Exhibition World Issue 1 — 2020 | Page 41

Asia Pacific Japan: A new king in the North apan will see the opening of a new wing to the PACIFICO Yokohama in Spring 2020, which will make it the largest international exhibitions venue in the country. PACIFICO Yokohama North will add another 6,337sqm of event space in its main ground floor, able to accommodate up to 6,000 people. It will also include 42 meeting rooms. An outdoor pedestrian deck will connect the second-floor main entrance to the Exhibition Hall and Annex Hall of PACIFICO Yokohama. The facilities can be used conjointly for large- scale events. The new venue is part of a plan by the City of Yokohama and the Yokohama Convention & Visitors Bureau, to grow visitor numbers in this region of Japan. With the help of subvention funding, the bureau has already secured ten large conventions for Yokohama in 2020, each expected to attract over 1,000 delegates. Pictured: PACIFICO Yokohama North w w w.exhibitionworld.co.uk Pictured: Galaxy International Convention Center Macau building for the future acau, the special administrative region of China, has gone somewhat under the radar while its neighbour Hong Kong has been rocked by protests. That doesn’t mean business isn’t active in the region, however. EW spoke to Stephanie Tanpure, Vice President Sales and Gene Capuano, Senior Vice-President, Convention & Exhibition Services, at Sands Macao. They say the forecast is looking strong, although it must be said the full impact of the coronavirus is still to be seen. “Macau was ranked in the top 10 among the Asia Pacific region for 2018, in UFI’s Asian Trade Fair Research Report,” Tanpure says. “According to the report, there were 27 UFI-recognised B2B exhibitions in 2018, and revenue generated from the exhibition industry was close to USD$55.4m.” The region will be welcoming a new major venue, the Galaxy International Convention Center, in early 2021. It will contain 40,000sqm of event space, including 10,000sqm of exhibition and conference space. There will also be a 16,000-seat Galaxy Arena for concerts and sporting events. Tanpure continues: “There is a trend of combining meetings and exhibitions in Macau, instead of solely running exhibitions. A good example was the 2019 International Conference on Intelligence Robots and Systems, which was held in Macau in November 2019. IROS is one of the largest and most important robotics research conferences and exhibitions worldwide. Capuano adds: “We have a robust sustainability programme which includes a green meeting component. Having a green meeting concierge dedicated to events means we can establish sustainable goals with our organisers, monitor them, and provide a report at the end of the event. Organisers can use it as a benchmark for their future events. “We expect the industry to grow in 2020 and beyond as many new infrastructures are completed.” Issue 1 2020 41