The GCB German Convention Bureau looks back on a successful German participation in IMEX 2007. The Worldwide Exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events – incorporating Meetings made in Germany – attracted…
The GCB German Convention Bureau looks back on a successful German participation in IMEX 2007. The Worldwide Exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events – incorporating Meetings made in Germany – attracted 3,400 exhibitors from 150 countries and 8,310 visitors from 97 nations.
The 146 exhibitors who presented themselves at the fair’s Germany stand organised by the GCB, expressed how content they were with their participation in IMEX and the GCB’s work in a final survey. And visitors commented favourably on the 15 German-speaking seminars offered by the GCB at the fair.
“We are happy about the enthusiastic response of German visitors and exhibitors who confirm our impression of a successful IMEX 2007. For 2008 we plan to optimise the German presence even more in order to achieve an even clearer decision in favour of IMEX,” says GCB director Lutz P. Vogt.
Exhibitors praise GCB’s organisation – IMEX attendance was worthwhile
The GCB’s organisational efforts before and during the fair were rated as “excellent” or “good” by 80 per cent of German exhibitors. The Germany stand also met with near-unanimous approval. The organisation of the fair as a whole was also very well-received.
Some German exhibitors mentioned figures to demonstrate how successful they were at IMEX: For example, CRUISE-EVENTS powered by ORANGEPRO – a provider of unusual venues and GCB Wild Card winner – gained over 5,000 attendees and one million euros in revenues through its presence at IMEX 2007. Brigitte Leupoldt, of ORANGEPRO’s Events & Tourism department: “We took the huge demand of hosted buyers and corporate customers at IMEX as a welcome opportunity to produce a premium catalogue featuring castles, palaces, manors, country estates, and lifestyle venues.“
Positive comments also came from m:con director Michel Mauge: “This year’s IMEX results were overwhelming for the m:con Congress Center Rosengarten in Mannheim. IMEX was an excellent platform for us to present our expansion project and we gained over 550 contact visits. Contracts for two international congresses with over 2,000 attendees each crowned our participation.”
“IMEX is definitely number one for gaining new business in the international congress and incentive industry. The event was stronger than ever in this its fifth year and was an ideal platform for us as operators of now almost 50 hotels inside and outside Germany to present our product as one of the leading brands for customers in the events business in detail. Apart from a host of new contacts we also received many specific inquiries in particular for our hotels in Germany,” says Mark Spivey, Director International Sales of MARITIM Hotels.
Informative and inspiring: GCB’s Meetings made in Germany seminars at IMEX
On the three days of IMEX 2007 the GCB offered a total of 15 free German-speaking seminars for specific target groups within the German meetings and incentives market as well as for newcomers and experienced event planners. All seminars received “excellent” and “good” marks from the attendees.
The programme featured not only organisational topics but also motivation and creativity like the “Power Your Life – Four Win Factors for a Top Physical and Mental Performance” workshop by Dr. med. Michael Spitzbart of Medical Consultants GmbH from Lauf. Attendees awarded this lecture the highest grade (1.03) called it “fun, interesting and informative” and thanked him for this “excellent source of inspiration”.
In his seminar “Something Almost Went Wrong in Project Planning? – the Laughing but Serious Road to Success” Mike Simon, director of GVO Personal GmbH in Osnabruck highlighted key skills from the fields of communication, conflict and change management – in a very informative and practice-focused manner that was just to his audience’s liking.
Comments on the “Intercultural Communication I + II” seminars were also very favourable. Lecturer Wolfram Wipperfurth of Lufthansa Flight Training offered new ideas and views as well as food for thought, say attendees.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
