampert held numerous roles within the industry, including leadership positions with Wyndham Hotel Group in Hong Kong, Carlson Hotels across four continents, Brand Karma in Singapore, and most recently, as the CEO for Tune Hotel Group in Malaysia.
Vietnam-based hotel & resort company Fusion has appointed industry veteran Akshay Moza to the new role of chief commercial officer (CCO).
Moza first joined Fusion in 2015 as group sales and marketing director, and after three years in the role he was promoted to group commercial director. In this latest appointment as CCO, he will take on greater responsibility for developing the portfolio of hotels and resorts, and will help lead the charge with new projects.
The industry veteran has over 15 years of experience in the hospitality industry with his career spanning the UK, India and South-east Asia, having worked at hospitality companies like Absolute Hotel Services and Franklyn Hotels & Resorts (formerly known as Stein Hotels and Resorts), as well as major hotel groups like Hilton, Melía, and Millennium & Copthorne Hotels.
Mega incentive gatherings are increasingly knocking on Phuket’s door, and the Laguna Phuket integrated resort has responded with new, large venues, as well as expanded and revitalised accommodation options.
The 672m2 Similan Ballroom at Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort will open its doors in January 2020, joining two other new event venues that debuted this year. The 454m2 Lagoon Deck at Banyan Tree Phuket was launched in May 2019, while the 1,500m2 ACES Laguna Phuket convention and exhibition centre was unveiled in September.
Ravi Chandran, executive vice president of Banyan Tree Group and managing director of Laguna Phuket, shared with TTGmice: “With capacity for some 1,500 people, I’d say ACES is the largest event venue now in Phuket. All our venues combined have the ability to cater to all sort of events and, more importantly, allow us to support event planners seamlessly.”
While Ravi noted that the wave of mega incentive events is benefiting many hotels on the Thai island, Laguna Phuket itself has enjoyed a fair share of such gatherings through the years. In 2012, Amway China sent 15,000 winners its way, with arrivals staggered across a full month from April to May. The following year, Nu Skin Hong Kong brought 4,000 business associates to Laguna Phuket.
Angsana Laguna Phuket alone was bought out by an IT company in 2018 for 500 people, and again in 2019 by another IT company for three president’s club events with 500 people each.
“The demand from mega incentives remains strong for us into the coming years. We have just confirmed Amway Russia for March 27-31 in 2021, which will bring 1,956 people to Laguna Phuket. The group will use all our hotels and event venues. Angsana Laguna Phuket will see 305 rooms in use; Cassia Phuket, 158; Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket, 192; Laguna Holiday Club Resort, 98; and Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort, 225,” revealed Ravi.
He attributed this trend to the destination’s improved accessibility for key markets around the world, presence of hotels with large venues, and greater destination exposure through weddings that were attended by global citizens who were motivated to return for leisure and business events.
“Most of the mega incentive events we get are from Asia. Our top source markets in this region are China, India, Singapore and Hong Kong, where many companies are based. We are also seeing strong emerging demand from Russia, as well as North America where we have a MICE representative to help us drive business. Many leads have also surfaced in Dubai,” Ravi said, adding that direct air access from Russia and many cities in India has been “a real gamechanger for Phuket”.
However, Ravi was quick to point out that Phuket is facing intense competition from Danang, Vietnam, especially for the China market, and Laguna Phuket “has to up its game”.
To this end, the integrated resort has continued its investment in staff training through the Banyan Tree Management Academy, as well as resort expansion and improvement. Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket’s collection of club rooms were “extensively” revamped at the end of 2018, while 45 new Banyan Tree Serenity Pool Villas have opened at the 18-hole Laguna Golf Phuket. Angsana Oceanview Residences – which will be located alongside Angsana Laguna Phuket and offer private pools – is targeted for completion in 2021.
“We are working with a variety of partners, such as the Tourism Authority of Thailand and Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, to market Phuket and keep leisure and MICE demand coming throughout the year,” he said.
The highly-anticipated two-level auditorium in Bangkok’s Iconsiam has opened, injecting an additional 12,000m2 of conferencing space to the Thai capital city.
Named True Icon Hall, the venue spans levels seven and eight, seating up to 2,700 people in flexible, fast-change halls that incorporate automated banks of seating. In addition to its three large halls, True Icon Hall also boasts 14 meeting rooms, ranging from 26m2 to 400m2, which can accommodate a further 950 people.
Several innovative solutions have been included in the auditorium, including fast registration through facial recognition scans, and an audio translation innovation that allows conference attendees to listen to real-time translations from an application on their smartphones instead of rented headphones.
Sound insulation systems have also been embedded into the walls to reduce disruption from other events held in adjacent or nearby halls.
Yet another highlight of True Icon Hall is the use panels of light pixels for the ceiling – said to be the first in an Asian conference venue. Talun Theng, leader of the management team of True Icon Hall, explained that the panels allow very precisely ‘tunable’ ambient lighting to suit every occasion.
“The ceilings can also be used to run colours and animations, enabling stunningly immersive multimedia experiences to excite audiences and manage moods in concerts as well as meetings and events,” he added.
Market interest in the new venue has emerged swiftly, with more than 30 conferences and events confirmed for 2020 and another 100 pending confirmation. Attendance at these events range from 200 to 3,000.
Two confirmed events are the Asia-Pacific Society of Cardiology Annual Conference in March 2021, and the World Congress of the International Union Against Sexually Transmitted Infections, set for December 1-4, 2020.
Supoj Chaiwatsirikul, managing director of Iconsiam, said: “The opening of True Icon Hall will give major new impetus to Thailand’s MICE industry, as well as to the development of the Thonburi side of the river. It will also help fill many rooms in the numerous four- and five-star hotels along the river, and reinforce the Chao Phraya River as a new global destination.”
Luxury lifestyle hotel Andaz Macau will be joining Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG)’s Galaxy Integrated Resorts precinct in Macau.
Andaz Macau is scheduled to open in 1H2021 alongside Galaxy International Convention Center and the 16,000-seat Galaxy Arena.
The luxury lifestyle hotel will feature a dedicated check-in lounge catering to large MICE groups, over 700 rooms and suites, an Andaz lounge, a bar and restaurant, state-of-the-art fitness centre and an indoor pool.
Andaz Macau will be connected to the integrated resort Galaxy Macau, offering 1.1 million m2 of entertainment, retail and leisure attractions. The hotel will also provide guests with easy access to the integrated resort’s 120 dining options, such as Michelin Stars, and Broadway Food Street at Broadway Macau.
David Udell, group president, Asia-Pacific, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, said: “Global in scale while local in perspective, the Andaz brand is on track to double its footprint in Asia-Pacific by end of 2020 with a strong pipeline across Greater China in destinations such as Macau and Taipei, as well as Sanya, Shenzhen and Xiamen.”
How did the idea for Venuexplorer come about?
I have been in the events and entertainment business industry since 2005, and have serviced more than 1,000 corporate companies to date.
We started off clinching dinner and dance projects, before slowly moving into other segments such as meetings, conferences, exhibitions, roadshows and weddings. From there, we gained a pool of regular clients who requested for us to manage their yearly calendar projects, (and provide services) ranging from sourcing venues and catering services to entertainment.
At that time, I felt that we had to launch a website that could gather all venues in Singapore under one roof. The site makes it easier for people to search for venues, as opposed to calling up individual venues owners, asking them for quotations, or having to scour the Internet for suitable venues.
How is Venuexplorer different from what’s out there in the market?
We have over 100 event spaces in Singapore including restaurants, banquet halls, conference centres, unique venues like a go-karting circuit, Singapore Turf Club and much more listed. One can search, compare, and instantly book (certain venues) on our platform. If they decide to change the venue, we allow a 24-hour cancellation notice, with full refund and no questions asked.
Should event planners be too busy to search online, they can call our venue experts for a list of suitable venues that match their requirements and budgets.
We also offer a number of other services, such as anger management activities, bungee jumping, or bike riding for corporate travellers, and have partnered with Foodpanda Singapore and Elite Bar Solutions to provide additional support for venues that lack kitchen or bar facilities.
Does Venuexplorer make a conscious effort to bring more unconventional venues like the F1 Karting Circuit into its network?
Yes. We want Venuexplorer to cover all types of venues, so the less conventional ones are very important to us. These venues are those that other platforms will skip, because they don’t have their finger on the pulse of Singapore’s (business events scene) like we do.
So, what does the Singapore client want?
Experiential events as well as (those requiring a dash of) local flair have grown exponentially in recent years. The use of unusual outdoor spaces – such as (under the) Cavenagh Bridge, a portable container and Haji Lane (a chic section within Kampong Glam) – will be one of the key trends for 2020.
Now that HotelPlanner has acquired Venuexplorer, what does this mean for you and your business?
New advances in technology are fuelling the events industry, and we’re confident that HotelPlanner’s booking technology will take us to a whole new level as (a combined) platform for hotels and events booking. It is a win for both parties.
What are your expansion plans for Venuexplorer?
Our target is to increase (our listings in Singapore) to 300 by the end of this year. By 2020, we are hoping to broaden our network in Asia-Pacific to cover the needs of corporates as well as individuals.
Las Vegas, Nevada and Columbus, Ohio will welcome PCMA’s flagship Convening Leaders event in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
Caesars Entertainment will host PCMA Convening Leaders 2022, running from January 9-12, at Caesars Forum, a 51,000m2 conference centre opening in March 2020 in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip.
Meanwhile, Experience Columbus will host PCMA Convening Leaders 2023 from January 8-11, at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
The multi-day programme attracts business events professionals and community leaders from all over the world to explore, through education, research and networking, how business events generate economic and social legacies for their businesses and communities.
“We are collaborating with two incredible host city partners, each with their own inspirational story on how they are transforming their organisations and communities through business events,” said Sherrif Karamat, CAE, president and CEO of PCMA, in a statement.
