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London and to West London specifically . “ So , the whole idea was to create this cultural hub . This is a place where people will meet and engage , and the experience will be more memorable and connected . Together we are creating a destination that is enhanced by cultural experiences and will complement the exhibition experience for exhibitors and visitors .” It all sounds fantastic but what does this mean for the exhibitions that they will be hosting , clearly the key priority for the organising community , I ask . “ There are some significant benefits for the organiser as ultimately the exhibitors and visitor experience will be enhanced significantly . “ For us to open up the entire space we were able to make some huge decisions that we ’ ve never been able to make before . “ For example , we can put all of the marshalling and the parking underground freeing |
up space to create a cafe Boulevard area . “ The intention is to make the logistics easier and moving around the buildings easier . With so many incredible tenants on site we can raise our game in terms of catering we offer . All of this is underpinned by a commitment to guarantee and continue the level of service and dedication to our events business . “ The organising community have taken to it tremendously well and can see that even though it ’ s a few years in the making , it ’ ll be worth it in the end . “ We are looking to future proof our business , something that builds on a fantastic 135-year history and projects it into the future . I think there is an appreciation that any development of this nature will have some pain but ultimately there will be significant gain .” You would expect with any major redevelopment or construction project to face |
some challenges what does Nathan think they will be ? “ There are always challenges however , one of the ironic benefits of the pandemic is that we ’ ve been able to do a lot of the heavy lifting , the things that really make a lot of noise and cause disruption during the time when we haven ’ t been able to run shows .
“ It is inevitable that we will be further disruption , but we are determined to come up with a set of standards and controls that we adhere to in order to make sure that we can run our events during the
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construction process .”
I have one final question for Nathan : he ’ s been in the industry for a fair few years now and I am curious what keeps him energised and motivated ? “ I think the fact that we keep reinventing ourselves I have done that personally going from being an organiser to a venue operator . “ Even though I ’ ve spent nearly 20 years at a venue , there ’ s always things I ’ m learning . I think the thing that really keeps me motivated and excited is this fantastic energy and passion that you get when you bring people together . It ’ s part of the human condition and you miss it when it is gone , there ’ s nothing like it . “ This industry is full of such amazing people who have such a lot of joy , fun and happiness I think it washes all over us all the time . You just never get fed up with that , it ’ s just so engaging , it gives you great strength and energy .” And that should bring a smile to the face of even the most hardened cynic , as always , I have enjoyed my time with him ( sadly over Zoom ) and can ’ t wait to see the vision become a reality – we can then fill it with joy , fun and happiness .
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June — 41 |