Europe clamours to hear Indian wedding bells

EUROPEAN cities want to host more Indian weddings and corporate meetings, and are committing time and money to grow the market.

European Cities Marketing (ECM), a grouping of 98 European cities, has engaged TMF Dialogue Marketing India, which has offices in Mumbai and Delhi, to build the market for weddings and events in the next three years.

The plan includes a roadshow each year in India designed to bring ECM members in contact with India’s corporate clients, incentive houses and wedding agencies, and to enable them to understand the market better.

This year’s roadshow will be held from July 14-17, covering Delhi and Mumbai. ECM members such as Berlin, Barcelona, Bilbao, Zagreb and Salzburg have registered participation.

ECM’s vice president, Heike Mahmoud, who is also director conventions of Visit Berlin Convention Office, said European cities such as Vienna and Barcelona, which started to tap the Indian market eight years ago, are seeing “big weddings” coming their way.

“We think we have to invest budget and time in this market,” she said.

TMF managing director, Johanna Fischer, said there are “huge growth prospects” from India for European cities and it’s a question of growing their expertise and understanding of the Indian market. “The professionalism of Indian meeting, incentive and wedding planning is rising. Before, for example, many Indian weddings go direct to hotels whereas now they use planners, who act as the link between the family and the supplier,” said Fischer.

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