Olympic legacy pays dividends

Beijing recently hosted the mainland's largest gathering of Mice industry professionals. Jeffrey Xu, the exhibition manager for China Incentive, Business Travel and Meetings Exhibition (CIBTM), looks at how the event reflects China's strength in the global events market

There is no better time to be part of the meetings industry in China. Despite a challenging worldwide economic environment, the meetings, incentive, conference and events industry in China and Asia is rapidly expanding.

Interest in the industry is at an all-time high and no more so is this evident than in Asia, where government and private sector investment is transforming destinations on the back of the Olympic 2008 legacy.

With inexpensive hotel stock, attractive airfares and a vastly improved infrastructure, it is easy to see why the competition has never been greater. Record figures for the CIBTM last year and Reed Travel Exhibitions' portfolio of shows - EIBTM in Barcelona, GIBTM in Abu Dhabi and AIME in Melbourne - have proved the resilience of the industry and the value placed on face-to-face contact to do business.

The fact that China is one of the world's oldest and most complex cultures makes it a more compelling destination. As an increasing number of planners and buyers realise its strong potential, China is rivalling more established Asian destinations.

CIBTM's job is to bring buyers and sellers of meetings and incentive products and services together. The exhibition's continued success can in part be directly attributed to the vision, post-2008 Olympics, of the Beijing Tourism Administration (BTA) in supporting CIBTM's efforts in creating a dedicated meetings event. The BTA vision is to fully use the world-class venues and facilities supported by a state-of-the-art infrastructure, while providing international access, high quality and a choice of accommodation, excellent levels of service and delivery and a safe environment.