Global Exhibitions Day: industry needs to promote its positive impact on UK trade

As the exhibition industry celebrates Global Exhibitions Day, a key focus for the NEC Birmingham in the coming months will be to promote the role of exhibitions in supporting business growth across domestic and international markets.

“We need to highlight the volume of trade which takes place at exhibitions,” said Ian Taylor, Managing Director, Conventions & Exhibitions, NEC Group. “In terms of homegrown UK businesses, hundreds of millions of pounds are exchanged. Our experience of the pandemic taught us a valuable lesson; we haven’t explained the business impact of exhibitions to the public in the way we need to. We are a physical marketplace, a positive force for UK PLC.”

Pre-pandemic, exhibitions generated £11 billion of business sales, contributing £5.4 billion of GDP and supporting 114,000 jobs.[1] As the exhibition industry recovers, a key focus for the NEC Birmingham will be to promote the opportunities for businesses in connecting with trading partners.

Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “I commend NEC Birmingham, and the whole of the UK exhibition industry, for their tireless work putting great British businesses rightfully in the spotlight. The UK is a world leader across industries from aerospace and health technology, to finance and IT, and telling those success stories to the world helps businesses to grow and create jobs across the country.

Next week, Nineteen Group launch Manufacturing & Engineering Week at the NEC Birmingham, developed closely with sector partners, including Make UK. The exhibition will be opened by Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.

“I look forward to flying the flag for the UK’s fantastic manufacturers at Manufacturing and Engineering Week at NEC Birmingham, which will be a prime example of how the exhibition industry supports British businesses, large and small,” said the Business Secretary.

Manufacturing and Engineering week takes place 7-10 June, bringing together a series of events that will showcase end-to-end manufacturing and engineering solutions.

“Whether you’re a developer offering the latest products in your field or a company looking for that extra advantage that world beating technology can offer, Manufacturing and Engineering Week is for you,” said Verity Noon, Marketing Director, Nineteen Group.

“Covering the full life cycle from design, to engineering, to manufacturing and maintenance, the event will bring so many innovative ideas and creative people together, it will help supercharge UK industry to meet its challenges and make the most of its opportunities.”

As part of the recovery from the pandemic, the NEC Birmingham hosted 96 exhibitions with 19,670 exhibitors from July ‘21 – April ’22.

[1]  : AEV Economic Impact Study 2019