Inaugural New Zealand Business Events Week aims to elevate sector

New Zealand’s first Business Events Week launches 18 September 2023 with the Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA) Annual Conference in Marlborough, followed by policy and business forums in Wellington and Auckland. Spearheaded by peak industry body BEIA, New Zealand Business Events Week has been developed as a platform to elevate the importance of the sector to New Zealand. It includes five days of meetings, forums, seminars and awards attended by over 300 industry delegates. Gobal business events experts and international strategists are joining the local professionals to throw a spotlight on the sector’s future legacies and opportunities. BEIA chief executive, Lisa Hopkins says business events are proving an economic powerhouse for New Zealand. “The global business events industry, which is valued at US$1.6 trillion, is now in full recovery mode and New Zealand is set to attract high quality events to our shores that will benefit our economy, society, culture, and environment,” she says. “Our industry has come of age with new world-class infrastructure including two new convention centres, Te Pae Christchurch and Tākina Wellington, and the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) in Auckland set to open in 2025,” Hopkins says. Business events is currently Tourism New Zealand’s fourth most valuable visitor market – after Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Keynote conference speaker, Senthil Gopinath, CEO of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), will be focusing on the global view and opportunities on the world stage. Strategic expert, Martin Sirk will be challenging ‘business as usual’ thinking at the conference and forums throughout the week. He is the former CEO of ICCA.