Venue Reservations Showcase a big hit with exhibitors

Over 300 new business enquiries were taken by exhibitors at the Venue Reservations Showcase, held last week at Gibson Hall, London.

250 buyers attended the Showcase featuring event suppliers and 20 venues from Venue Reservations’ extensive portfolio. These included The Royal Courts of Justice, Tower Bridge, Vinopolis, Church House Conference Centre, Piggott’s and venues from the Merlin Entertainments Group.

Dominic Burris-North, events administrator, Merlin Events said: “The event was a resounding success. We took an impressive amount of event enquiries and also responded to a number of requests for quotes for immediate business. The enquiries represented a good cross section of events – from summer and Christmas parties to smaller networking events. The event demonstrated an impressive return on investment and offered us a relaxed and intimate environment to meet some top quality buyers.”

Katie West, head of Venue Reservations said “The economy is still in recovery and venues need to maintain a strong presence in order to acquire and secure new business. It was encouraging to see such a variety of enquiries for all partner venues.”

Entering through the quaint courtyard garden guests were lead in to the Garden Room for reception drinks and then moved to the main hall to explore the various venues. Guests enjoyed a varied menu of canapés and bowl food created by Gibson Hall’s onsite caterer, Kudos Hospitality. Canapés included beetroot cured salmon with celeriac remoulade, tempura batted prawns and homemade Thai crab cakes with sweet chilli sauce and foie gras terrine on toasted brioche with apple chutney. Bowl food options included Jersey royal and leek terrine with seasonal new forest wild mushrooms and Cajun fillet burgers, with thick chips and red onion jam.

Venue Reservations recently reported generating revenue worth £5.3m in 2009, an increase of £1.1m when compared to 2008 figures where the company turned over £4.2m.

Tags: Event Magazine, Event Venues, Venue Reservations Showcase

Category: Event Venues