Travel Think Tank

Hopes rather than hurdles

At the recently concluded B2B exhibition TravelWorld 2010, held in Mumbai, Express TravelWorld held a think-tank to discuss 'The Future of MICE: Hopes and Hurdles'. The knowledge-packed session consisting of renowned panellists shared their thoughts on this lucrative segment, reports Chetan Kapoor

It is well known that the growth in the world's economy is directly proportional to growth in travel, and more precisely, business travel. As the world economy grew over the past few years, so did the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) segments. Driven by corporates, it is no surprise that the MICE market is highly lucrative attracting both, quantitative and qualitative travellers.

At a recently held think-tank in Mumbai on 'The Future of MICE: Hopes and Hurdles', Express TravelWorld invited the following industry experts to discuss the road ahead for this segment of travel:

• Om Prakash, director, In Orbit Tours
• Rajeev Kohli, vice chairman, Indian Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) and joint managing director, Creative Travel
• Naveen Rizvi, assistant vice president, Integrated Conference & Event Management
• Carl Vaz, managing director, Charson Advisory
• Sushil Bhatt, CEO, Forvol International Services
• Sudhir Patil, director, Kesari Tours
• Sonu Shah, coordinator - MICE, Mileage Communications, Representative - India, Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Growing clout

Trade exhibitions form a strong component of MICE. However the attitude towards Indians hasn't always been the same, observed Prakash. He pointed out, "Thirty five years ago, leisure travellers were permitted to carry only US$ 8 when they flew with carriers other than Air India. In case they chose to fly with the national carrier, the travellers were allowed to carry US$ 100 and with the foreign exchange being scarce then, it was provided to only very select segments. Companies had to apply with the Reserve Bank of India, which would examine accounts and the entire process would take few months." This coupled with license restrictions often led to negative experiences with Indian visitors and the exhibitors would only reluctantly share brochures with Indians. "The Indians weren't 'business-worthy' until 1992 when India's economy was liberalised. Today, an Indian visitor is highly respected and valued as we are considered to be high spenders in both, leisure and business," he added.

Incidentally, while the Indian outbound MICE continues to grow and attract the attention of several NTOs, the inbound market for MICE hasn't really kicked off. Inadequate infrastructure and visa-related problems are amongst the key obstacles to making India a MICE-friendly destination. Kohli remarked, "If we take into perspective a larger picture, tourism isn't really considered to be a very important component here unlike in Dubai, Thailand or Hong Kong. Constantly, there are rules with unperceived consequences - like the recent two-month cooling off period for visas - which make it frustrating and hampers our business."

Forward thinking

Given the vastness of India, often a centralised approach to marketing the destination may not address regional needs or inadequacies individually. More so, with tourism being a state-subject having a regional approach to attract domestic and inbound MICE can make a big difference. "Although we have the ICPB, we need state-wise convention and promotion bureaus as the central system cannot reach far. Mumbai is a brand in itself and is very events dominated and needs a different approach than Delhi. In India, tourism has more focus in Delhi but every city and region has its own functioning-style and culture. If there are more (regional) convention and promotion bureaus, all the issues will be more focussed," Rizvi said. On similar lines, Bhatt added, "In reality, are we, as a country ready for MICE? We don't have exhibition centres like those in Germany. Also, no city with a convention centre can accommodate over 3,000 people or host multiple-exhibitions simultaneously. MICE is lucrative for everyone, but first there needs to be adequate infrastructure."

Furthermore, even those in charge of promoting tourism must be trained so as to attract source markets for inbound MICE effectively, suggested Gursahani. He mentioned, "They must look at other destinations and host workshops and be proactive in their marketing to offer attractive pricing and rebates to the FMCGs, pharmaceutical and banking companies as inbound MICE is not even close to what outbound MICE is."

Overcoming bureaucracy

Bureaucracy even at the highest ranks makes opening up of avenues for promotion of tourism quite cumbersome. However, with its abundant natural beauty and historical sites and monuments, India could further strengthen its position in attracting MICE tourism by opening up its heritage sites for world-class conferences and meetings. Of course, due consideration must be taken in preserving these sites simultaneously and one of the means to do so would be through the revenue generated by the event.

While the ICPB has requested the Ministry of Tourism to open up few forts for such tourism, the Ministry of Culture has opposed such a move, informed Kohli. In order to get things moving in a positive direction, he asserted that there must be unity within the industry to lobby in a more powerful capacity. He stressed, "We often approach the bureaucrats/Ministry of Tourism in a position of weakness and until our industry goes together in equality and partnership, nothing will happen. The ICPB is 22 years old compared to the NASSCOM, which is half its age and we as an industry haven't gone together … we don't have a conference visa and visitors need to submit their balance sheets to visit India for MICE. What we need is (also) a strong bureaucrat to get things moving."

Obtaining visas for inbound visitors is also getting increasingly difficult with the recent security measures put in place by the Home Ministry. Overnight decisions of implementing new measures such as the aforementioned cooling-off period and also submission of a birth certificate to obtain visas can lead to tourists shying away from India. Patil noted, "Clarity of visas is very important for any consultant and from the perspective of obtaining a visa, India is a very bad destination. More so, Mumbai being a gateway to India, the tourism industry including MahaTourism must work closely with Indiatourism."

Building blocks

Although there exists various restrictions to make India a MICE-friendly destination at present, interestingly various infrastructure projects across the country paint a vibrant picture for the future. Take Mumbai for example, in spite of the lack of appropriate MICE infrastructure, hotels like the Renaissance Mumbai Hotel & Convention Centre, The Grand Hyatt, the NSE Exhibition Grounds and the MMRDA Grounds have appealed to the MICE segment. Other projects such as the Hyderabad International Convention Centre, Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre in Srinagar and an upcoming 'mega-international convention centre' in Karnataka further make India an attractive MICE destination. Besides meetings, exhibitions and conferences, the incentives market in particular could be the most sought after segment given India's varied tourism offerings.

At a more holistic level, a suggestion of forming a consortium consisting of all stakeholders on the lines of those seen in Germany during conventions and exhibitions, could also prove to be a difference-maker in building India as an attractive MICE destination. "Agencies such as the exhibition organiser, government and municipal representatives, restaurant associations, banks, public transportation, etc could discuss what each will contribute to and serve the visitors in the city. We need to form such bodies besides decentralising tourism boards and having localised convention and promotion bureaus," opined Prakash.

Subsequently, even the brand communication of the Incredible India campaign should address India's intentions of attracting this segment. Vaz stated, "As a consultant I would advise that one must stop using the term 'MICE' and instead use 'business tourism' as it is rather confusing to build a promotional strategy for the former. India has done so well with its Incredible India campaign but it doesn't address business tourism, therefore putting it in a slot of being mystical. India's Ministry of Tourism must ponder about how to build on the existing image and lead the way in attracting business tourism."

India could also learn from its counterparts in this space such as, Dubai for its infrastructure, Thailand for creating a positive environment through subsidiaries and free visas, and even Hong Kong for its focussed approach on meetings and exhibitions. At the same time, while supporting infrastructure is developed in India, the stakeholders shouldn't be greedy from the get-go, felt Kohli. He pointed out, "For a young democracy, we have amazing infrastructure in Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, etc. As a destination we have enough size and infrastructure for people but what we cannot do, we shouldn't go after. Infrastructure should be used smartly and we at the ICPB train our members on various aspects including the means to save client's money."

He further suggested that tapping the domestic market for events could also be looked at seriously. "We don't have real shortage of infrastructure that we cannot really work with. India has come up in a large way and the Incredible India campaign has done a good job and business tourism is the best way to get (inbound) people during March."

In conclusion, there is not one particular approach - simplified visa process, building support infrastructure, friendly environment for MICE, etc - but a combination of all which y can work for India in attracting this segment of tourism. Business tourism, as popularly termed during the course of the forum could perhaps be an ideal way to hit two segments with one stone - business and tourism, therefore adding value not only to the visitors but also to the country's exchequer as a whole.

Quote Unquote

Om Prakash Director, In Orbit Tours "Today, an Indian visiting a foreign destination is looked at very seriously because they are among the highest spenders. A strong message needs to go out that we need a body like the Convention and Visitors' Bureau for every state. The tourism office needs to be decentralised. It is important to give allied members, in the tourism sector a platform to air their views."

Manoj Gursahani Chairman, Travelmartindia "We in India have no clue of what MICE is all about. The kind of progress, pricing and subsidies offered by international MICE players is phenomenal. We need to have state-wise convention promotion boards."

Sudhir Patil Director, Kesari Tours "Today, it has become more comfortable to organise MICE events in Hong Kong or Dubai. India is losing out on domestic and inbound business events. We need to have a single association and all issues are to be jointly addressed."

Rajeev Kohli Vice chairman, ICPB "India has infrastructure that is being underutilised. As a destination, we have enough space. We can do a lot with what we have and I think we've come a long way. The ICPB now has seven new members and is one of the most expensive associations today. I think MICE is the single best way to do business when leisure travel is down. Allowing cultural monuments to be opened up as a background for business events would be a step in the right direction. The industry needs a strong bureaucrat who does what he says."

Naveen Rizwi Assistant VP India, ICE "If you look at the statistics, on an average most of the MICE events that have taken place in India have a capacity of not more than 1000 and Mumbai is able to handle groups of this size. Mumbai is the gateway to India, but has never been presented at an exhibition. The city of Mumbai is a brand and needs to have a system to promote it in a focused manner. Why can't we have a Mumbai or a Goa Convention and Visitors' Bureau? A few weeks ago, Indiatourism interacted with the trade in Maharashtra for the first time, which is a good sign. "

Carl Vaz Director, DTCM & MD Charson Advisory "My advice to the industry is to stop using the word MICE, we need to start using the term business tourism. Most tour operators and agents are of the opinion that visa issues are a problem. But it is not always about visas. It is about infrastructure, convention halls, road access and convenient options. In the case of Dubai, its success lies in its infrastructure model. The success of Thailand wasn't just the free visa uptil March 2010. It was actually about creating a favourable environment and a successful brand image. India has created a brand image through the Incredible India campaign, however it does not address business tourism or other aspects, for example, fine dine. My suggestion is how we take the image created by Incredible India forward."

Sonu Shah Coordinator, MICE Representative India (HKTB) "Hong Kong Tourism Board has launched MEHK (Meetings Exhibitions Hong Kong) and has a separate budget allotted for this, through which we have been trying to tap corporates. Through our experience, we have seen that one of the main hurdles is air connectivity. We have seen a growth in combining and selling destinations for MICE."

Sushil Bhatt CEO, Forvol International Services "As a country, do we even have our exhibition and convention centres in