Marketing Event articles from March 2006

Marketing Event archives from March 2006

From the Editor: There's always a place for entrepreneurs like Lyons.(Editorial)
March 24, 2006... Earls Court & Olympia Group, or EC&O Venues as it has re-branded, must resemble a sweet shop to the inner child of chief executive Anthony Lyons. The 230,000sqm estate on 50 acres of central London is riddled with disused areas that date...

Robertson set to take charge at Owen Brown.(Alex Robertson)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Supplier GL Events Owen Brown has appointed Alex Robertson as its managing director, replacing Andrew Dorrington who is returning to his native New Zealand. Chairman Bill Preston has also delayed his retirement, which was planned for...

EC&O Venues eyes up banqueting spaces.
March 24, 2006... Earls Court & Olympia Group has unveiled a new brand identity in a move that signals chief executive Anthony Lyons' aim to step up his acquisition strategy. EC&O Venues has been chosen as the new name for the group that currently includes...

EIA in call for 'permission marketing'.(Events Industry Alliance)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The Events Industry Alliance (EIA) has called for the events sector to unite behind the goal of promoting 'permission marketing'. A presentation on the first day of Earls Court's International Confex show saw group chief executive Trevor...

FOHO handles sampling for live concerts.(Front of House Organisation)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Agency the Front of House Organisation (FOHO) will manage promoter Live Nation's product sampling during its Summer Nights outdoor concert schedule. The series features opera singers Pavarotti and Il Divo, plus James Blunt, Westlife,...

Site to showcase industry.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... A dedicated event marketing portal will launch next month, aimed at showcasing the industry to a wider marketing audience. Eventsreview.com will go live on 3 April and includes profiles of event companies as well as editorial content...

Reed makes design-tech appointment.
March 24, 2006... Alexis Neron-Bancel has been appointed as divisional managing director of Reed Exhibitions' design and technology division. He will be responsible for 15 shows in the aerospace and defence, design and IT sectors. The Frenchman was...

Blind visitors welcomed at dog exhibition.
March 24, 2006... The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association marked 75 years of guide dogs in the UK with an interactive exhibition. Moving Forward Together launched at the Museum in Docklands, West India Quay, and will tour shopping centres, airports and...

Beer becomes Crown Group chief executive.
March 24, 2006... Charles Beer has been promoted to chief executive of event services supplier the Crown Group. Beer was previously managing director of one of its subsidiaries, Crown Society Special Events Caterer. He joined the company six years ago as...

First show at redeveloped Roundhouse.
March 24, 2006... Following a pounds 29.7m redevelopment, Camden venue the Roundhouse will be officially relaunched on 5 June with theatre show Fuerzabruta. The show is from the creators of De La Guarda, which played at the Roundhouse in 1999. The 65-minute...

T4 shows NME Awards within hours of finale.
March 24, 2006... The Shockwaves NME Awards increased in stature and production last month as the independent music ceremony managed a television broadcast just two hours after the show ended. The Hammersmith Palais accommodated a nine-camera feed to ensure...

Contractors in BECA walkout.
March 24, 2006... Contractors Early Action Group and Melville Exhibition and Event Services have resigned their membership of BECA - the British Exhibition Contractors Association. Both have now followed the Opex Group and become sole members of the...

London office block is lit up by Shining Wit.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The owner of the Centre Point building has commissioned agency Shining Wit to stage a series of events aimed at re-establishing its place in the hearts of Londoners. The first was a St Valentine's Day projection on behalf of the...

Streeter resigns from National Boat Shows.
March 24, 2006... Paul Streeter has resigned as managing director of organiser National Boat Shows (NBS) after six years in the role. The move follows reduced attendance for the second year at the London Boat Show, sponsored by the Daily Mail, during its 10...

Onyx's pounds 100k refurbishment.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Agency Etc.venues has relaunched the Onyx Restaurant at The Hatton, its venue in Farringdon, London, after a pounds 100,000 refurbishment. The restaurant seats 125 delegates and features a central self-serve buffet area offering food...

Italian style inspired new Dorset venue.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Dorset leisure destination Compton Acres is to open an Italian villa-styled events and hospitality venue next month. The three-storey villa was inspired by an adjacent Italian garden created in 1923. The first floor Verona suite, the...

The Olympic Ideal.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Italian agency Filmmaster was behind the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics on 10 February in Torino, Italy. The show, which celebrated the role of athletes as heroes of the games and messengers of peace, featured a 4,000sqm stage that...

In Brief: London Eye commissions Innovision for lighting.
March 24, 2006... Innovision was commissioned by the BA London Eye to create a St Valentine's Day lighting installation from 11-16 February. The agency's brief was to attract couples to take a romantic ride on the Eye, and the installation featured 360 red...

In Brief: A Place In The Sun Live names Barclays as sponsor.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... A Place In The Sun Live has named Barclays as its headline sponsor for this year's overseas property exhibition at Excel London from 7-9 April. Barclays will raise the exhibition's profile with a pounds 1m targeted promotional campaign to its...

In Brief: National Arenas Association elects chairman.
March 24, 2006... The National Arenas Association has elected Geoff Huckstep as chairman. The National Ice Centre and Nottingham Arena chief executive took over from Wembley Arena's director of sales and marketing, Peter Tudor, on 17 February. Glasgow SECC's...

In Brief: Jack Morton Worldwide opens in Beijing.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Jack Morton Worldwide opened an office in Beijing, China on 13 February. Rebecca Lim is managing director and reports to the agency's managing director for Asia, Ben Taylor. Lim was previously managing director of the agency Eventus in...

In Brief: Quadrant creates specialist division.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Quadrant has created a specialist events management division called Q-events after its event projects increased from pounds 350,000 in 2004 to pounds 500,000 in 2005. The agency aims to make more than pounds 1m by the end of 2006. The new...

In Brief: Excel London to host Tour de France leg.
March 24, 2006... Excel London is to host the the operational and media headquarters for the London leg of the Tour de France worldwide cycle tour in July next year. Philip Ayerst, programme manager for Transport for London's special projects team, said:...

In Brief: De Boer to create structure for Walk the Walk.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... De Boer Structures will create a 9,000sqm bright pink structure for the Walk the Walk event to raise money for breast cancer research on 20 May. An estimated 15,000 participants will use the Pink Galaxy structure (left) before they set off at...

In Brief: Stage Electrics transforms Tollgate House.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Stage Electrics helped to transform Bristol's Tollgate House into a giant canvas and project space for two weeks in January. The supplier provided health and safety management and site infrastructure for Intimate-Intimate, staged by the...

Thorpe Park's new ventures to be unveiled.
March 24, 2006... The Tussauds Group is erecting a 940sqm events structure called Lake View at the heart of Thorpe Park, Surrey, to be available for hire from 16 March. The venue will cater for up to 10,000 people and will feature a frontage made of smoked...

Fashion Week trade show keeps growing.
March 24, 2006... A new-look trade exhibition gave 170 designers a chance to showcase their autumn and winter collections during London Fashion Week. The Exhibition @ London Fashion Week took place from 16-19 February at The Natural History Museum. The...

Royal launch draws 12,000 to River Clyde.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Royal Navy Events and BAE Systems worked together for the launch in Glasgow of the warship HMS Daring. The Countess of Wessex launched the Type 45 destroyer on the Clyde in front of 12,000 spectators on 1 February. The Royal Navy held...

Loewybe cave people offer Volvic at Asda.
March 24, 2006... Agency Loewybe is conducting a sampling campaign for Danone's Volvic Touch of Fruit mineral water. The activity, which began on 16 February, involves brand ambassadors dressed as cave dwellers offering Volvic samples in 15 Asda foyers....

Plans for new venue at Bluewater centre.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Developer Lend Lease Retail has put in a planning application for a purpose-built, 5,200sqm exhibition and events venue on behalf of BlueCo, the company that owns retail centre Bluewater. Dartford Borough Council in Kent received the...

Ethical items form basis of the Mad Show.(Make a Difference )(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The Mad Group - an organisation that aims to 'make a difference' on the issue of sustainability - is launching an exhibition. The Mad Show at Earls Court from 2-4 June will enable companies to exhibit ethical products supporting fairtrade,...

Foundation helps London Youth Games.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The London Youth Games (LYG), organised by agency Limelight Projects, has received pounds 20,000 to help stage this year's activities. The Jack Petchey Foundation - an organisation that gives grants for projects that aid the development of...

Commonwealth Club revamp.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The Commonwealth Club has undergone a pounds 4m extension and refurbishment at its Northumberland Avenue premises in London after its owners, the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS), acquired three floors in the adjoining building. The club...

Culinary show signs up BA as main sponsor.
March 24, 2006... Organiser Brand Events has signed British Airways as Taste of London's title sponsor for a six-figure sum. The festival, at Regent's Park from 15-18 June, will feature UK chefs such as Antony Worrall Thompson, Gary Rhodes and Marcus...

International: Aerospace show moves to Hong Kong.
March 24, 2006... Reed Exhibitions is to relocate its international aerospace trade show, Asian Aerospace, from Singapore to Hong Kong's Asia World-Expo complex next year. The show, held in Singapore's Changi Exhibition Centre last month, will next take...

International: Questions follow roof collapse in Katowice.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Industry trade bodies have united in offering condolences to those affected by the International Katowice Fair tragedy in Poland. On 28 January, 66 people died when the roof of the Katowice exhibition hall collapsed during Pigeon 2006, a...

International: Centre brings commerce to Kuala Lumpur.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre in Malaysia estimates it has contributed pounds 48m to local commerce in its first six months. The centre opened in June 2005 and has exhibition halls spanning 9,710sqm. It hosted 225 events last...

Analysis: Reasons to be cheerful.
March 24, 2006... A strong retailing presence at the Birmingham NEC's Spring Fair is a hopeful sign, writes Mike Fletcher. Spring Fair, the only business exhibition to squeeze every ounce of space out of the Birmingham NEC, has reported a strong performance...

Special Report: Contractors: - A new electrical testing regime.
March 24, 2006... AEO project director John Sanders explains how safety concerns have led to industry-wide changes. The testing of electrical equipment on exhibition stands at the Birmingham NEC has been in the news since the middle of last year and the...

Analysis: Lyons sets the record straight.
March 24, 2006... Event editor Mike Fletcher talks exclusively to Anthony Lyons, chief executive of Earls Court and Olympia Group. To the right of the desk that seats Earls Court and Olympia Group (EC&O) chief executive Anthony Lyons is a hole in the office...

Exhibiting: That's a very good question ..
March 24, 2006... All too often, untrained stand staff recognise an event as an opportunity to 'show and tell'. Sadly, very few of them realise that there is an infinitely more persuasive approach - to 'ask and solve'. No matter how good you are at showing...

Live Issue: Stands - A revolutionary force?
March 24, 2006... Following a landmark deal between The Opex Group and organiser Clarion Events, an alternative stand build product is about to enter the UK exhibition market. Claire Bond and Mike Fletcher talk to the parties involved. THE CONTRACTOR ...

Campaign: Alpro/Holmes Place.
March 24, 2006... Claire Bond reports on how linking a soya food manufacturer with a health club chain raised the profile of both among health-conscious customers. For anybody in the health and fitness business, the busiest months of the year are January...

Showcase: Land Rover G4 Challenge.
March 24, 2006... A gruelling sports contest strengthens Land Rover's international image as an adventure brand, writes Lorraine Francisco. The quiet, unassuming town of Ledbury in Herefordshire is not the first location that springs to mind when you think...

Profile: Peter Cowie.
March 24, 2006... Peter Cowie is the new managing director of brand communications agency PCI Fitch. Mike Fletcher asks whether his advertising background could help him to raise the industry's profile and perhaps even redefine what constitutes a live event. ...

Event Management: The view from the frontline.
March 24, 2006... Claire Bond quizzes three managing directors about key issues facing the event management industry, with questions about procurement teams, pitching, recruiting new talent... and describing what they actually do. Is the relationship...

Innovative stands: Effective? You be the judge.(evaluation of exhibition stands )
March 24, 2006... Lorraine Francisco looks at five out-of-the-ordinary stands and asks the designers to critique each other's work. Client: Sky HD Agency: RPM Show: Best of Stuff Show, Novotel London West, Hammersmith, 4-6 November 2005 ...

Summer Venues: Dare to be different.
March 24, 2006... As summer parties grow ever more popular, the pressure is on organisers and venues to make their events really stand out. James Thornton reports. Summer event planning is at a critical stage in its development. While it's still young...

The Midlands: Days at the centre of it all.
March 24, 2006... Good transport links and modern venues make the Midlands an attractive prospect, writes Jane Stanbridge. Anyone deciding where to hold an event will first consider the destination: a major influence in attracting delegates. So what does the...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Spectra.
March 24, 2006... Wendy Moffatt has been promoted to chairman of the board at agency Spectra. She was previously managing director. Board director Paul Miller will now become managing director, and Jeremy Brown has been promoted to director of operations. Brown...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Toilet Hire UK.
March 24, 2006... Paul Barton has joined portable toilet supplier Toilet Hire UK's Haydock office as events director and Aaron Powell has been appointed as facilities manager. Barton will be in charge of business development within the events division, and...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Liverpool Arena and Convention Centre.
March 24, 2006... Kerrin Macphie has joined the Liverpool Arena and Convention Centre as head of sales. She will be responsible for all sales and marketing for the centre, which is due to open in 2008, when the city will be European Capital of Culture. She was...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Amsterdam RAI.(Hester Baljet appointed )(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Hester Baljet has been promoted as sales and marketing manager at Amsterdam RAI. She has worked for the venue for eight years in roles in account management and recently as sales and marketing executive for four years. Baljet is responsible for...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at P&MM.
March 24, 2006... Ben Hunt has been made business development manager at agency P&MM. He was previously sales director at Corporate Entertainer magazine and account director at agency the Motivaction Group.

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Reed Exhibitions UK.
March 24, 2006... Piers Kelly has been promoted to operations director at Reed Exhibitions UK, overseeing 25 shows across the newly integrated RX B2B and design and technology divisions. He was operations manager at Spearhead Exhibitions before Reed acquired it....

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Early Action Group.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Helen Waddingham has been appointed as project manager in the shell scheme and electrical department for contractor Early Action Group (EAG). She previously worked for the Bar Show's events department. At EAG, she will oversee the logistics and...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Excel London.(Helen Papagiannis has joined Excel London )(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Helen Papagiannis has joined Excel London as senior reservations executive, and will report to head of reservations Sara Maxted. Papagiannis will handle inbound enquiries and sell and account manage selected cultural, community and sporting...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Sledge.
March 24, 2006... Jeff Emerson will head up agency Sledge's film and video offerings across all its business. He will be in charge of looking at how Sledge delivers messages creatively and which platforms would be most suitable for each brand or concept.

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Space.
March 24, 2006... James Ralley has joined agency Space as account manager. James Williams has been appointed as senior account director. Ralley was previously at agency Arc Worldwide and Williams moved from agency Elvis.

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at EFM.
March 24, 2006... Nathan Fletcher has been appointed as project manager at event freight management specialists EFM's Los Angeles office. He has worked with artists such as Alanis Morissette and LeAnn Rimes supporting and planning schedules and handling all...

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at The George P Johnson Company.
March 24, 2006... Lesley Mason has joined agency The George P Johnson Company as senior account director. She previously headed up broadcaster Sky's account team at agency SBG & Finex Communications.

Movers & Shakers: Appointment at Sandown Park.
March 24, 2006... Jerry Kilby has joined racecourse venue Sandown Park as managing director. Kilby previously worked at Dubai's Nad Al Sheba Club as general manager since 2000.

Diary: Flesh pots ..(Naked Chef Calendar)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Everyone has heard of Jamie Oliver, the Naked Chef, but that is surely no excuse for a Naked Chef Calendar. Because unless you have a bizarre food fetish as yet unrecorded in the annals of medicine, the results, to be brutally frank, are...

Diary: Trade Secrets.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... The juiciest gossip from around the events and exhibitions industry that some people would rather you didn't know... 1. In the hole that he punched in his office wall, who does EC&O chief executive Anthony Lyons keep a photo of? 2....

Diary: Dem wascally wabbits ..
March 24, 2006... If you've ever wondered about hiring a bunny girl (for entirely legitimate reasons) and don't have access to Hugh Hefner at the Playboy Mansion in Bel Air, look no further than thebunnygirls.co.uk, where you can take your pick of dancers,...

Diary: Who yer callin' ugly, like ..(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Type 'Peter Beardsley' into Google and the first site to come up is uglyfootballers.com. But since beauty is only skin deep, allegedly, Newcastle Gateshead Convention Bureau enlisted the Toon Army hero to join its stand on 21 February...

Diary: Red alert ..(Fisher Productions)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... At last, they've done it. After 62 days and 2,937miles, Charlie Fisher, founder of the agency Fisher Productions, has finished the Atlantic Rowing Race with his erstwhile companion, the Mirror photographer Phil Harris . They lost out to...

Diary: Step to it ..
March 24, 2006... It's time that canape fans stopped feeling guilty about stuffing their faces at events. Agency BBL Event Management has worked out that, on average, event co-ordinator Laura Andrews walks 16,000 steps at an event, which is 6,000 more than the...

Diary: Please do not swear.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Diary extends its sympathies to Stage Electrics, the agency that supplied lighting for the finale of this year's Celebrity Big Brother. Hopefully the illuminated big-screen image of cosmetic surgeons' favourite Pete Burns didn't frighten...

Event Solutions: Gamble acquisition delivers high-profile clients to Wraith.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Portable catering equipment hire supplier Gamble has been sold for pounds 4m to Wraith, a UK provider of flexible accommodation units. Leicester-based Gamble employs 80 staff and has supplied kitchens to events across the UK such as the...

Event Solutions: Owen Brown renews Ascot contract.(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... GL Events Owen Brown has renewed a contract with Ascot Racecourse to provide temporary hospitality structures for the Royal Ascot Meeting for the next three years. The deal includes the supply of triple and double-decker structures,...

Event Solutions: Partnership offers tickets via mobiles.(Live Nation)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Mobile communications firm Nokia has teamed up with music promoter Live Nation to launch a live music information and ticketing service for consumers. Ticketrush.co.uk offers fans the chance to buy tickets to gigs, events and festivals via...

Event Solutions: Baconinflate debuts its Lite range at Excel.(Baconinflate has launched a lightweight range of exhibition)(Brief article)
March 24, 2006... Inflatable structure supplier Baconinflate has launched a lightweight range of exhibition structures designed for indoor environments. The Lite range was first seen at Toy Fair 06, held from 25-28 January at Excel London, where it was used...

Event Solutions: Melville brings out recyclable carpet range.
March 24, 2006... Supplier Melville Exhibition & Event Services has teamed up with carpet manufacturer Sommer Needlepuch to launch a recyclable carpet for exhibition organisers. It is made from polypropylene and polyethylene and is 100% sustainable,...

Event Solutions: Shining across The Square Mile.
March 24, 2006... Agency Cake Media teamed up with projection company Creative Media Technology (CMT) to launch the Motorola SLVR on 31 January. CMT produced projections onto five City financial institutions from the roof of the Royal Exchange in the heart of...

Event Solutions: Supplier Showcase - Live gigs and stadium tours.
March 24, 2006... If it wasn't for the expertise of suppliers, live music spectaculars would be impossible. Adam Woods looks at the top gigs of recent months and talks to the people the big names turn to when they're putting on a show. OASIS, CARDIFF...

Event Solutions: Focus on - Big events, smallest rooms.(Toilet Hire United Kingdom)
March 24, 2006... It sounds like a dirty job, but companies that hire out toilets provide a vital service, writes Adam Woods. The quality of the portable toilets is never likely to be the main memory visitors take away from an outdoor event, but poor...