Why meet in Manchester?

Manchester was recognised by conference industry professionals as the ‘Best UK Destination’ in 2011 for its enviable track record and impressive business tourism product. The city’s present reputation follows just under two decades of investment in the conference sector by Manchester City Council; Manchester Central – the city’s flagship conference venue; and Marketing Manchester – the agency responsible for promoting the city on a national and international stage.

The recent focus has been dedicated to rebuilding and rebranding the area that is known as Petersfield – an area of historic potency within Manchester. St Peter’s Field, as the quarter was known in the 1800s, has always been the city’s primary meeting point. It was here in 1819 that a gathering of around 70,000 people demanding suffrage and reform to parliamentary representation resulted in the infamous Peterloo Massacre. 

MODERN MEETS HISTORIC
Today, the area is home to Manchester Central and The Bridgewater Hall, and over 850 four and five star bedrooms in The Hilton Manchester Deansgate, The Midland Hotel and The Radisson Edwardian Hotel. In addition to this, the city has over 2,500 hotel beds within a five minute walk of the historic quarter. The concentration of these facilities within a relatively compact area has made Manchester an appealing option to conference and event organisers.

Manchester Central is, without doubt, the jewel in the city’s crown. Recently refurbished to the tune of £30m, it has helped secure bigger and higher profile conferences and exhibitions that, in turn, attract more business.

Most important of all, it was the venue for the highly coveted political party conferences. Labour was the first to de-camp, holding their spring conference in the city in March 2004. Since then, Manchester has seen three Labour Party Annual Conferences (in 2006, 2008 and 2010) and their historic leadership election of 2007. The 2008 conference brought with it a £15m boost to the city-region economy and by 2010 it was worth an additional £500,000.

The Conservative Party held its first conference in Manchester for over 100 years in 2009 and came back for a second helping in October 2011. The party plans to return in 2013 and 2015 – it is estimated the deal will be worth in excess of £55m for the city-region economy.

HIGH PROFILE EVENTS
But it isn’t just the political parties that Manchester has to thank. The Society of American Travel Writers Annual Convention in 2007, The World Youth Student Travel Association in 2009, the four year hosting of The Chartered Institute of Personal Development’s Annual conference and exhibition, and the UNISON national conference in 2011 have all helped strengthen the city’s position as a world class conference destination. 

Manchester’s infrastructure and the international connectivity afforded to delegates is another of the city’s trump cards. Manchester Airport has no rival outside of London in terms of route network, capacity and facilities. And Virgin Trains’ transformation of the West Coast Main Line service – with trains making the two hour, seven minute journey every 20 minutes at peak – has brought Manchester closer to the capital than ever before.

Manchester has become well-enough established on the European scene to pitch itself against many of the continent’s established conference cities. There are also more than enough unique selling points from which the city’s marketers can pick to secure new business.

THE MANCHESTER HERITAGE
The industrial heritage and sports pedigree for which Manchester is best known around the world has been put to work. Demand for hire of venues like Manchester United’s ‘Theatre of Dreams’ and Manchester City’s re-named Etihad Stadium is impressive. Equally, the Neo-gothic Manchester Town Hall and the award-winning Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI) are two of the city’s business tourism big hitters.

Like many cities, Manchester also has an established Conference Ambassador Programme – a network of academics and business figures that help attract their industry events to the city. And with the largest student population in Europe studying at four universities across the city-region, it’s no surprise that Manchester has more than its fair share of lecturers, doctors and professors willing to step forward and help promote the city.

Keeping in line with this, the University of Manchester has recently launched a £60m project which will see a new hotel, conference venue, and executive education centre at Manchester Business School – the UK’s largest campus-based business and management school. The first phase will see the development of a new four star hotel and conference centre. The hotel will provide a base for the numerous overseas visitors to the business school, as well as adding to the high end hotel space in and around Manchester.

TEAM OF SPECIALISTS
Manchester’s impressive business product wouldn’t be complete without its conference team who are internationally recognised as one of the UK’s leading conference and convention bureaus. They are specialised in event bidding, planning, marketing and client support. They offer a single point of contact for conference planners – meaning that a dedicated professional will be on hand from conference conception to completion. They can also help manage every event need, including: securing key speakers and civic receptions and liaising with other city stakeholders to deliver services such as city dressing and security. All in all, they provide key services any organiser would expect from a leading convention city.

LOOKING AHEAD
Manchester is set to welcome a number of national and international conferences in 2012. The Soccerex European Forum, Europe’s leading football business event, will return to the city for its third year on 28-29 March 2012. The event will provide unprecedented business opportunities for Europe’s football industry elite for two days of debate, networking and socialising.

The Chartered Institute of Housing Annual Conference and Housing Exhibition – the leading event for the UK housing sector – will take place in Manchester on the 12-14 June 2012. This event will bring the whole of the housing sector together – not for profit, local authority, private sector, commercial partners and suppliers – in one place to learn, improve and influence.

Following that, the European Nuclear Conference will take place at Manchester Central on the 9 – 10 December 2012. This is a networking event for scientists, nuclear industry representatives and policy makers, who consider and discuss ideas and innovations that will drive technological developments of the future. It is estimated to have an economic impact of £1m on the local economy.

Manchester will also play host to key sporting events in 2012. In advance of the Olympics the city will host two seminal basketball games when the Great Britain men and women’s squad play the US ‘dream team’s’ in July at the Manchester Evening News Arena. Furthermore, Manchester will host nine Olympic football games, including the semi finals and the opening game with the Great Britain team. 

FAST PACED DEVELOPMENTS
The city’s momentum shows no signs of slowing down. MediaCityUK – the new home for the BBC, ITV, Coronation Street, and the University of Salford is now in full swing. It features one of the biggest HD studio developments in Europe; 400 apartments; a Holiday Inn and a brand new tram stop in the heart of a spectacular five-acre piazza. The city can also look forward to the opening of the National Football Museum in 2012. With a strong commercial focus, the venue aims to engage the business sector by becoming a premier location for corporate events.

With world class venues, over 19,000 hotel bedrooms to suit all tastes and budgets, and one of the most impressive transport infrastructures in the UK, Manchester is best placed to accommodate a wide range of conferences and events.

For more information
www.visitmanchester.com/conference