Baltimore Chosen to be the Home of the Americas Incentive Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition - (AIBTM)
Reed Travel Exhibitions has announced today (7 October 2008) that it is to launch a new international trade show for the global meetings and incentive industry - the Americas Incentive Business Travel and Meetings Exhibition (AIBTM) to be held in Baltimore, Maryland from June 29 - July 1, 2010.
This new major event completes the company's established portfolio of ‘IBTM' exhibitions specifically serving the global meetings industry marketplace. AIBTM joins EIBTM in Barcelona, GIBTM in Abu Dhabi, and CIBTM in Beijing. The portfolio also includes AIME, Melbourne and the ICCA Congress Exhibition held in a different destination each year.
Paul Kennedy MBE, Group Exhibition Director of Reed Travel Exhibitions Meetings and Incentive Events commented: "Following a two year research and business development plan for AIBTM it was clear that there was a real need and demand for an Americas event that delivered domestic and international exhibitors and buyers.
"AIBTM will be based on the hugely successful EIBTM model and with our considerable expertise and reputation in the meetings sector in providing best business, best education and best networking - is highly targeted, matching exhibitors with quality Hosted Buyers and visitors with the power to ‘do business."
In choosing Baltimore to host an event that is set to become the Americas leading meetings event, Paul Kennedy added: "it was essential to find a city that had a first class venue with excellent on-site facilities, a variety of quality hotel stock, and a transport infrastructure which included airports that had extensive air routes to cater for the international audience arriving from all over Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Far East and of course North America."
"What impressed us most was the enthusiasm, desire and ability shown by the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association, The Convention Center, DMCs and hotels. We have made a terrific choice in Baltimore, which will host what must be considered the biggest fam trip the city will ever see. AIBTM is well and truly in good hands."
Speaking at the launch, Tom Noonan, President and CEO of the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association said: "This is a major coup for our city. We are delighted to have been chosen as the host city for AIBTM for at least the next five years, and look forward to working with Reed Travel Exhibitions Meetings and Incentive Events team led by Paul Kennedy. They are widely respected and have an international reputation in organising and running events for the meetings industry."
AIBTM will witness the first truly large-scale international Hosted Buyer program in the Americas enhanced by a substantial domestic Hosted Buyer and trade visitor population. Baltimore is superbly located to draw upon the world's largest concentration of meetings planners situated in the North East USA.
Leading industry figures have welcomed the launch:
Christian Mutschlechner, CEO Vienna Convention Bureau stated: "I am delighted that Reed Travel Exhibitions have launched AIBTM. Vienna will be exhibiting and I am sure we will be joined by all the major destinations around the globe."
Bruce M. MacMillan, President & CEO of Meeting Professionals International remarked: "Through events like EIBTM in Europe, GIBTM in the Gulf Region and CIBTM in China, Reed Travel Exhibitions has positioned itself as the global meeting and event industry marketplace leader and we look forward to extending our global partnership with them at AIBTM."
Martin Sirk, CEO, ICCA commented: "We're delighted to welcome the launch of AIBTM as a genuinely international meetings industry trade show in the USA, and feel certain that the ‘hosted buyer' business model which RTE uses for EIBTM and the rest of the portfolio will prove to be a big winner with this new event. I am certain there will be enthusiastic support for AIBTM by ICCA members from all regions of the world."
Dates for AIBTM from 2011 - 2014 are as follows:
2011 21-23 June
2012 19-21 June
2013 18-20 June
2014 17-19 June
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. AIBTM will form part of the RTE portfolio of Global Meetings and Incentives Events along with EIBTM (www.eibtm.com) GIBTM (www.gibtm.com), CIBTM (www.cibtm.com), AIME (www.aime.com.au and the ICCA Exhibition in association with ICCA Congress (www.iccaworld.com).
2. Reed Travel Exhibitions organise 13 events worldwide, including World Travel Market, Arabian Travel Market, EIBTM, Asia Pacific Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME), International Golf Travel Market, Top Resa, ICCA Exhibition, in association with the ICCA Congress, International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM), La Cumbre, City Break, China Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (CIBTM), Gulf Incentive Business Travel & Meetings (GIBTM) and Asia Luxury Travel Market (ALTM).
3. For further press information, please visit the Reed Travel Exhibitions' website on www.reedtravelexhibitions.com
4. Reed Exhibitions is the world's leading events organiser. In 2007 Reed brought together over six million industry professionals from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed events are held in 38 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific, and organised by 39 fully staffed offices.
5. Reed organises a wide range of events, including exhibitions,
conferences, congresses and meetings. Its portfolio of over 500 events serves 47 industry sectors, including: Aerospace & aviation, automobiles, building & construction, electronics, energy, engineering, entertainment, environment, food & hospitality, gifts, healthcare, IT, jewellery, life sciences & pharmaceuticals, property, manufacturing, medical education, packaging & converting, printing & visual communication, security, sports & recreation, travel.
6. Working closely with professional bodies, trade associations and government departments Reed ensures that each and every event is targeted and relevant to industry needs. As a result, many Reed events are market leaders in their field.
7. Reed Exhibitions is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a FTSE-100 company and world-leading publisher and information provider. The group employs more than 32,000 people, including approximately 20,000 in North America. In February 2008, Reed Elsevier reported revenues for 2007 of £4,584m/€6,693m.
AIBTM Website: www.aibtm.com
Reed Travel Exhibitions website: www.reedtravelexhibitions.com