This year is shaping up to be one of best in recent history for Thailand, having secured and hosted a record number of international exhibitions.
In total, 22 international exhibitions held in Thailand during 2018-2019 were certified by UFI – The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry.
This year, Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) also supported and won bids for 17 new international exhibitions, which is a record for the bureau.
TCEB senior vice president – business Nichapa Yoswee said Thailand’s position in the ASEAN region is catching the attention of foreign event organisers.
“New trends are emerging where international organisers are utilising Thailand as a gateway to the ASEAN region,” she said.
“They are also keen to explore the many business opportunities provided by the Thai government’s Thailand 4.0 – EEC (Eastern Economic Corridor) initiative, which is considered ASEAN’s largest in terms of investment values and development potential.”
TCEB attributes its record performance partly to its 360 Degree Exhibition Success campaign.
The ‘ASEAN+6 Privilege’ element of the campaign assists business missions in bringing trade visitors from ASEAN+6 countries, including China, to Thailand for business meetings during exhibitions held in the country.
Recently TCEB confirmed 250 trade visitors from Vietnam for business meetings at trade shows on food and agriculture, construction, infrastructure, health, retail, lifestyle and automotive events. It also confirmed 70 trade visitors from Myanmar for business meetings at trade shows on medical and pharmaceutical, food processing and packaging, retail, logistics, sports and tourism.
The business events pipeline
This year sees Thailand hosting the 86th UFI Global Congress in Bangkok, which will welcome more than 400 global exhibition industry leaders.
New events that are returning for the second consecutive year in 2019 include CEBIT ASEAN Thailand, Bangkok Beauty Show (health tourism) and Medical Devices ASEAN (integrated medical service).
In the pipeline, TCEB is also eyeing an additional 22 events, including three digital events, two food events and two events each on energy, smart devices and logistics.
Find out more about what’s new in Thailand here.
