ICC Wales secures £2.1m in Autumn bookings

Following a record-breaking summer for new enquiries and confirmed business, International Convention Centre Wales (ICC Wales) reports securing a further £2.1m (US$2.78m) in new business during September, October and November 2021. Since September’s reopening, when business events were permitted to return in Wales, the venue received 222 new enquiries worth a potential £18.5m. It also confirmed 53 events worth £2.1m, including the Welsh leg of Great British Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood’s live tour and the British Universities’ International Liaison Association’s 2022 annual conference. ICC Wales has also secured a three-year contract as the host venue for Comic Con Wales, which usually attracts some 5,000 attendees. The venue said the 53 events will bring an anticipated 54,000 event attendees to the region, with an estimated economic benefit to the local area of more than £52m. The venue’s 4,000sqm main hall staged its biggest exhibition to date for the annual conference of the Independent Schools Bursars’ Association last month. The two-day conference on 23-24 November hosted some 1,000 attendees, 170 exhibition stands and 400 delegates. The International Golf Travel Market, the Blas Cymru/Taste Wales showcase, and several concerts including a Tina Turner tribute and a Christmas on Broadway celebration in the 1,500-seat auditorium theatre also took place at ICC Wales. Danielle Bounds, sales director, ICC Wales, said: “Business is certainly back with a bang. Since August, we have had a mammoth number of enquiries and secured more than £3.6m worth of business. These results are a testament to our events offering and our alternative approach to delegate wellbeing, through our woodland walks and connection to nature, and our energising catering options.”