Conferences in May started with the arrival of 7,000 attendees at the All Energy Conference and Exhibition, swiftly followed by two major medical meetings held at the SEC, attracting a combined total of over 8,000 delegates. Other venues across the city were also busy with conferences, the University of Strathclyde’s Technology & Innovation Centre welcomed 1,000 delegates to the Annual Conference of the European Marketing Academy.
Aileen Crawford, Glasgow Convention Bureau head of conventions, said: “Glasgow is recognised as one of the world’s leading conference cities with business tourism featuring as a key pillar within the city’s Tourism and Visitor Plan to 2023. Glasgow’s reputation for innovation, the strength of our knowledge hub economy and the strong partnerships which exist between businesses and academic institutions set us apart from other potential host cities. This enables us to successfully bid to secure prestigious meetings to our city.”
Following on from exciting developments including the opening of the Clydeside Distillery, the first whisky distillery to be built in Glasgow in over a century, and the launch of the first new-build Radisson RED hotel in Europe – the Scottish Event Campus is also celebrating its most successful May yet.
Kathleen Warden, Scottish Event Campus director of conference sales, said: “The Scottish Event Campus has successfully delivered major conferences in the past month, including the World Federation of Hemophilia and the European Sports Traumatology, Knee Surgery and Arthroscopy Congress, and has accounted for 76% of all delegates in the city in May. These conferences take many years to secure, often against tough international competition, so we feel immensely proud to take these events from bid to delivery. Not only do these events demonstrate the value of the venue in delivering economic impact for the city, they help to internationalise the city’s reputation, and the SEC is proud to work with the many stakeholders involved in bringing these events to Glasgow.”
Designed to accelerate the way in which researchers in academia and industry collaborate and innovate together, Strathclyde University’s Technology and Innovation Centre officially opened for business in March 2015 and is also celebrating its busiest May yet. Last month it hosted 68 events and welcomed a total of 3,624 delegates – a 55 per cent increase on May last year and a massive 277 per cent increase on May 2016.
Gordon Hodge, University of Strathclyde head of conferencing and events, said: “We’re delighted to have played our part in Glasgow’s busiest May ever, which is a real testament to the collaborative approach that continues to win a wide range of high-profile, influential business events for Glasgow. What makes us truly unique at Strathclyde is our Technology & Innovation Centre (TIC), which is much more than an award-winning city-centre conference venue. It’s first and foremost our world-class research hub, a facility where our academics work in partnership with industry and the public sector on solutions to many of society’s ‘wicked problems’. Combining our research activity with flexible event spaces that are available all year round, TIC is a place where new innovations are showcased; where new relationships are forged; where the seeds of future collaborations are sown; and where ideas become legend.”
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