Informa Markets COO Mark Temple-Smith talks to Paul Colston about his company’s co-operation in Singapore and new post-Covid challenges and priorities:
Singapore has been at the forefront of coming up with solutions to trying to run events in person-again. How have your shows performed in the destination. And with Informa Markets' long presence in the dynamic island state, how do you view the opportunities for further growth?
Singapore is a global business hub, and we’re excited to be back running our business events there. We safely and successfully ran several events in Singapore in 2022, including the blockbusting Food & Hotel Asia event and its associated Horeca hotel and restaurant event. Although it was a little off cycle, participants reported a highly successful outcome.
Jewellery and Gem World (JGW) and Cosmoprof Asia also moved to Singapore for special editions this year. Informa Markets has a strong footprint in Singapore, alongside well-known brands in the food, maritime, energy and technology sectors.
We’ve been pleased that the recovery of our events in 2022 has been as strong as it has across Informa Markets globally, including in Singapore, which remains a key city and partner for us in Asia.
At Informa Markets we have two priorities, all of which are supported by being able to host in and partner with great cities, like that of Singapore. Those are:
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- Ensure our business events continue to serve our customers as effectively as they did before the pandemic by constantly improving the productivity and experience for our customers
- Becoming an increasingly sustainable business, and helping the industries we serve accelerate their own path to sustainable business practices
Both of the above are intrinsically linked.
We know from talking to our event participants that meeting face to face at business events is irreplaceable. The lack of face to face interaction with their own customers, both old and new, during the pandemic is something that really impeded their ability to do business effectively. But we also know that time is an increasingly valuable commodity, and that means our customers are really thinking about which experiences are most valuable, and justifying their participation in events in terms of time, money, and in a de-carbonising world potentially carbon expenditure, too. Something Singapore is also passionate about.
Business events are a very effective way to consolidate business travel, and our participants intuitively know that. But what they tell us is that they hope to gain far more from an event than simply business connections. Most importantly they expect a great – and frictionless experience. Everything from pre-registering to the onsite catering through to hotel accommodation. They expect us as the organiser to help them become more productive at an event. You could consider this as helping them remove some of the ‘chance’ from chance meetings, perhaps through the application of data and digital services. They also hope to gain personally as well as professionally, through building their own network, and education.
Attendees also say they would like an event to have a wider sense of community and purpose, beyond just transactional business. It’s an opportunity for common minded business leaders to meet and address common challenges
And finally, they just expect us as organisers to take care of making an event as sustainable as possible. That means reducing waste and carbon.
In order to address the final point, Informa introduced its Faster Forward programme. You can think of this as addressing carbon, reducing waste, and educating our customer communities.
How have you managed your relationships with the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and the exhibition venues on the island and what has impressed you about their approach?
Singapore has already made great progress in the reduction of carbon and waste. Our partners at Singexpo are already well advanced in creating a truly sustainable venue, everything from renewable power to the reduction of food waste. Together with our contractor partners, City Neon, Pico and Kingsman, we are making great progress towards reducing the amount of wastage from our events. These are all important initiatives
However, I’ll offer up one example of how we as event organisers have an opportunity to punch above our weight and play a role far more impactful than simply reducing our own footprint or introducing content to our events. One of the great advantages we have as organisers is our ability to convene industry markets at scale. That means we are in a unique position to bring together entire industries and facilitate the conversations that are needed to address the path of their own de-carbonisation strategy. Through our exhibitions we are also able to introduce them to the suppliers and capability needed to execute that. This is increasingly an expectation our customers have of us, and why it’s so important that cities like Singapore are leading in this way.
Tell us about the partnership with STB and Singapore on the Sustainability Alliance, and why Singapore was selected for this initiative.
In October, Informa Markets signed a Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with STB and other key MICE players to promote sustainability strategies in the industry. Singapore was selected because of their dedication to the Singapore Green Plan, and we are very happy to be partnering with the STB and our industry partners in this way.
What other initiatives are you championing?
In addition to Faster Forward, we also have a well structured plan to add productivity and efficiency to the physical event experience through digital enhancements and the application of data. By using insight data, we are able to help our customers connect with their own target customers in a much more productive way, ensuring they make the most effective use of the event. This is something that we are looking to do more of in Asia.
We’ve been well supported by STB and our own partners, peers and suppliers in the country, and we’ve been heartened by their forward thinking vision, led by STB and the ambitious Singapore Green Plan 2030.
As a business hub dependent upon regional travel, it’s important that we continue to partner to ensure a successful, and sustainable future for all business events in the country, not just Informa’s.
How do you rate Singapore’s knowledge base?
Singapore had a very robust approach to managing the pandemic. That put them into a position to emerge quickly and faster than other countries. We found they were very clear all the way through. What was expected in terms of safety and then the conditions we could run under.
At the recent Asian CEO summit I was struck by what a difference a year makes. Everything is back to normal.
Singapore is very clear where it wants to go in future and wants to build back in a better way, although China’s approach is causing the industry some challenges with the lockdowns which does effect exhibitor confidence.
As for our Jewellery Show, we looked at alternatives and Singapore was best option. In terms of value it tends to show through as a premium destination. It also shows in sustainability and that premium for Singapore tag determines a different set of criteria to run events.
We’ve seen a robust recovery in Singapore and, indeed, around the world as regions are opening up. It has certainly been difficult for our customers to bring together their customers. A challenge that has not been addressed by other means.
Any tips for other organisers entering the Singapore market?
Work closely with STB which is well placed to advise with other stakeholders.
UFI and other associations have a new relevance coming out of pandemic. This is a more collaborative industry than one that went into the pandemic. We can now address some of the big challenges ahead.
