US MEETINGS procurer firm HelmsBriscoe has entered the Philippine market, and is at work securing initial business with corporate accounts, religious events and product launches.

“It’s really a good time, as Asia-Pacific is no longer an emerging market,” said Marisa Crame, senior director for global accounts, HelmsBriscoe. Weddings, cruises and business seminars are some of the other events the company will pitch business for, she added.

HelmsBriscoe’s associates in the Philippines will cover any kind of event that guarantees at least 10 room nights of business for associations anywhere within the social, military, educational, religious and fraternal associations segments.

Butch Cabalu, manager for global accounts, HelmsBriscoe, predicts significant business in the Philippines from religious events, product launches within the entertainment segment, and corporate accounts. One of their biggest bookings so far is a 10,000-pax religious event in 2016, where 2,000 of the participants will be from overseas, he said.

The company will leverage partnerships with major international hotel chains and local boutique hotels as well those in major cities, starting with Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao and Cagayan de Oro.

It will not charge associations or groups contracting their services, but earns through standard industry placement fee of 10 per cent to partner hotels booking through them.

Associations are promised they will not receive higher quotes from hotels if they partner with HelmsBriscoe, while hotels partners will recover the investment they would have otherwise spent on marketing, Crame added.

Associations can also protect themselves from attrition – overbudgeting for events, coming short of room reservations – because HelmsBriscoe will tap its network of associates globally to fill in excess bookings, said Christopher Crame, manager for global accounts.

Lauding its partnership with HelmsBriscoe a “useful service to associations” in events organisation, Octavio Peralta, chair of board of trustees, Philippine Council for the Advancement of Association Executives, said that the tie-up will also be a key addition to the association’s ongoing activities including education, an awards programme recognising association activities and professionals, and formalising the curriculum behind the Philippines’ first professional associate certification system.

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RESORTS World Genting MICE division introduced the Elite C-Suites Deal on February 1 exclusively for corporates.

Offerings for meeting planners include luxury limousine services, reserved car parks, golf, gourmet tea break menus and choice of hotel accommodation, among others.

Stella Sum, the resort’s assistant vice president MICE, said: “Elite C-Suites Deal was conceptualised after listening to meeting planners who told us they want more than just standard meeting packages of one lunch and two tea breaks.

“It has been well received because it is flexible and allows planners to pick any offerings that suit their needs and pay accordingly. We sold 42 Elite C-Suites the day it was launched.”

Arokia Das, senior manager, Luxury Tours Malaysia, said: “The new offerings will further enhance the quality of meetings. Elite C-Suites also makes it easier for us to promote Resorts World Genting to the high-end segment.

“As it is, Resorts World Genting has fantastic meeting facilities and the MICE team, from sales to operations, are very proactive. We’ve done a couple of events there, and they’ve all run smoothly.”

MALAYSIA Convention & Exhibition Bureau’s (MyCEB) Kesatria 1Malaysia Programme, which identifies industry leaders to be tasked with attracting global meetings and conferences to Malaysia, recently appointed six new kesatria (or knights).

The addition brings the total number of kesatria to 37, and hails from various key economic sectors such as science, medical, research and innovation, identified in Malaysia’s Economic Transformation Programme.

Zulkefli Sharif, CEO of MyCEB, said: “Since the programme was introduced in 2012, it has generated 71 business leads, attracting an estimated 124,958 delegates and contributing an estimated RM1.4 billion (US$39.2 million) to the country’s economy.

“Of these, 39 per cent of bids were won and supported with 28 events secured, amounting to approximately 50,800 delegates and RM371 million.”

International association conferences and events secured by the kesatria for up to 2020 include International Harm Reduction Conference 2015, International Federation of Freight Forwarders Association World Congress 2017 and World Federation of Hemophilia World Congress 2020.

Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, minister of Tourism & Culture Malaysia, who is also chief patron for this programme, said: “These conventions will complement the efforts of the Ministry in achieving its target of 29.4 million arrivals and RM89 billion in tourist receipts for 2015, and will also raise Malaysia’s standing on a global scale, contributing to our business tourism target of RM3.9 billion in gross national income by 2020.”

THE Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers (SACEOS) and Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) signed an MoU last week with an aim to attract and retain talent within the local MICE industry.

Under the MoU, students enrolled in NYP’s Diploma in Hospitality and Tourism Management will receive exemptions of up to two days for two internationally accredited SACEOS courses of Professional Conference Management and Professional Exhibition Management.

NYP’s School of Business Management will work with SACEOS members to develop real business cases for students to work on and recommend solutions.

Industry professionals from SACEOS will also participate in a mentorship programme for final-year students.

Additionally, NYP students will be eligible for SACEOS student membership at a discounted rate, gaining access to networking events that SACEOS organise for members.

SACEOS honorary secretary, Ong Wee Min, said: “The key to success is always talent, and that is the biggest problem we face. Our talent is not just sought after locally, regionally but also internationally.”

NYP deputy principal, Henry Heng, added: “Singapore is facing a significant leakage of talent at the graduate level for the MICE industry, meaning they go on into other career tracks or move on to higher education.

“We think that now, with the help that SACEOS will provide through this MoU, there is a good chance that we can encourage students to view this path as a significant avenue for them to pursue which hitherto, was not on their radar.”

A GROUP of 1,600 delegates descended on Sri Lanka last month for meetings and leisure, the single largest MICE tour from India to Sri Lanka so far.

Handled by Sri Lanka’s largest DMC Walkers Tours, the 1,600-strong Phillips India group visited the island from January 16-19.

The group occupied more than 800 rooms at leading hotels in the capital and had simultaneous meetings and events per day, with special appearances by Indian cricket stars.

Vasantha Leelananda, executive vice president of John Keells Holdings, parent company of Walkers Tours, said: “With this experience we are now in a position to fully exploit the MICE potential in the Indian market and I am confident we will have many opportunities for conferences, meetings as well as large events including weddings in the future.”

Enthuse Answers, an event management agency from India, managed the group from India.

India is Sri Lanka’s largest source market and grew 16.3 per cent year-on-year to hit 242,734 arrivals, out of 1.5 million in total for 2014.