Government Business

Leisure Industry Week (LIW), the UK’s largest and longest running trade show for out-of-home leisure operators saw an increase in attendance of almost 10 per cent to 13,986 (organiser’s statement – ABC audit pending) compared to last year’s event.
    
LIW brings together the public sector as well as commercial operators from the family attractions, licensing and entertainment, health, fitness and sport sectors every September at the NEC in Birmingham. LIW also incorporated Sports Development Week and the co-located National Licensed Business Show – the defining event for the licensed trade.

New products on display
This year’s event hosted more than 450 exhibitors and 20 special feature areas and education programmes featuring some of the biggest names in sport and leisure. There were hundreds of products on view, including scores of new product launches - from small wrist-band personal alarms to an inflatable play structure the height of a two-storey building.
    
Show director Jonny Sullens commented: “This year’s LIW was the biggest it’s been for a decade, featuring over 200 new exhibitors, and with stand bookings for next year’s event already representing 85 per cent of this year’s show, plans are underway to make LIW 2008 (September 23-25, NEC) an even bigger and better extravaganza embracing everything the busy leisure manager and operator needs.”
    
The 2007 show - held 25-27 September - was buzzing throughout the three days with attendees and delegates across the management ranks of the leisure industry packing out the show floor, seminar theatres and special features.

Special feature areas
The special feature areas included the Vittel Sports Arena, the 10m Astral Sky Pool, the Equip Line Live Kitchen, the Lucozade Hydro Active Fitness Arena, the Youth Motivation Zone, the Leisure 2.0 Technology Showcase, the Wine Tasting Theatre, the Real Ale Pavilion and the Future Sport Pavilion, all of which had seminars, workshops and live demonstrations running live throughout the show.
    
Ex-Arsenal and England footballer, now kid’s fitness champion, Ian Wright was given a standing ovation by the hundreds of LIW delegates crammed into the Sports Arena after his impassioned plea to the industry to assist in the mission to get our kids and young people more active and fight the obesity crisis facing the UK.
    
Crowds also thronged to listen to leisure industry pioneer David Lloyd, Sport England boss Jennie Price and former Football Association spokesman David Davies. Meanwhile, many exhibitors wowed the crowds of operators with special events, including Technogym, which used LIW to announce its winning of exclusive Official Supplier status to the 2008 Beijing Olympics with Olympians Sir Steve Redgrave and James Cracknell starring in their heart-pumping show.

Praise for the event
Amid the buzz of the show, exhibitors and operators right across the show floor and across all market sectors reported robust trading. Graham Bertrand, managing director of PTE, summed it up best: “We thought last year’s LIW was back to its very best, but this year’s show surpassed even our own very high expectations. LIW yet again delivered an excellent, quality audience of serious potential buyers.
    
He continued: “LIW is absolutely key to our sales and marketing efforts as it should be for anyone who is serious about delivering quality products to this industry.”
    
Visitor Chris Andrews, managing director of Personal Touch Fitness, a company that manages corporate fitness centres, said she went to the show to investigate fitness equipment, sports clothing and fitness management systems, as well as cardio theatre expertise – “and I found it all”.

High-tech attractions
Meanwhile, after a tough summer of trading due to the poor weather, the attractions industry operators were at LIW in force looking for exciting products to take back to their venues and attractions sites.
    
New technology always excites attractions operators and nowhere was this more evident than on the Simworx stand, which housed a live 4D cinema. “The show has gone superbly well. I thought last year was good, but this year has been even better – in fact, this could be the most successful event we’ve ever attended compared to this event or any other in the industry…anywhere in the world”, said Terry Monkton, Simworx managing director.
    
And first-time exhibitor, Shuffleboard Europe signed its first order within the first couple of hours of the show opening: “We were besieged by serious enquiries from hotels, leisure centres, local councils, country clubs and holiday parks,” said a delighted Peter Davis.

Catering and hospitality
The catering and hospitality section of LIW was one of the busiest areas on the show floor throughout and a number of first-time exhibitors were bowled over by the response from eager trade buyers.
    
None more so than Nick Khalifey, director of the Metropolitan Coffee Company: “This is our first time here and it’s been brilliant! I thought it might be tough to generate leads in a leisure show, but we’ve been inundated. It’s been surprisingly impressive and we’ve been blown away – real genuine people on our stand, none of them time-wasters.”
    
Indeed, such was the success of the show’s attractions industry section that the Play Providers Association reported an initial 25 per cent increase in membership gained solely at LIW! “As usual the show has been brilliant for us. It’s our 15th year and it just gets better and better. This is a no-miss event as far as we’re concerned!” said regular indoor play equipment supplier David Taylor, of Taylor-Made Equipment.
    
Visitors to this area of the show had a profitable time, too: “We came to look at fairground and corporate entertainment products, and have had a very good day,” reported Alfie and Amy Gregory of AG Amusements Hire after a satisfying visit to LIW.
    
The centrepiece to the catering section of the show was the spectacular Equip Line Live Kitchen, which was full to capacity for each demonstration. Jacki Walker, Equip Line’s managing director, was clearly delighted with the response from operators. “We’ve been extraordinarily busy and have generated at least 200 leads for our equipment. We’ve had a terrific response to the demonstrations, with the pub lunches and creative catering for kids sessions being the most popular.”

Sports Development Week
Meanwhile, Sports Development Week (SDW) at LIW received top score from happy exhibitors and attendees alike with SDW having quickly established itself as the must-attend event for the sports industry.
    
With the focus on participation, infrastructure and performance in sport, thousands of professionals involved in local authority, voluntary, school and performance sport flocked to the exhibition, the various seminar and workshop programmes as well as the spectacular swimming pool and sports arenas.
    
“The co-location of SDW is a unique opportunity for those dedicated to increasing participation to catch up with best practice and learn from each other to capitalise on the fantastic opportunities for sport and leisure that lay ahead,” said Richard Millard, client relations and sports development director at DC Leisure.
    
Of the 26 suppliers exhibiting at SDW for the first time, 24 have already booked to return for SDW 2008 after all reported excellent trading with the public, private and education sectors at the show.
    
Another official Olympic Games supplier, Mondo, could not have been more delighted with the quantity and quality of the buyers at SDW: “We’ve seen a large number of key buyers and sporting bodies who were very interested in the Mondo brand, which we know will convert into new business. As the official supplier of the athletics track and basketball courts at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, next year is a very important year for us and SDW will be a very important event in our calendar to promote our partnership at the Olympics. We’ll definitely be back at next year on a bigger stand.” said Mondo’s Craig Jack.

National Licensed Business Show
LIW’s co-location with the National Licensed Business Show (NLBS) was a logical – and successful – choice, with busy leisure and licensed trade professionals being able to rub shoulders and appreciate the advantages of driving business (and bottom line benefits) even further with the subtle integration of food and drink into their leisure and family entertainment offering.
    
One happy NLBS exhibitor, Heather McRae of GMSMusic, commented: “The footfall has been fantastic – there hasn’t been five minutes when we’ve not been totally busy. I’ve been to other shows, but none where I’ve seen so many potential clients. At previous shows I’ve sold three of four systems, but I will have sold over 20 here at NLBS.”

LIW, incorporating Sports Development Week, is co-located with the National Licensed Business Show and will be held at the Birmingham NEC on 23-25 September 2008. The event is supported by industry-wide trade associations including Fitness Industry Association, British Association of Leisure Parks, Piers and Attractions and the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers.

For more information
Visit www.liw.co.uk for details.