THE local market will be the focus of Shanghai Disney Resort’s MICE strategy as the theme park approaches completion.

According to a spokeswoman who declined to be named, meeting spaces within the hotels as well as in-park venues for MICE have been planned but details are not yet available.

“For the initial phase after the opening, Shanghai Disney Resort will focus on catering to MICE events for the local market and handle international ones on a per request basis,” she said, adding boardroom meetings, corporate events, outdoor teambuilding, and family day programmes, etc, can be organised at the theme park.

The 420-room, signature Shanghai Disneyland Hotel topped out last month. Major construction will be completed by end-2015 and a grand opening is slated for spring 2016, said the spokeswoman.

The resort’s other themed property, the 800-room Toy Story Hotel, inspired by the Disney-Pixar animated films Toy Story, was topped out in January 2014 and the resort’s iconic mountain was topped out in December.

ACCOR has been appointed the operator for the new Jaipur Exhibition & Convention Centre (JECC).

Located in the industrial hub of Sitapura and 5km from Jaipur International Airport, the 17ha JECC along with the 241-room Novotel is the largest integrated exhibition-convention-entertainment facility in South Asia.

Facilities include two exhibition halls with a combined, column-free space of 20,000m² and an open exhibition area of 10,000m². The convention centre includes seating for 1,200 delegates, supported by 20 meeting rooms spanning 5,000m² as well as pre-function areas, registration counters, interpretation booths, and a lawn for outdoor events.

Jean-Michel Cassé, senior vice president, Accor India, said in a statement: “In India, we have been the pioneer in the field of convention centres, through the Hyderabad International Convention Centre and the Lavasa International Convention Centre and Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun Beach.”

Already open, JECC hosted India Stone Mart 2015 in January. Novotel will begin operations in 2016.

LOCAL association executives can now apply for a Professional Development Grant launched by the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre that is aimed at grooming the next generation of meetings professionals.

Unveiled on March 10 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre’s 10^th Association Seminar, the grant will offer three association executives the chance to attend ICCA Congress 2016 in Kuching, engage with international industry professionals and grow their association management abilities.

It will also be a chance to get a better understanding of the global meetings industry and bidding process.

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre general manager, Alan Pryor, said: “We believe direct exposure to industry experts and stakeholders will help equip the young executives with the tools to become ‘Malaysian Ambassadors’ for their association and the country. So we invite Malaysian association executives aged between 25 and 35 years old and who are registered and a participating member of a national association that is registered, active and holds an annual national conference, to apply (for the grant).”

ICCA president, Nina Freysen-Pretorius, commented: “I would encourage the national associations to take advantage of this support to uplift their profile within their international network. This will ultimately benefit both the local organisation and the country.”

An online application form and more information on the Professional Development Grant will be made available by end-March on www.klccconventioncentre.com.

THAILAND may be the most preferred destination for MICE visitors from India, but unlike rivals such as the UK and the US, it still has some way to go before being viewed as a premium MICE destination, say industry leaders.

Speaking at the TICA (Thailand Incentive and Convention Association) Membership Quarterly Luncheon in Bangkok yesterday, David Barrett, executive director events at Amari Watergate Bangkok and Amari Orchid Pattaya, said: “Some 25.3 million households are considered upper class and rich in India, and that’s just two per cent of the Indian population but equivalent to half of Thailand’s population.”

It also pays to understand the peculiarities and uniqueness of the Indian MICE traveller, Barrett pointed out. For example, Indian groups often pledge little loyalty to suppliers and go for lower prices; have a penchant for negotiation so suppliers have to set aside time to clinch a deal; and there is a tendency for dinners to be delayed, sometimes to as late as 23.00, he shared at the luncheon.

Furthermore, a maturing Indian MICE market also brings with it an increasingly sophisticated customer profile, especially as Thailand welcomes more repeat MICE delegates from India.

Said Barrett: “For the accounts currently staying in three or entry-level four-star hotel, they will come back to Thailand and upgrade to an upscale or even a luxury five-star hotel, so I believe there’s a market potential for premium Indian MICE business.”

Ram Sachdev, CEO of Premier Thailand and founder of the Thai Indian Wedding Association, believes that high-end Indian weddings can pave the way for more MICE arrivals to Thailand too, as wedding guests “could spread the word about Thailand” back home and among the Indian diaspora worldwide.

IN LINE with the city’s 10-year master plan for more tourists, Kuala Lumpur will upgrade the City Hall tourism unit to a tourism bureau with a dedicated MICE desk component in 2H2015.

Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s head of tourism, Noraza Yusof, said the bureau and MICE desk will be headed by a COO who will in turn report to Kuala Lumpur mayor, Ahmad Phesal Talib.

The MICE desk’s tasks will include the development of a MICE strategy such as branding and offering subventions, and fostering industry collaboration between associations with members of MACEOS and the travel trade, event planners, transportation and equipment suppliers, venue providers and restaurant operators in Kuala Lumpur.

So as not to overlap with Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), the MICE desk will be limited to providing on-ground support to MyCEB’s bids for business events to Kuala Lumpur.

Noraza elaborated: “The idea is to bring people together three or four times a year to update all parties on what is happening in the city and to build a closer working relationship so everyone knows what’s happening.”

The 10-year Kuala Lumpur Master Plan was launched early this year, a roadmap towards achieving the city’s ambitious targets of nearly doubling tourist arrivals to 16 million between 2015 and 2025. It also aims to increase average length of stay from 3.1 nights to 5.5 nights, and raise average spend per day from RM682 (US$183.90) to RM900.