Anniversary
ACC Liverpool celebrates 15 years of live events
In a short period of 15 years , the city events campus in north west England has developed into an icon on the waterfront for business and trade
he UK ’ s ACC Liverpool
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Group – operator of the M & S Bank Arena , ACC Liverpool and Exhibition Centre Liverpool – this year is celebrating 15 years of live events . During that period the venue complex on the banks of the River Mersey has welcomed 8.3 million visitors and generated £ 2.1bn ( US $ 2.62bn ) in economic impact for the city region .
Exhibition Centre Liverpool extended the ACCL campus when it was officially opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2016 , going on to host a variety of consumer and trade exhibitions such as the International Festival for Business , SIBA BeerX UK and live events such as Comic Con Liverpool and Liverpool Indoor Funfair . Exhibition Centre Liverpool increased the existing 7,125sqm of exhibition space at ACC Liverpool to 15,225sqm
Eurovision at the M & S Bank Arena of flexible event space . ECL also includes an integrated hotel , Pullman Liverpool , ( which has 216 bedrooms and three flexible meeting rooms ) and links to the existing facilities at ACC Liverpool via a pedestrian bridge .
Trade events soon returning to
ECL include :
• UKIFDA
• The Outdoor Trade Show
• UNITAS Wholesale Trade Show
• SIBA
• UCAS Discovery Convention
• Foot & Ankle Show
And new wins include :
• Nursing in Practice
• Liverpool Business Expo
• The Manufacturer Live
The Arena , which recently hosted the Eurovision Song Contest , has welcomed more than 3,000 entertainment events including the MTV Europe Music Awards ; artists such as Sir Paul McCartney and Beyonce and international sporting events such as the Davis Cup ; BBC Sports Personality of the Year ; Vitality Netball World Cup and World Gymnastics Championships .
The campus has hosted a multitude of conferences over the past 15 years including BBC Studios Showcase , the European Association for International Education and the Union World Conference on Lung Health .
Faye Dyer , chief executive of The ACC Liverpool Group , says : “ We are immensely proud of what we have achieved in the past 15 years – hosting a variety of fantastic events and welcoming millions of visitors from the city region and beyond .
“ We are proud to fulfil our purpose of boosting investment in the city and to showcase Liverpool – a city rich in culture and music that ’ s welcoming , inclusive and accessible to all .
“ There have been so many milestones in our journey – from hosting the Capital of Culture opening ceremony in 2008 to most recently , Eurovision .”
You certainly can ’ t fault the variety on display at ACC Liverpool . During my visit the World Baton Twirling championships were in town , and the Royal College of Psychiatrists International Congress , Nursing Live and the UK Drum Show , have all been hosted at the venue in recent weeks . Cllr Liam Robinson , leader of Liverpool City Council , adds : “ The facilities at Kings Dock are simply world-class and have proven transformational , for our waterfront , the city ’ s image and our appeal as a major international destination . It ’ s become a huge part of the city ’ s visitor offer , generating millions of pounds for our tourist economy and sustaining thousands of jobs . It ’ s almost impossible to imagine Liverpool without it .”
50 Issue 5 2023 www . exhibitionworld . co . uk