Press Cuttings Transcripts
Letters to the Editor
Conference & Exhibition Fact Finder, 01 March 2004
From René Dee
Managing Director
Royal Horticultural Halls
Dear Jacquie,
In response to your January Comment page ‘London might yet take centre stage’ I
am not at all sure that a new Convention Centre in the capital ‘would massively
boost London’s status as a global centre for business’ as claimed by the LDA.
In my view the ‘Mayoral Commission’ will have its work cut out in establishing
the true worth of this statement. As you rightly point out, it is simply not
enough to build a centre, declare it to be an icon and wactch the international
business tourism market to flock to it.
Even a cursory glance at what international exhibition and convention business
comes into London and the UK overall will reveal how little we get in
proportion to so many other countries. The truth is that we are uncompetitive
with so many other markets both in mainland Europe and further afield
internationally.
Location of any new Centre is also absolutely crucial, as is transportation to
it and the amenities around it. And then there is the question of size. Talk
has been of anything between 3,000 and 10,000 capacity. Anything is possible if
you have the space upon which to build this Centre and the money to find it.
Whose money will this be anyway and is a return expected from it?
UK Business Tourism Plc. is a highly successful and profitable enterprise but
the facts are that it is successful mainly because of the strong UK domestic
market; be it in London or the regions, not internationally.
The Mayoral Commission needs to evaluate very carefully where they believe
international convention business will come from into London’s new Convention
Centre and also whether a simple single use convention centre will fulfil the
needs of international convention organisers. By this I mean that conventions
rely as much upon the requisite hotel accommodation, transportation and side
offers as the centre itself. It is a well established fact that existing PCO’s
have great difficulty securing advance bulk accommodation in London because the
market is so strong and hotels do not see the need to reserve volume bed space
at discounted rates 6 months – 2 years in advance.
Strong marketing and branding should achieve good results for a new centre; in
this case high occupancy and profit. However, no amount of strong marketing and
branding will work if the product itself does not match the overall
requirements of the conventions and business tourism events that may wish to
come to London. In this regard the Mayoral Commission must look long and hard
and plan not simply for the next 10 years but as far ahead as the next 20
years. They must crystal gaze at what emerging destinations and cities are also
planning to develop and enhance for their own business tourism development and
judge wether what London can offer, will stand the test of inreasing
international competition, ever changing requirements, fashion and demands.
As a long term trend, it may be that congested and inflexible cities may well
become superseded by more flexibe and less stressful destinations as the
preferred choice for the 21st century organiser and our icons may then become
carbuncles.
Yours Sincerely
René Dee
Managing Director
c.c Heidi Truman, KPMG
Adrian Ruth, KPMG