8th Edition of "Trade Fairs in Asia" Report available now

We published the 8th edition of our annual "Trade Fairs in Asia" report this week. You can buy it on the BSG website. Here is the full press release along with some of the highlights from the report.

July 2, 2012 – Paris/Hong Kong: Growth of the trade fair industry in Asia was boosted in 2011 by strong increases in south-east Asia according to the eighth edition of UFI’s annual report on the trade fair market in Asia.

Overall, exhibition space sales grew by 2.6% last year. Net area sold by organisers in Asia reached a total of 15.9 million m².  Of that total, almost 55% was sold in China and 12% was sold in Japan. The research was once again undertaken for UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, by Business Strategies Group (BSG) in Hong Kong.

Growth was clearly highest in south-east Asia in 2011. Singapore and Malaysia were the fastest growing markets in 2011 - up 15% and 14% respectively. The exhibition market in the Philippines grew by 8.8%. Vietnam was the only exception to this south-east Asian trend, posting growth of just 1.2%.

The larger exhibition markets grew notably more slowly in 2011. Asia’s largest market, China, grew by 2.5%, while India posted an increase of 3.3%. Two other large markets, Korea and Hong Kong grew by 2.2% and 1.1% respectively.

Three exhibition markets contracted in 2011. Australia slipped by 1% and the small exhibition market in Macau dropped by almost 11%. Japan, the second largest exhibition market in Asia, contracted by nearly 3% following the March 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident.

In terms of capacity, by the end of 2012 there will be almost 6,490,000 m² available at venues in Asia. That is up from 3 million m² recorded in the first edition of this report in 2005.

This year, the total number of venues in Asia will be 187. Of that figure, there will be 97 venues in China. India will have 13 venues and Japan and Korea will each be operating 12 venues. Nearly 68% of all venue capacity in Asia is now in China – more than 12 times the next largest market, Japan (4.42 million m² vs. 350,606 m²).

Paul Woodward, UFI Managing Director, commented, “The exhibition industry in Asia continues to be a remarkably dynamic and fast-growing market. As the exhibition markets in the traditional, more mature economies have been faced with challenging economic conditions, the industry in Asia has continually managed to grow year after year."

"As a result, a rising number of international exhibition organisers are looking to participate in the growth in Asia. We are also pleased to see UFI's membership in Asia continue to grow along with the industry there. UFI now has 193 members in Asia - including 73 in mainland China and we anticipate that interest in the region will remain high."

This annual report has again been edited by UFI Asia/Pacific Regional Manager and BSG Managing Director, Mark Cochrane.  He commented, “Growth of the exhibition industry in south-east Asia outpaced the rest of the region in 2011 and we expect to see an extension of that exciting trend continue throughout 2012.”

“We are forecasting exhibition space sales at trade fairs in Asia to reach 16.3 million m² sold in 2012. Although the south-east Asian markets are expected to be strong performers again in 2012, the key question will be how well the largest exhibition markets such as China and India will hold up in face of weak economic conditions in key export markets in Europe and the U.S. We anticipate that the growth of intra-Asian trade will largely offset the economic softness in Europe and the U.S.”

This report provides detailed information on the development of trade fairs and supporting facilities in 15 markets: China, Hong Kong, Macau, Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. The report also includes analysis on actual market performance in 2011 as well as forecasts and commentary on key trends in each market.

As an added-value service, each UFI member will be entitled to receive a four page executive summary of the research and to purchase the full report at a substantial discount.

BSG's strategic partner, Mayfield Media opens Singapore office

Mayfield Media Strategies taps into South East Asia Market with opening of Singapore office.

23^rd March 2012

Mayfield Media Strategies (MMS), the specialist M&A brokers for the exhibition industry, is continuing to expand its international operations with the opening of an office in Singapore to manage its activities in South East Asia.

Following their success in internationalising the Turkish exhibition market, MMS are now turning their attention to the opportunities that the ASEAN region offers. . The combination of fast growing economies and an exhibition market, which is still relatively fragmented and un-developed, is fuelling a demand for acquisitions. Steve Monnington the founder and CEO of Mayfield Media said ‘We have noticed an recent increase in interest in the South East Asia market – although many of the economies are still small there is a fast growing middle class which is driving a demand for branded goods and the exhibition industry is looking to serve that. As an example, the IMF has forecast that Indonesia will be the 5^th largest economy in the world by 2020. We expect to see an increase in the number of acquisitions and partnerships in the region in the next year’.

The Singapore operation will be led byIsabel Gonzalez who has been based in Singapore since 2009 and has many years of international business experience including previous roles at Kodak, the American Chamber of Commerce and the United Nations. Mayfield Media’s office in Singapore will work alongside their existing strategic partnership with Business Strategies Group which covers the whole of the Asia market including China, Hong Kong, S E Asia and South Korea.

Geographically renowned as the regional business epicentre, Singapore is the ideal location from which to deliver centralized support and intelligence in the South East Asia region.

More on Mayfield can be found here.

UFI Open Seminar in Shenzhen in 2012

It is less than three months until our annual UFI Open Seminar in Asia. This will be the 7th edition of the seminar and it has grown to become UFI's second largest event after the UFI Congress! The 2012 edition of the seminar will be held in Shenzhen on 23-24 February at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Since the inaugural edition in 2005, this event has been managed by BSG on behalf of UFI. This year's theme is "Asian Exhibitions in the Year of the Dragon" and we have a fantastic programme lined-up. The previous edition of the seminar in Bangkok attracted over 260 delegates and we expecting a large turnout in 2012 as well.

Check out the full programme details and register today! The early bird rate is available until 21st January.

BSG and Mayfield Media partner to focus on acquisition opportunities in Asia

BSG is pleased to announce our new partnership with Mayfield Media Strategies. We will be working with Steve Monnington and Anna John to advise independent exhibition organisers in Asia who are interested in selling their businesses. Steve and Anna have a truly impressive track record in M&A advisory and we look forward to bringing that expertise to Asia.

Here is a list of some of the recent transactions in which Mayfield Media has played a role.


The full press release is below.

Press Release September 6^th 2011

Mayfield Media Strategies and Business Strategies Group join forces to unlock acquisition opportunities in Asia.

Mayfield Media Strategies and Business Strategies Group have formed a partnership to help exhibition organisers in Asia market themselves for sale to international purchasers.

Mayfield Media are the leading specialist acquisition brokers for the exhibition industry. Over the past 15 years, they have helped many independent organisers sell their businesses or set up joint ventures with international partners. Mayfield Media have facilitated transactions all round the globe including in the UK, Mainland Europe, Australia and the Middle East and are increasingly working with entrepreneurs in emerging markets such as Turkey where they have completed five transactions in the last couple of years.

Business Strategies Group (BSG) is the only market intelligence and strategy-consulting firm in Asia focused on business media, information and events. Based in Hong Kong and founded in 2000, its services include research, market intelligence, mergers and acquisition support and strategy development. BSG publishes regular reports on all aspects of B2B media in Asia.

Steve Monnington, Managing Director of Mayfield Media commented ‘We have been planning to establish our business in Asia for some time and we are delighted to be working with Mark and the team at BSG. The exhibition business has always crossed borders, but in recent years we have seen a dramatic increase the in the number of international acquisitions. Selling your company to a foreign buyer can be a daunting task, especially if the relationship will be ongoing. Our experience helps vendors maximize the price and to work out the right deal-structure to ensure future success. Combined with Mark’s extensive knowledge of the Asian exhibition market we are confident of delivering results.’

Mark Cochrane, Managing Director of BSG commented, ‘We are extremely pleased to partner with Mayfield Media. They have unmatched experience as an acquisition broker for the exhibition industry – particularly in emerging markets. The exhibition industry in Asia is the fastest growing and most dynamic worldwide. The combination of BSG’s Asian market knowledge and Mayfield Media’s transaction expertise will allow us to offer a great deal of value to independent exhibition organisers looking to sell their businesses.’

The partnership will deliver turn-key services for exhibition organisers in Asia looking to sell all or part of their companies – this will include a valuation, analysis of potential purchasers, preparation of an information memorandum, price negotiation and overseeing the legal and due-diligence process.

For further information:

Mayfield Media

Contact: Anna John +44 208 992 3329

annajohn@mayfieldmedia.com

www.mayfieldmedia.com

Business Strategies Group

Contact: Mark Cochrane +852-2525-6103

mark@bsgasia.com

www.bsgasia.com

BSG and Trade Show News Network Announce Strategic Partnership

BSG and TSNN (The Trade Show News Network) have announced a strategic partnership that will include the launch of the TSNN Asia Exhibition News e-newsletter covering the exhibition business in Asia.

The bi-monthly TSNN Asia Exhibition News e-newsletter will launch April 28th and feature news for show managers, meeting planners and suppliers in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as show managers and suppliers interested in the Asian markets.

We are very pleased to be working with Rachel Wimberly, Stephen Nold and the rest of the TSNN team. You can subscribe TSNN Asia Exhibition News e-newsletter here.

Full details from the press release are available here.

UFI Open Seminar in Asia headed to Shenzhen in 2012

The 2011 UFI Open Seminar in Asia concluded in Bangkok on February 25th. The event reached a new record in terms of delegates (almost 260 in total). Thanks to our hosts, TCEB as well as all of the speakers, sponsors and delegates who made the seminar such a strong success this year.

The seminar concluded with the exciting announcement that the 2012 edition of the UFI Open Seminar in Asia will be headed to Shenzhen - specifically the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Centre.

BSG (which manages the UFI Asia/Pacific office and UFI Open Seminar in Asia) looks forward to welcoming you to Shenzhen and the 7th edition of this event next year!

2012 UFI Congress headed to Abu Dhabi

UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, announced this week that the 2012 UFI Congress will be held in Abu Dhabi. The 2012 Congress will be UFI's 79th annual global meeting and the first to be held in the Arabian Gulf.

UFI Managing Director commented, "We have been hoping for a long time to be able to bring the UFI Congress to Abu Dhabi and are really delighted that our 2012 event will be hosted by ADNEC. Abu Dhabi generously hosted UFI’s Middle East/Africa office for the past five years. So, we are really excited to be able to share with our 550 members in 84 countries the magnificent facilities and exciting developments there which we know very well. This will, we’re certain, be a really memorable UFI Congress, all the more special for being the first one we’ve held in the Arabian Gulf region."

The 2010 UFI Congress was held in Singapore last November and it attracted 475 delegates from more than 50 countries. The 2011 UFI Congress will be held in Valencia.

BSG manages the UFI Asia/Pacific office as well as the UFI Open Seminar in Asia.

UFI President Eric Everard to close Bangkok Seminar

BSG (which manages the UFI Asia/Pacific office and UFI Open Seminar in Asia) has now confirmed that UFI President Eric Everard will be the closing speaker at the UFI Open Seminar in Bangkok next month! Eric's topic will be confirmed shortly, but in line with the seminar's focus on "Elements of Success", Eric will draw on his experience as a successful entrepreneur. He founded both the Artexis Group and easyFairs.

If you plan to join us, please register before 21 January to enjoy the "early bird" rate. Programme and registration details can be found on the seminar website:

www.ufi.org/bangkok2011/

See you in Bangkok!

UFI Open Seminar in Bangkok 2011

With the annual UFI Congress now successfully closed, we are turning our attention and efforts to another major event: The UFI Open Seminar in Asia. The 2011 edition of this event will be held in Bangkok on 24-25 February at the Centara Grand.

As has been the case since it was launched in 2005, this event is managed by BSG on behalf of UFI. This year's theme is "Elements of Success" and we have an exciting programme lined up. The previous edition of this event attracted over 200 delegates and we expecting a large turnout in 2011 as well.

Click here for programme and registration details.

BSG quoted in Tradeshow Week Asia article

Asian Destinations Bounce Back - 3/1/2010 - Tradeshow Week

Lisa Plummer does a nice overview of the rebound in Hong Kong and Macau in the latest edition of TradeShow Week. BSG is quoted along with UBM Asia's Jimé Essink, The Venetian's Wolfram Diener and Vertical Expo's Kenny Lo. Kenny will be speaking this week in Taiwan at the UFI Open Seminar in Asia on his success with themes which might once have been considered "difficult" in Asia.

BSG Chairman, Paul Woodward is quoted in the article:

Also hopeful about Macau’s exhibition future is Paul Woodward, chairman of Business Strategies Group, who said he believes one of the key ingredients to the region’s success will be to establish its own, distinct tradeshow identity.

“As the local market is very small, it has been challenging for Macau to build up a critical mass of visitors and buyers to most exhibitions,” he added. “Organizers are still fine-tuning their approach to (determine) the themes and event style that will work well in this market. Attempts simply to copy formats that have worked previously in Hong Kong or Las Vegas haven’t been so successful.”

Asia’s economies performing well as UFI heads to Taiwan « UFI Live

Asia’s economies performing well as UFI heads to Taiwan « UFI Live

This piece by Paul was posted on UFI's blog today incluing some news about the upcoming Open Seminar in Asia which is managed by BSG and reporting on the latest, positive news from key Asian economies.

CEFCO report on UFI Live

The Blog of UFI, The Global Exhibition of the Exhibition Industry
Industry kicks of the year in chilly Xi’an

From Paul Woodward in Hong Kong: for the past six years, the first major meeting of the exhibitions industry anywhere in the world has taken place in China. This latest edition of CEFCO (the China Expo Forum for International Cooperation) has just finished in Xi’an in China’s northwestern Shaanxi province. Some 550 delegates from across China and around the world joined to talk about developments in the industry and prospects for the year ahead.

The meeting is organized by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and supported by UFI along with IAEE and SISO from the US. This year’s event saw UFI President Manfred Wutzlhofer kick off the proceedings accompanied by the team from the Asia/Pacific office in Hong Kong and a number of our members from around the world. At the opening ceremony, he told delegates “UFI is delighted to support once again this event which we clearly recognise as the most important meeting in China which is rapidly becoming one of the world’s most significant exhibition markets”.

CCPIT talked about this market when it presented its annual report on the Chinese trade fair industry. Even as exports stumbled in the first part of the year, many of the major exhibitions continued to grow. They did, though offer a note of caution on the rapid expansion in exhibition venue capacity when Mr. Gu Chao, Director-General of the Exhibition Department, called for careful review of wastage and under-utilsation of facilities.

Of course, for many attendees to a wintry Xi’an, some of the key highlights took place outside the conference hall including a visit to the remarkable terra-cotta warriors of the Chin emperor’s tomb. For those who weren’t able to join us there, I’d commend you to IAEE President Steven Hacker’s memorable photographs which he has kindly made public. Thanks Steven!

More to follow on the UFI Chinese members’ meeting and other highlights from CEFCO.

UFI Live blog launched

UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, has launched a new blog, UFI Live. Hosted by Canadian Barry Sisskind, the new site will include a number of guest bloggers including UFI Asia/Pacific regional manager and BSG Chairman, Paul Woodward.

One of the first guest bloggers was Exhibitions India's Prem Behl, talking about his optimism for improvements in the facilities at the country's largest venue, the Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.

Check out details now of UFI Open Seminar in Asia programme

This event, as always, managed by BSG for UFI is looking very exciting this year in Taipei. We're expecting a big audience and some exciting speakers on the subject of "Innovation for Growth". Click on the postcard here to go to the programme and registration details:


Keep an eye out for the Twitter hashtag #ufitaipei for regular updates on speakers and the programme.

TAITRA: Asian MICE Forum 2009 to Be Opened on 19th November

I'm going to be heading to Taipei on Thursday evening from Beijing to attend this event wearing my UFI 'hat': TAITRA: Asian MICE Forum 2009 to Be Opened on 19th November

It looks as though there will be a good cross-section of the business events industry represented with ICCA, UFI, SITE and IAEE all present.

New BSG Leadership Plans Announced

Hong Kong, 23rd October 2009: Business Strategies Group Ltd. (BSG), Asia’s leading consultants to the business media and events industry, has announced new management plans for 2010 and beyond.

From 1st January 2010, BSG founder Paul Woodward will become chairman of the company with Mark Cochrane taking on the role of Managing Director. They will lead the business together until 1st July when Mr. Woodward leaves Asia to take on the full time position of Managing Director of UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry. At that point, Mr. Woodward will become non-executive chairman of BSG and Mr. Cochrane will assume overall management responsibility for the company.

Mr. Cochrane has been based in Hong Kong for 12 years. Prior to joining BSG in 2006, he worked for Global Sources and the Gartner Group in a variety of roles. A graduate of Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management, Mr. Cochrane has worked on a wide range of BSG’s consulting projects and, for the past three years, has been the primary author of the company’s annual study, “Trade Fairs in Asia.”

Commenting on the transition, Mr. Woodward said “We are all delighted that Mark will be stepping into this leadership role to take BSG forward into its second decade of business. The need which we identified back in 2000 when the company was formed for high quality, reliable information and advice on the business media industry in Asia still very much exists today. Mark’s experience means that he is very well positioned to provide what our clients need in the future.”

Regarding his new role, Mr. Cochrane said, “As Asia continues to be a growth centre, this is an exciting time to be managing BSG as it further strengthens its position as a market leader. I look forward to continuing to build on BSG’s long track record of providing clients with the advice and data that they need to successfully navigate change in this fast-growing industry.”

Nice piece from Shangri-La newsletter has me looking forward to our Taipei seminar

Taipei's a great city and this piece from Shangri-La hotels has me looking forward to being there in March next year for our UFI Open Seminar in Asia (4 - 5 March...more details soon on UFI web site):

https://www.shangri-la.com/en/corporate/gcnewsletterarticle/139

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Keep the dates for UFI Asia Seminar 2010

HKTDC links to BSG news

The Hong Kong Trade Development Council's website is a very rich resource for companies wishing to trade with Asia. As well as listings and company information, it includes all kinds of business and economic research. Some of this is undertaken by the TDC's own, excellent research department and other items come from third party research and consulting firms including BSG.

Thanks to Marsha Ho at Edelman in Hong Kong for pointing out to us this piece which quotes a recent BSG Tracker Service report on the Impact of the Economic crises on the Asia B2B events industry.

New UFI/BSG research reports continued growth in Asia

Trade fair market in Asia grows by 8.7% in 2008 according to UFI report
Issued: Thursday, 30th June, 2009

June 30, 2009 – Paris/Hong Kong: The trade fair industry in Asia expanded by 8.7% in 2008 despite the weakening global economic environment according to the fifth edition of UFI’s annual report on the trade fair market in Asia. Net area sold by organisers in Asia reached a total of 14.3 million m2 The research was once again undertaken for UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, by Business Strategies Group (BSG) in Hong Kong.

China’s growth continues to outpace the rest of the region. It is the largest market in the region in terms of space sold and industry revenues. Year-on-year, net square metres sold in China grew by 14% outperforming the regional average of 8.7%. Over 7.6 million m2 were sold in China in 2008 – accounting for 53% of 14.3 million m2 sold across Asia. The second largest market, Japan, continues to lose ground to China. The Japanese market shrank by more than 6% last year with 2.0 million m2 sold.

A number of much smaller markets grew faster than China last year. Space sold in Macau expanded by 69% on the back of the opening of the new venue at the Venetian. Taiwan grew by 26% and Vietnam by 24% in terms of square metres sold which was also primarily driven by additional, new capacity in both markets.

Revenues from trade fairs in Asia increased from US$3.25 billion in 2007 to US$3.45 billion last year – an rise of just over 6%, down markedly from the 26% revenue growth recorded in 2007. China outperformed all of the top five largest markets (measured by revenues) by a wide margin posting a 20% increase in revenues for a total of US$1.33 billion.

This report provides detailed information on the development of trade fairs and supporting facilities in 15 markets: China, Hong Kong, Macau, Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. The report also includes analysis on actual market performance in 2008 as well as forecasts and commentary on key trends in each market.

Vincent Gérard, UFI Managing Director, commented, “2008 was another noteworthy year for the exhibition industry in Asia. Despite a challenging economic environment, space sales in the region as a whole grew by close to 9%. Seven different markets posted double digit growth – and of those four grew by more than 20%. Even this difficult year should be no exception with major markets forecast to continue expanding and several exciting new venues coming online by the end of 2009.”

As an added-value service, each UFI member will be entitled to receive a four page executive summary of the research and to purchase the full report at a substantial discount.

The report has again been edited by UFI Asia/Pacific Regional Manager and BSG Principal, Paul Woodward. He commented, “Asia continues to be one of the most vital and exciting exhibition markets in the world. Despite the global economic recession, in 2009 BSG is still forecasting growth in several of the region’s key exhibition markets including China and India. The pace of change here has been nothing short of remarkable. In 2003, there were 101 venues in the region and space sales were just 5.7 million m2. By the end of this year, Asia will be home to 162 venues generating space sales of 14.6 million m2.”


For more information on this study, please contact UFI in Asia at:
UFI Asia/Pacific Office 1101, Wilson House 19, Wyndham Street Central, Hong Kong
Tel : +852 2525 6129
Fax: +852 2525 6171
email: asia@ufi.org