Because so many tradeshow attendees are involved in business-travel planning, EIBTM 25 will extend the show profile beyond the meetings-and-events industry this year to incorporate business travel with a specialist exhibitor pavilion on the show floor and a stream of dedicated education sessions provided by the Association for Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE).
Post-show research following last year’s EIBTM confirmed that 57 percent of international hosted buyers who attended indicated that they also organize business travel. The new business travel pavilion at EIBTM will provide a dedicated meeting area for exhibitors to showcase their products to visitors and hosted buyers with a responsibility and proven budgets for corporate and business travel. Plus, there will be bite-size education sessions within the same area that will be free to attend.
“The incorporation of business travel to EIBTM is a logical extension to the current show profile,” said Graeme Barnett, EIBTM event director, Reed Travel Exhibitions. “We are very excited about the new possibilities and increased return on investment that it will deliver for our exhibitors already operating in this field as well as introducing new specialist buyers and suppliers to the event.”
EIBTM has formed a strategic partnership with ACTE, a nonprofit organization serving more than 60,000 travel executives from around the globe. ACTE will deliver educational content at EIBTM with a dedicated seminar stream focused on professional corporate-travel management for all of those involved in the business travel industry.
“This collaboration is extremely timely as business travel and meetings continue to converge. Face-to-face meetings are vital to business success and a healthy economy. Executives must travel to network and push forward initiatives,” said Ron DiLeo, executive director, ACTE. “Through this partnership, ACTE is pleased to bring its unique level of knowledge, insight and expertise to Reed Travel Exhibitions, increasing educational deliverables to the meetings industry.”
EIBTM 2012 is scheduled from Nov. 27 through Nov. 29 in Barcelona, Spain. More information on the event is available online at www.eibtm.com.
