Anni Vepsalainen, Managing Director of the Messukeskus
The objective is the best event hotel in Northern Europe.
Messukeskus Helsinki, Expo and Convention Centre, will renovate its Holiday Inn hotel’s rooms and service concept in a year long project. The new concept will bring the fair program to be a part of the hotel guest’s service experience and will also revolutionize the restaurant world of the Messukeskus.
The hotel renovation that is starting now will cover the entire building, from hotel rooms to service points and from technology to interior design. At the same time the service concept will be tailor-made to meet the needs of clients participating in the Messukeskus events.
“1.2 million different kinds of visitors visit the Messukeskus every year; there is something happening in the halls and meeting rooms all the time. Our milieu is unique. In addition to business travellers, our revamped hotel will provide unique service particularly to families with children,” says Anni Vepsalainen, Managing Director of the Messukeskus.
Events from Habitare to book fairs to be a part of the hotel experience
The new hotel concept will bring interesting meetings and the Messukeskus events to be an enjoyable part of the hotel guest’s experience.
The steady flow of events will be seen in both the hotel and the restaurants. The changing themes will showcase, for example, the exotic colours and tastes of the Nordic Travel Fair, the promise of summer of the Motorcycle Fair and the Boat Show, Habitare’s magnificent design and the interesting guest authors of the Helsinki Book Fair. The restaurant world is alive with meetings and serves up varying dishes according to the fair events.
Open Lobby – a new living room for city dwellers
An exciting part of the new service concept is an Open Lobby, which transforms the hotel’s lobbies and restaurants to be a common living room for both hotel guests and city dwellers. The Open Lobby is a relaxing oasis for eating, drinking, working, resting and socializing – from early in the morning until late at night. A new workout room and terrace will be opened on the roof floor with magnificent views of the city.
The Messukeskus hotel will offer 245 double rooms for its customers. There is a direct connection to the exhibition halls and conference rooms from the hotel. The location in Pasila Area, near central Helsinki, is terrific: flexible public transport takes you quickly both to the Helsinki Airport and the railway station as well as the city centre.
“Our neighbourhood is developing very strongly and Pasila Area will soon be Helsinki’s new and lively centre. The future transportation solutions will also strengthen the meaning of Pasila as the functional centre of the whole country and as a residential area. The area is replete with interesting leisure time activity possibilities. Our hotel also serves customers for Linnanmaki Amusement Park, Hartwall Arena, and the neighbouring sports centres."
Messukeskus’ project partner for the renovation is YIT Talo Oy. The global Holiday Inn brand and the Scandic development team are made us of in the development of the hotel concept. After the renovation, the hotel will continue to be called Holiday Inn and it will be part of the leading Nordic hotel chain Scandic.
The hotel will be reopened anew at the beginning of 2019, at the same time as the centennial of the Finnish Fair Corporation, who owns the Messukeskus. The hotel will be closed during the renovation from February 20th, 2018 to January 31st, 2019.
The Messukeskus promotes Finnish trade and industry by enabling profitable face-to-face contacts in fairs, trade shows, congresses, and other events. Exhibitions and fairs are Finland’s seventh largest media. In terms of impact, they are the most profitable, the richest in experiences, and the most social of all media. In 2017, Messukeskus organised 75 exhibitions and more than 2000 meetings and conferences, 9,400 exhibitors participated in the fairs, conventions and other events held at Messukeskus which attracted 1.2 million visitors.
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She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
