Birmingham voted favourite UK regional venue for business tourism events
BIRMINGHAM is the UK’s most popular destination outside London for corporate conferences and events, according to the seventh annual British Meetings & Events Industry Survey (BMEIS).
The business tourism survey, based on the buying tendencies of nearly 500 British event organisers from the corporate and not-for-profit sectors, revealed that Birmingham was the preferred choice outside the capital for the seventh consecutive year.
Birmingham remains ahead of city rivals Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow as the most used regional destination for events. The 2015/16 survey also highlighted that access, location and value for money were the most important factors for industry professionals when choosing a location.
In 2015, Meet Birmingham – the city’s official business tourism programme – attracted and supported more than 20 events from the region’s best performing business sectors, resulting in a £36m economic boost. These included Automotive News Europe and the IBMS Biomedical Science Congress.
Emma Gray, director of marketing services for Marketing Birmingham, which operates Meet Birmingham, said: “Birmingham has established itself as a welcoming and respected events destination for local, national and international organisers, highlighted by the latest rankings of this influential, industry-wide survey.
“To build on this success, the city has invested on unprecedented scale to further improve its infrastructure and connectivity for business tourism visitors. Many landmark developments – such as New Street station – have come to fruition in 2015.
“During the coming 12 months, we will be capitalising on this momentum and ambition by encouraging more organisers to experience Birmingham’s offer.
“This includes a particular focus on hosting more events linked to the region’s sectoral strengths, in areas such as advanced engineering and life sciences.”
