On Saturday 9th March, the first day of the International Furniture Fair Singapore (IFFS), a joint venture between IFFS and DMG Events, The Hotel Show Asia in 2014, was announced.
The event will build on the existing hospitality offering at IFFS – The Hospitality Show, conference and awards – to establish a new event, concurrent with IFFS 2014, focused on the hospitality, hotel and tourism sectors in the Far East. DMG Events already manages The Hotel Show in Dubai, the 14th edition of which will take place in September.
“Now is the right time to focus on and expand on the hospitality segment of our shows, and we believe that this joint venture created the best synergy for us to realise our goal,” says Ernie Koh, chairman of IFFS organiser IFFS Pte. “With the hospitality sector booming in Asia, we anticipate that our visitors will have greater need of a 360-degree solution for designing and sourcing interiors and fittings.
“Our vision with The Hotel Show Asia is to bring in more international exhibitors to feed the growing appetite of visitors for both regional and international content with a design focus. We believe it will serve the needs of the market, which are expanding and evolving. As the majority shareholder, IFFS Pte will handle sales in ASEAN and Asia, and fulfil the operations and marketing functions, while DMG Events will manage international sales.”
The joint venture was announced at a press conference at IFFS. It was announced that the show will be a 10,000m2 exhibition that will take place between 9-12th March 2014. According to senior vice-president (design) for DMG Events, Mike Allsopp: “The profile of The Hotel Show Asia will be identical to that of the Dubai show, and split into, essentially, four sections – technology, outdoor and spa, operating equipment and supplies, and interiors. The show will target hotel general managers, developers, designers, specifies and architects.
“We’ve got a great building block in the Hospitality Show that already exists,” he continues, “and the collaboration very much sits within our vision for DMG Events. “Our position in Dubai as a hub gives us unique access to markets, and will allow us to move quickly.
“This is our first major venture in Asia, and we look to see it through quickly and strongly. The ASEAN region is looking particularly strong, and we are very confident that we can make a success of it.”
Pictured are IFFS chairman and president of SFIC Ernie Koh, and senior vice-president of design for DMG Events Mike Allsopp.