Last word
#GMID, #GED
You can’t keep a
good man down
Global Meetings Industry Day was
celebrated this year on 4 April, with
events marking it surpassing the 206
recorded in 41 countries in 2018.
Spearheaded by the Meeting Means
Business Coalition, GMID is an
international day of advocacy regarding
business value and its $2.65 trillion in
global economic impact.
Next up #GED, or Global Exhibitions
Day. Traditionally held on the first
Wednesday in June, this year 5 June will
see the industry celebrate its
achievements and importance.
A GED Project and Activity Tool has
been set up online, for those wishing to
register projects and activities: http://
ged.ufi.org/user/project/create
#GED18 reached more than 4m
people on Twitter and 85 countries and
regions supported the global exhibition
industry last year with hundreds of
direct actions taking place.
He’s back…You just can’t keep that doyen of
the world of CVBs, Christian
Mutschlechner, away from the meetings
world. The long-time chief of Vienna’s ultra
successful Convention Bureau who retired in
February, is now back in harness as a board
director of PCO Congrex Switzerland,
having swapped his Austrian Tyrolean hat
for, presumably, a Swiss version.
“When acting Board members contacted
me and asked if I would be willing to bring
in my long-standing experience in the
industry I immediately agreed for three
reasons: One, as a Board member, I am part
of the overall strategic development of
Congrex Switzerland and by that not
involved in the day-to-day business but
providing strategic thinking and help.
Number two was more a sentimental reason.
I started my career in the meetings industry
as a PCO and it is a nice moment to come
back to my initial roots but on a different
level. Finally, Congrex Switzerland is known
for its high-quality service level. This
absolutely matches my personal attitude,
because in a service industry the clients
should be in the centre of attention.”
Mutschlechner described his new role as
“to help the other Board members to better
understand the meetings industry and how
this business changes, basically every day.
Secondly, do what a member of a Board of
Directors needs to do, control, advise and
sometimes help the leadership of the
company.”
Getting noticed…
One of the most innovative ways of
breaking the ice and letting people
know (with great ROI) you are at a
convention comes from Richard Vallister
III on Twitter, who wrote: “Best thing I
ever saw was an exhibitor go out to the
beach at night and write their booth
number larger than life in the sand.
Everyone with water-facing hotel rooms
awoke to it!”
70 /
CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD
/
ISSUE 100
Westminster
bubble
For some time there has been chatter
about the UK House of Lords
decanting to the nearby QEII Centre
in London’s Westminster for seven
years so that the hallowed chamber can
be brought into the 21st century, if not
it’s incumbents, some would say.
The UK meeting industry has
expressed concerns the mooted move
would take prime conference real estate
from the London meetings map.
A lifeline, in the shape of new
lozenge-shaped bubble to house both
Houses of Parliament, now emerges. It
has been proposed for the grounds of
Horse Guards Parade, a venue fairly used
to shovelling horsesh*t.
Reality
check
MTV has announced the launch of
REALITYCON, a live event built
around the unreal situations of TV
shows such as Big Brother and The Real
Housewives.
REALITYCON will feature,
according to its publicity: “fan
activations, performances, interviews,
and roundtable discussions exploring the
genre’s impact on society, representation
of diversity in media, influence on
entertainment, and much more”. No date
or venue have yet been revealed, however.