– New hosted buyer groups confirmed
– North American exhibitors increase presence
– New educational programmes maximise time at the show
– Social networking introduced for all IMEX attendees
– New green initiatives announced
With the ninth IMEX in Frankfurt set to take place May 24 – 26 2011, the award-winning tradeshow continues to focus on developing business opportunities for buyers and suppliers through the development of its hosted buyer programme, together with sustained innovation within its educational offerings.
Each year the organisers continue to drive the development of the show by ensuring that not only the highest quality buyers attend as part of its hallmark hosted buyer programme; but also that they maximise business opportunities through its innovative appointment and messaging system. In 2010, hosted buyers placed orders of USD 450 million with exhibitors during the exhibition and expected to place over USD 2.2 billion of business with IMEX exhibitors in the 12 months following the show.
New hosted buyer groups
13 new hosted buyer groups are already confirmed for 2011, including Meetings in Europe, Carinho Hotels and Resorts, Hilton Montreal, Starwood Hotels and Resorts UAE and Dolce Hotels Switzerland. NH Hotels Czech Republic, Incentive Destinations, AV Business & Communication and Body and Soul International BV will also bring new groups. Buyer interest from Brazil continues to grow, with new groups set to attend from Tour House Brazil and ALATUR. A new group of 10 North American association and corporate buyers from SPIN – the Senior Planners Industry Network – will also attend for the first time. In total 450 hosted buyer groups will attend the show as part of the almost 4,000 strong programme.
Demand for exhibition space remains exceptionally high with space increases having already been confirmed by a diverse grouping of exhibitors including the Hungarian National Tourism Office, Switzerland Convention and Incentive Bureau, Kuoni Destination Management Switzerland and East West Travel. Egypt’s presence will also be noticeable with a large new stand from the Cairo International Conference Centre (ICC).
Hotels in the spotlight
Once again international hotel groups will prove a dominant and important part of IMEX in Frankfurt. More than 40 will exhibit and take part in the hosted buyer programme – inviting their key international clients to attend. They include Marriott Hotels, Intercontinental Hotel Group, Hilton Hotels, Accor, Maritim Hotels, Moevenpick and Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Sol Melia Hotels & Resorts, Ritz Carlton, Worldhotels, Mandarin Oriental and The Rocco Forte Collection will also be present, whilst Hyatt International makes a welcome return.
IMEX in Frankfurt’s ties with the North American market continue to expand as planning for IMEX America, which debuts in October 2011, goes from strength to strength. A growing US presence at the show in Frankfurt will include Las Vegas and the Venetian/ Palazzo Hotel, The Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau, NYC and Company plus the Washington DC Convention and Tourism Corporation.
Hot topics and fresh debates
New themes and initiatives for the 2011 show include an expanding partnership with new meetings performance improvement company, Meetings Mindset®. Using the latest research from behavioural science, Meetings Mindset® has created a portfolio of innovative and interactive solutions dedicated to helping meeting designers create potent, dynamic and productive meetings. IMEX and Meetings Mindset® will be demonstrating the importance and power of these principles in a variety of creative ways before, during and after the show.
Amongst a host of new sessions and topics, a brand new Women’s Leadership Forum will be launched – led by Susan Sarfati, CEO of High Performance Strategies and Liz Jackson, President of Jackson Consulting. They will share “25 Success Strategies for Women Leaders”. Other sessions will include a series of hot topic ‘campfires’ offering fast-track introductions to fundamental business skills; plus the chance to hear the latest findings from the next phase of the Conventions 2020 research study by Fast Future Research, of which IMEX is a Founding Sponsor.
IMEX’s partnership with online networking forum i-Meet has also been opened up for 2011. All registered exhibitors, hosted buyers and visitors will now be able to use the international social networking portal to exchange contacts and information in advance of the exhibition.
Going greener
The IMEX Group’s commitment to minimising waste and improving environmental awareness will also be in evidence. Thanks to its partnership with German rail company, Deutsche Bahn, all hosted buyer train travel to Frankfurt from across Europe will be carbon free. IMEX will also introduce two new waste-saving initiatives. Badge-Back Bins will be placed at all of Messe Frankfurt’s exit points so that IMEX’s 100 per cent recyclable badges can be collected and recycled. A second new scheme – USBs: Share Your Spares – will provide bins for IMEX participants to leave any surplus USB sticks for recycling and reuse. Once collected, the USBs will be distributed to school projects in India with the help of a local NGO partner.
Looking ahead to the ninth IMEX in Frankfurt, Chairman Ray Bloom, says: “Recent IMEX research, such as our Global Insights Study and Association Meetings Forecasts report, clearly demonstrate a return to greater stability and confidence. Regardless of such sentiment, IMEX has – and always will – deliver an outstanding return on investment for all its audiences – exhibitors, hosted buyers and trade visitors alike. Our focus is on fusing exceptional business opportunities with professional education and networking in such a way that people feel compelled to be at the show – and so that not coming to IMEX makes no business sense at all.”
