Celion Su and Jenny Chen

—— Over 280 exhibition industry leaders met in Kuala Lumpur

—— Asian exhibition industry debated new sources of revenue at UFI Asia-Pacific Conference

—— Digital technology were encouraged for more desirable events marketing results

—— Featured high-profile participants community and abundant networking opportunities` as always

More than 280 delegates from over 20 countries and regions attended the 13th UFI AsiaPacific Conference last week. The conference， UFIs second largest event， was held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on 1 and 2 March. As usual， the conference featured highprofile participants community and abundant networking opportunities. Industry leaders from around the region discussed and debated the future direction of the exhibition industry in Asia under the theme， “New Approaches， Different Angles”. Keynote speaker， Dato Sri Idris Jala， CEO of Pemandu， provided a compelling overview of the on-going transformation of the Malaysian economy. UBM Asias Wolfram Diener shared his experiences managing UBMs highly successful portfolio of jewellery exhibitions and the geo-cloning strategy behind those events.

Quan Yu from Alibabas Ant Financial discussed how digital payments are reshaping the way business is conducted in China. The conference also included a session with Talk2 Medias Matt Pearce who shared his views on opportunities in the B2C exhibition segment， as well as a venue panel starring Aloysius Arlando （Singex）， Loy Joon How （IMPACT） and Aage Hansen （ICE） who debated future sources of income for venues in Asia.

Atul Todi， Co-Founder & CEO of 10times observed that effective exhibition marketing required the right timing， content highly attractive to the audience and their preferred ways of communication. Stephanie Selesnick from International Trade Information Inc. explored the opportunities for Asian venues and how organizers could best tap into the U.S. market as it increasingly looks beyond its borders for growth and expansion.

The UFI Asia-Pacific Conference featured two days of networking and learning as well as an Educational Forum， held on 28 February， which attracted nearly 50 delegates. The theme of the Educational Forum was“HR Managers as Business Partners”. Other onsite activities included a members meeting for UFIs Asia-Pacific Chapter led by the new Chapter Chair， David Zhong； an Association Committee meeting chaired by UFIs CEO， Kai Hattendorf； a Welcome Reception for all delegates held at Kuala Lumpurs newest venue， MiTEC； city tours and much more besides.

“The initiative in having the 13th UFI AsiaPacific Conference here in Malaysia is in line with the governments aspiration to position Malaysia as a preferred Business Events or MICE hub and a choice destination in the region，” said YB Dato Seri Mohamed Nazri Bin Tan Sri Abdul Aziz， Minister of Tourism and Culture of Malaysia， at a reception for participants.

Kai Hattendorf， UFIs CEO， stated： “The conference highlighted the potential for further growth in the exhibition industry in the Asia-Pacific region. I am pleased to see that UFIs regional flagship event is connecting industry leaders from all over， leading to new collaborations， and opening up business opportunities.”

This years UFI Asia-Pacific Conference was hosted by the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau （MyCEB） and supported by the Malaysian Association of Convention& Exhibition Organiser and Suppliers（MACEOS）. It was also supported by UFIs Diamond Sponsors： the Thailand Convention& Exhibition Bureau （TCEB） and Global Experience Specialists （GES）. A wide range of local， Malaysian sponsors also backed the event. This was the second time that UFI has held this event in Malaysia. The previous time was in 2009. Next year， the UFI Asia-Pacific Conference will take place in Tokyo （Japan） on 14 and 15 March.