Stuart, you’ve posted sold out signs for ICE 2023, what’s the actual size of the event?
Very few events sell out the entirety of ExCeL – I believe World Travel Market and the Clarion Events owned DSEI are two that do, with DSEI taking place every two years – so to achieve that landmark is a huge achievement.
What it means is that every square millimetre of ExCeL London comprising all of the exhibition halls on both the north and the south sides, every meeting room, every available space in the boulevard including the Platinum Lounge, which is where we host the world media has been taken. ICE exhibitors will occupy 41 halls with iGB Affiliate London occupying three halls.
In terms of square metres, ICE London will comprise 81,070 sqm (gross) which equates to 51,466 sqm (net). Net space refers to stands and feature areas whereas gross is the totality of the space including the aisles. Tese are record figures and exceed the previous best set in 2020, which saw ICE occupy 78,050 sqm (Gross) and 49,690 sqm (Net).
To fill the exhibition, are these new entrants or existing exhibitors growing their booths?
ICE London has always attracted a mix of stands from the substantial to the very modest booths taken by start-ups. One of the benefits of moving to ExCeL was the opportunity it gave businesses to represent their brands in a creative and dynamic way.
As well as providing a home for the industry’s major organisations, we have a proud track record of providing a platform for companies exhibiting for the first time, as well as for ambitious new start-ups. Our Pitch ICE programme offers up to 14 gaming entrepreneurs the opportunity to showcase their solutions and innovative approaches in front of industry investors and visitors attending ICE London.
Te successful companies secure a free of charge pod on the Pitch ICE Pavilion for the full three days of the show and a priceless opportunity to take to the ICE stage and pitch to potential investors. We have been providing start-ups with a gateway to industry investors and strategic partners since 2009, with many securing important investments and acquisition partners as a direct result of their pitch presentations.
Te show floor reflects industry trends such as the level of M&A activities, the impact Covid has had on businesses with some being slower to recover and others, sadly no longer trading as a result of lockdown(s). Te total number of exhibitors at ICE London in February will be 560 compared to 585 in 2020. Te number of
Stuart Hunter Managing Director - Gaming Clarion Events
“Every square millimetre of ExCeL London comprising all of the exhibition halls on both the north and the south sides, every meeting room, every available space in the boulevard including the
Platinum Lounge, which is where we host the world media has been taken. ICE exhibitors will occupy 41 halls with iGB Affiliate London occupying three halls.”
As an example, customer feedback from 2022 highlighted areas where new product discovery is of interest, including social gaming, poker and NFTs, so this helps instruct our commercial account managers to explore new brands that plug those gaps, rather than simply accommodating existing demand. Te ICE show floor has to reflect the needs of buyers and to have a balance covering all of the gaming verticals.
Is the show expected to break records from a visitor standpoint too? How are the pre- registrations currently looking? And how diverse geographically is the visitor catchment?
One of the major stand-outs relating to ICE and something that no other event can come close to emulating is the ability to attract visitors from every corner of the globe. In 2020, the number of countries represented hit 155 – I think the UN recognises 190. Tis doesn’t happen by accident. We commit resource and creativity into our marketing and comms activities and work closely with the community of b2b gaming media to maximise international visitation.
first-time exhibitors is 112 (141 in 2020), which represents 20 per cent of the total.
Which sectors have led the charge for more space, and how do you keep the balance right for the show?
Exhibitions are very similar to media channels in so far as both reflect what’s taking place in the market. Your advertisers will in all likelihood be the same organisations taking space on the ICE show floor. I have to say there’s no stand-out sector accounting for the uptick at ICE, which is a good thing for the business and good for the industry. We want growth to be sustainable and across the board: if it was concentrated in one sector it would make us vulnerable to a downturn. We have to ensure that ICE reflects the needs of the market which means achieving a balance of product types on the show floor. It’s more than simply responding to demand.
When it comes to releasing the final tranche of stands, we cross-reference the show floor against the feedback from our research initiatives such as the eight strong Focus Groups, our symposia held in London and Las Vegas, our engagement with the market via the Ampersand programme and the feedback we receive from critical friends via the ICE Ambassadors, and bodies such as the European Casino Association.
As one of our ICE Ambassadors, Simon Collins - Chairman of Jogo Global, observed - if people have made the commitment to travel significant distances to be in London, you know they are serious. It’s still a little early to have a firm viewpoint as the historical trend on registrations for large scale trade shows sees over 70 per cent of registrations occur in the final four-weeks. However, I can absolutely confirm that we are tracking ahead of both 2019 and 2020, which were record breaking years and the origin of registrations is as international as ever.
How does this change the plan for future events - into 2024 and for the potential move into Europe in 2025?
Our position and the position we’ve held consistently is to be totally open about location. We are engaged in a thorough and forensic review of what the options are and how they stack-up in terms of size, availability on the dates the industry wants, connectivity in terms of travel links and the availability of hotels and hospitality.
We have to be 100 per cent sure that any potential alternative location meets all of those requirements and that it’s a popular choice with all sectors of the industry.
As you know that process is on-going and extremely detailed. For the moment my focus and that of the ICE organising team is to deliver a monumental edition of the world’s favourite B2B gaming event covering the entirety of the industry and taking place on its traditional February dates.
WIRE / PULSE / INSIGHT / REPORTS P35
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