Tag: Monday Insights

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

Culture secretary, Nadine Dorries, has called for Russian participation to be stopped at all UK events. She says Russia will be banned from attending or competing in sporting events and called for event organisers to block Russian involvement and cancel performances. Speaking in the House of Commons Dorries commented:

“Culture is the third front in the Ukrainian war. Across sport, the arts and entertainment, we’re ostracising Putin on the global stage. Putin is now suffering a sporting and cultural Siberia of his own making, and it will be causing the Russian leader real pain. Putin needs the kudos of these global events to conceal his illegitimacy and the hideous acts he is perpetrating in Ukraine.

She continued: “The Russian despot is desperately trying to hide the grim extent of his invasion from his own people. It’s why I strongly support, and continue to encourage, the kind of emotional displays of solidarity we’ve seen across sporting events in the last week, including the Carabao Cup Final and the Six Nations.”

The Meetings Industry Association (mia) has appointed a dedicated diversity equity and inclusion director. VisitBritain/VisitEngland’s Debra Lang joins its voluntary board of directors to lead on diversity, equity and inclusion work.

Lang, who is the Director of HR & Professional Services of the national tourism agency, will be using her extensive experience to develop a strategy and best practice framework for the business meetings and events sector to ensure it is recognised as being fair, impartial and without biases.

Kerrin MacPhie, mia chief executive, said: “While working at the national tourism agency she’s [Debra] transformed the employee experience launching a people strategy during lockdown and creating numerous diversity and inclusion networks, which will provide great insight to our work championing best practice in this area.”

Read the full story on Conference News, here…

IMEX in Frankfurt has banned Russia from exhibiting at the show in May in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Group CEO shared the news on Linkedin while showing support for the Ukrainian people.

IMEX Frankfurt takes place at Messe Frankfurt on 31 May to 2 June, and Messe Frankfurt has also put out a statement in response to the situation.

IMEX Group’s announcement from Carina Bauer (CEO) and Ray Bloom (Chairman) included: “Sadly, today we have taken the decision to suspend Russian state enterprises from participating at IMEX in Frankfurt 2022, as a direct result of the current political situation. We do this with a heavy heart, understanding that the world is in an unprecedented situation. Our hearts go out to everyone who is affected and especially the people of Ukraine. All of us wish for a speedy and peaceful resolution to this conflict.”

Read the full story on M&IT!

Double take

The NEC Birmingham and the International Convention Centre (ICC) have donated over 13,200 portions of food to their local community in the past 18 months using food-sharing app Olio.

The initiative also averted over 11,400kg of carbon emissions, equivalent to taking 38,700 car miles off the road, and has saved 2m litres of water.

Marc Frankl, food and beverage director for the NEC Group’s in-house caterers Amadeus, said: “It has been a tough, yet rewarding journey for us to transform our operations in this way. Our staff have really embraced the partnership and it’s moving from strength to strength. OLIO is fantastic as it allows us to reduce any food waste from events, while giving back in the areas in which we operate.”

Read more on this fantastic achievement on Exhibition News.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

IMEX has reported ‘strong demand’ as Germany eases COVID restrictions, according to M&IT Magazine. The report supports anecdotal information heard by the EDGE team recently and is excellent news for the industry.

Germany plans to lift most of its coronavirus restrictions throughout March. Masks will still be mandatory indoors, as the number of cases in the country continues to decline. Read more about the country’s 3-step plan here, alongside comments from Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX Group.

In more good news for overseas event planners, Northstar Meetings Group has reported that proof of vaccination is no longer required to access indoor events and restaurants in Washington, D.C., and the mask mandate will end on March 1.

Philadelphia has removed its vaccine requirement for indoor dining, but people still need face coverings in indoor public spaces. In Washington state, vaccine verification will no longer be necessary for large events starting March 1, and the mask mandate will end on March 21.

Read the full state-by-state Covid updates here.

Lime Venue Portfolio has launched three new packages. As part of its Meetings for Change initiative, they bring sustainability, mindfulness, and wellness to the fore.

The initiative follows findings from the brand’s Beyond Food reports. Specifically the chapter on Food & Mental Health, and the need to support mental health and create empathetic and reassuring spaces for delegates. 

“This is about health; health for our delegates, our organisers and the planet. The aim is to offer our customers a simple package that is highly credible and allows them to fulfil their own commitments to their guests, and their sustainability goals, by working with a trusted partner like ourselves.”

Jo Austin, Sales Director, Lime Venue Portfolio

If you want to hear more or book any of the packages, contact EDGE.

Double take

During its fourth-quarter earnings call, Air France-KLM shared a ‘steady rebound’ of corporate traffic in 2021. According to BTN (Business Travel News), the Group’s corporate segment in December 2021 reached about half the volume of 2019. The trend was ‘driven by long-haul routes after a partial relaxation of travel restrictions and the reopening of U.S. borders’. 

And Omicron-related corporate travel restrictions trend hampering short- and medium-haul traffic into 2022, has recently reversed. What’s more, Air France-KLM noted that ‘several major multinational companies are starting to or planning to resume travel.’

With corporate travel policies often setting the tone for meetings and events, this is good news for events. 

Read the full BTN run-down of the airline’s earnings call here. 

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

Manchester to host One Young World 2022 Summit from 5-8 September 2022. One Young World, is a global community of young leaders which has over 13,500 young ambassadors, over 2,000 of which will attend the summit, representing more than 190 countries.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said:

“Manchester is one of the UK’s most vibrant cities, a melting pot of culture and creative thinking. So I couldn’t think of anywhere more fitting to host this year’s summit. Thousands of delegates including the most inspirational young minds will come together to strike up new connections and share the new ideas that will have a lasting positive impact for the world.”

Full details can be found at Conference News.

The mia and VisitBritain combine forces to attract meetings to the UK. A two-day event in North Wales will bring together those looking to attract business meetings and events to their destination.

Members of the Meetings Industry Association (mia), representatives from VisitBritain, and destination and event professionals from across the industry will gather in Venue Cymru in Llandudno, North Wales on 1-2 March for the Destination Summit 2022.

For more information on the event, read the full details via M&IT Magazine, here.

British Airways support the return of business travel by adding Newark-London Flight. On June 6, British Airways has announced they will launch a new daily flight between Newark Liberty International Airport and London Heathrow which shows a sign of support to the return of business travel in 2022.

Read more at Business Travel News.

Double take

EDGE Venues acquires Trinity Event Solutions.

“EDGE Venues has been through quite a journey since we officially launched the platform in 2018. Pre-pandemic, enquiries for meetings and events were at their highest, and then March 2020, as with the rest of the industry, it all disappeared. But at EDGE Venues, we were determined not to let the pandemic beat us. We took this time to evaluate our technology, make enhancements, and understand the needs of both our customers from a Trinity Event Solutions perspective, and those using EDGE.

“The answer was clear, a need for one concise message to the marketplace. With that in mind, and with the scale-up strategy of EDGE Venues, we made the business decision to merge the two companies. We are already successfully processing our Trinity clients through our EDGE’s RFP tool which has gone through significant enhancements throughout the pandemic, as we continue to make it the ‘go-to’ platform for meetings and events. The EDGE Corporate portal Metis is already giving deep insights of buying trends and activity and was invaluable for our corporate clients to manage risk mitigate costs and spend during the pandemic.” 

Jacqui Kavanagh, CEO of EDGE Venues

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

According to the Guardian newspaper: Austria has lifted its “lockdown of the unvaccinated”, Switzerland is gearing up for a “turbo” reopening. Germany’s finance minister has demanded an end date for Covid curbs more countries prepare to ease pandemic controls.

Restrictions on movement in Austria may have been lifted, but the unvaccinated remain barred from eating in restaurants or shopping for non-essential items. 

The news comes as European countries begin to ease curbs as hospital admissions are not rising in line with Covid cases. 

Meanwhile, Denmark has expanded the list of vaccines accepted for travel into the country. Previously, Denmark accepted only vaccines approved for use by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). However, in line with the new changes, the list will now include four additional vaccines – Covishield, Covaxin, Sinovac, and Sinopharm, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

Double take

Two in five delegates to have dietary requirements by 2030, according to Meetings and Incentive Travel’s report of Lime Venue Portfolio’s new research findings.

The features says: Lime Venues Portfolio has deemed this trend toward meat- and dairy-free menu options as ‘Green Eating’, citing the reason behind the choice as largely driven by sustainability. “It’s our belief that many delegates who ask for vegan, vegetarian, plant-based or plant-first menus are doing so from a purely sustainable stance. We should see these as a new wave of ‘green eaters’ who are going to change the way we create menus at events,” Lime Venue Portfolio sale director, Jo Austin said.

Austin added that the rhetoric and language around vegan and vegetarian menu choices need to change:

“The world has changed and by 2030 we believe that the majority of people at an event will want a different menu. They are no longer the outliers; they are the main make-up of the delegation and need to be treated as such.”

Read the full report here.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

Liverpool ACC is offering agency fees upfront! The waterfront venue is pledging to pay commission upfront to agencies placing new corporate business with them. The ACC will pay the rates as soon as the event deposit is received.

It means independent companies will not have to wait until after an event has taken place to receive their commission. That means it’s big news for corporate conferences with long lead times! What do we think? …

Jacqui Kavanagh, chief executive, EDGE Venues, told Conference News: “ACC Liverpool is taking the lead by committing to paying businesses such as mine upfront as soon as the event deposit is received. This will be vital as we move to a more flexible and positive events landscape and we hope that other organisations will follow.”

People travelling to England will no longer have to take a COVID test on arrival. Travellers must currently take within 48 hours of touching down in the UK. But, Boris Johnson has confirmed the day two tests will be scrapped from 11 February. The update last week followed the end of pre-departure tests and the change from post-arrival PCR to antigen tests.

Travel to and within EU is to become more difficult for persons holding expiring vaccination passes, according to schengenvisainfo.com.

The news site states ‘International travellers who plan to reach the European Union/Schengen Area, as well as citizens of the EU who wish to travel within the bloc, may face difficulties from February 1 as their vaccination certificates will not be recognised anymore. Following the new adoption of rules on the EU Vaccination Certificate by the European Union’s Commission, the EU and Schengen Area countries announced that additional rules will apply to all travellers whose vaccination certificates’ validity expires as of February 1.’

Read more here.

Double take

PLASA and #WeMakeEvents have published their picture of how the live events sector coped with the return of live events. The findings are based on a survey of 1,948 respondents from over 40 countries surveyed in November and December 2021. 

69% of companies reported a skills shortage, with site crew, riggers, engineers and technicians the most cited. 50% of freelancers have not returned full time to the industry, exacerbating this issue. There is a trend of companies lacking confidence in industry-relevant university courses. Collectively, these issues raise concerns that there is no quick solution. Particularly as 38% of companies report needing to take on apprentices or new entrants in seven to 18 months. 

Overview:

• 45% of businesses took on debt to survive the pandemic
• 94% of manufacturers are experiencing delays in components
• 69% of companies are experiencing a skills shortage
• 50% of our industry’s freelancers have returned full time

Adam Blaxill, chair of PLASA, commented: “Companies and freelancers are acutely aware that there is a long road to recovery in front of the live events industry. The last couple of years have been fraught with financial difficulty and unexpected challenges, and most people anticipate more hurdles to come. As a director of a company in the creative sector and as chair of PLASA, I call on the UK Government to recognise the complex challenges we face and assist in the recovery. We are renowned all over the world for what we do; our capability and the quality and creativity of our sector is world class, yet this survey clearly shows that it is being diminished – our capacity is declining and our talent is leaving!”

To view and download the full report, visit: www.plasa.org/plasa-wemakeevents-covid-survey-report-2022/

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed, including more great news for the events industry.

Headlines

U.K. crowned Europe’s busiest hotel market, according to TOP HOTEL NEWS. Its data show that with over 300,000 hotel rooms due to open in Europe, the U.K. is in the lead with ‘428 projects and 62,852 keys in the pipeline’. And all this ‘despite the challenges arising from Brexit’.

With London and Dublin also leading the city-by-city race across the contintent, the increasing choice and capacity is fantastic news for the U.K. events industry.

Meetings and Conventions Asia has reported that a significant redevelopment project in the heart of Bangkok is turning the city centre’s Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) into ‘a destination for a new generation of visitors’. In a bid to modernise the venue for the MICE and leisure markets, it has new spaces for retail and leisure activities. The aim is to reach beyond its traditional role as host for trade shows, professional meetings and consumer events. 

Mr. Sakchai Pattarapreechakul, President of N.C.C. Management & Development Co., Ltd., said: “The new QSNCC started taking bookings in August 2021 and has received positive responses from former and new clients.

“The new QSNCC offers extended services to its customers with topnotch capabilities and resources to drive live, hybrid and virtual events. We have sealed the deals with a number of organizers who have shown their confidence in QSNCC’s experience in hosting famous leading events with its fully equipped and high-standard event venue.”

The government announced that England can fully return to Plan A from Thursday 27 January. The news – a boost for hospitality and events industries – means from Thursday 27 January:

• venues and events no longer required by law to use the NHS COVID Pass. The NHS COVID Pass can still be used on a voluntary basis as was previously the case in Plan A
• face coverings are no longer required by law in any setting. Public health guidance will remain in place, suggesting individuals should continue to wear a face covering in crowded and enclosed spaces, where you may come into contact with people you do not normally meet
• the Department for Education will remove national guidance on the use of face coverings in communal areas, with local directors of public health able to recommend the use of face coverings in education settings across their area only where the department and public health experts judge the measure to be proportionate due to specific health concerns. This is a temporary measure and directors of public health continue to advise individual settings experiencing outbreaks
• any local introduction of face coverings must be subject to routine review and removed at the earliest opportunity

Double take

Las Vegas is tipped to lead 2022’s MICE resurgence, according to The Meeting Professional. The entertainment location welcomed back several of its annual trade shows in the second half of 2021, including the event industry’s MPI, and IMEX America.

Fletch Brunelle, vice president of marketing at the Las Vegas Visitors and Convention Authority (LVCVA), told The Meeting Professional: “Business recovery has gone better than we initially thought it might, and we’ve received incredible feedback from clients that moved forward with their meetings, conventions and trade shows this year.

“The planners, exhibitors and attendees coming to Las Vegas are ecstatic to be meeting in person again, and our show floors have been incredibly busy with connections made and deals done. We know full recovery will take some time, but it has been extremely fulfilling to see our convention centers and meeting venues buzzing with people and excitement once again.”

This Monday Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed, and they’re all favourable for venues, meetings, and events this week!

Headlines

Travellers from the UK who are fully vaccinated are now allowed back into France for the first time since December 18th 2021, without the need to provide a compelling reason for travel or isolate on arrival.

Travellers need to provide a negative Covid test result from a lateral flow or PCR test that is taken 24 hours prior to departure.

Furthermore, from today – January 17th 2022, visitors will need to have been fully vaccinated – including a booster jab (if their second dose was administered over seven months prior)- to access most indoor venues.

At EDGE, we’re already seeing travel companies reporting increased bookings for flights to France. And while it’s excellent news for UK business travellers, it’s also solid advice to continue checking Foreign Office travel advice!

The number of people who can participate in an outdoors event in Wales increased from 50 to 500 from January 15th. 

As case rates decline, the Welsh Government says more restrictions can be eased over the next two weeks, and back to alert level zero and minimal restrictions by January 28th.

From January 21st, all outdoor activities will move to alert level zero, meaning there will be no limits on the number of people who can participate in outdoor activities. Outdoor hospitality will operate in the way they would have earlier in the pandemic, which means they can stop offering table service only, for example. Covid passes will still be needed.

This news is excellent for Welsh venues and events and comes in time for the Six Nations, with crowds able to return to sporting events.

From today – 17th January 2022 – Covid restrictions on the number of people allowed at outdoor events across Scotland are lifted. As with Wales, this comes in time for the Six Nations, with matches at Murrayfield able to operate at capacity. The only proviso is showing evidence of vaccination or a recent negative lateral flow test before you can access large-scale events. Organisers of events with over 1,000 delegates are expected to check the Covid status of at least 50% per cent of those arriving at venues.

However, restrictions on indoor sports, events and venues remain, while Nicola Sturgeon is apparently ‘hopeful’ that those restrictions on indoor events can be lifted on January 24th.

Double take

etc.venues says 2022 will be the year of meeting up. Its research shows 97% of event planners are increasingly inclined to meet in person, with 70% saying they want to meet colleagues face-to-face more often in 2022. The insights form part of the fourth etc.venues biannual survey into latest industry thinking. 

Adam Simpson, etc. venues’ Director of Marketing said: “While virtual and hybrid are here to stay for the foreseeable future, the driving urge among event planners to return to live only events continues to grow as their appreciation of their value increases now that they have started to go back to them. We think 2022 will be the year of meeting up.”

These insights show an increasingly positive outlook for events for 2022. You can read more of the research results on Business Travel News Europe.