Taiwan MICE show to extend its reach

THE NUMBER of foreign visitors to this year’s edition of EXCO Taiwan was double that of last year’s, as organisers continue to step up efforts to broaden the show’s MICE range.

“Our hope is to become a full-fledged MICE show like IMEX,” said Alex Lai, EXCO show manager and project manager, Exhibition Department, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA).

Lai said more emphasis would be placed on the incentive travel and meetings segments for future shows.

“Right now we are strong in the ‘E’ because that is what TAITRA is – a trade show organiser. We also have the ‘C’ because of TICC (Taipei International Convention Center—both a venue and a conference organiser),” he said.

This year’s first-day attendance at the Taipei World Trade Center included a total of 103 foreign visitors, a 230 per cent jump over last year. Pre-registration generated more than 230 attendees from oversees, also a doubling.

The biggest share of overseas visitors were from foreign schools participating in a MICE training event held during the show.

Each year, the TAITRA International Trade Institute’s MICE training division invites the tourism departments of local colleges and universities to compete at EXCO by creating and manning booths for Taiwan’s MICE destinations.

Joining the 14 local schools at this year’s MICE Education & Training Area were eight universities from South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand and Malaysia.

By Glenn Smith

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