Meet Birmingham, the official business tourism programme for the city, is marking the 30th birthday of its Convention Bureau (BCB) by launching its new 2012 Conference Guide and taking its strongest ever selection of partners to this year’s International Confex, the UK’s leading conference for event organisers.
The event, taking place from 6-8 March at its new home ExCeL London, will see Conference Aston, Edgbaston Stadium, Hotel La Tour, The Belfry, the ICC and venuebirmingham join Meet Birmingham to showcase the city, Solihull and the Black Country as a top conference and events destination.
The Meet Birmingham Conference Guide 2012, which will be unveiled during the three-day exhibition, provides a comprehensive listing of the facilities and services on offer in the UK’s top events location outside London.
Established in 1982, BCB has offered unrivalled assistance to event organisers throughout its 30 years, providing an award-winning Event Support Package. Notable highlights in the past decade include the 100th Rotary International Convention in 2009, which brought around 20,000 people to Birmingham, while in 2003 BCB booked 10,000 rooms for the International Exhibition of Textile Machinery, the largest exhibition of its kind in the world.
Ian Taylor, Commercial Director at Marketing Birmingham, the city’s strategic marketing partnership which operates Meet Birmingham and BCB, said:
“2012 marks another significant year for our business tourism sector, with the launch of our new Meet Birmingham Conference Guide and BCB celebrating 30 years of offering one of the most comprehensive event support packages in the UK. The year will culminate in our eighth party political conference since 2008 when the Conservative Party visits in October.
“Confex is one of the best trade shows in the industry calendar and we believe that this year sees our most varied selection of partners. From prestigious sporting settings and impressive academic facilities, to a truly world class venue and one of the city’s newest hotel developments, Meet Birmingham’s stand partners are a reflection of the enviable offering that the city boasts, as it strives to remain the destination of choice in the events world.”
Meet Birmingham’s stand partners at Confex include the ICC, which has hosted events for all sizes of audience in its 11 flexible halls and 10 premium meeting rooms for over 20 years.
Adding an academic flavour to the line-up are Conference Aston, offering two purpose built conference, hotel and event venues in Birmingham city centre for up to 235 delegates, and venuebirmingham, which celebrates the opening of the brand new Bramall Music Building in 2012, at the heart of the University of Birmingham’s campus.
Proving that the region is in a league of its own when it comes to sporting venues, Meet Birmingham will also be joined by Edgbaston Stadium, whose £32 million Pavilion redevelopment has transformed it into one of the leading conference, banqueting and exhibition settings in the Midlands, and The Belfry, well-versed in staging world-class events in its 550 acres of English countryside, having hosted golf’s Ryder Cup on an unprecedented four occasions.
Birmingham’s newest venue Hotel La Tour promises to change the face of conferences and meetings in the city with a dedicated business floor and business lounge, nine flexible meeting spaces for up to 120 guests and 174 bedrooms and suites.
