Successful launch events in Latin America and Africa round off a strong 2013 for i2i Events Group
As i2i Events Group looks ahead to next year, it can reflect on a positive 2013.  New launches in Brazil and South Africa in October and November, rounded off a year of growth for established events, new partnership agreements and other successful ‘firsts' throughout the Group's portfolio.
i2i makes successful moves into Latin America and Africa
i2i's first event in Brazil, RWM Brasil (Resource Efficiency and Waste Management Solutions) was acclaimed a resounding success when it was held on 1st and 2nd October 2013 in Sao Paulo. It welcomed over 2,000 visitors and 70 exhibitors and brought over 45 years of experience in organising the UK edition of the event to one of the industry's most exciting new markets.
The Bett Leadership Summit, which took place from 31 October – 1 November at the World Trade Centre in Sao Paulo, continued i2i's successes in Brazil welcoming over 300 delegates and 80 world-class speakers. Born from the world's leading event for learning technology Bett, the Summit was launched on the back of i2i's acquisition of Educar (Latin America's leading education exhibition and conference) in May 2013. In May 2014 a full exhibition and conference, Bett Brasil will bring the very best of the global event to Brazil and will be held alongside Educar 2014, becoming part of i2i's Education and Technology portfolio.Â
Further strengthening i2i's international credentials, World Retail Congress (the pre-eminent meeting place for the global retail industry's most influential business leaders and decision makers) launched in 2 new markets in 2013. WRC LATAM was held for the first time from 31 October – 1 November at the WTC Sheraton in Sao Paulo and WRC Africa took place from 4 – 6 November in Johannesburg, South Africa. Both new events were very well received, addressing key regional issues and providing delegates with access to information on the emerging trends, challenges, growth opportunities and best practices specific to their region. Keynote speakers in the WRC series included Georges Plassat, Chief Executive Carrefour, Sir Philip Green, Founder & CEO Arcadia Group, Yves Carcelle, former Chairman of Louis Vuitton and Sandy Douglas, Global Chief Customer Officer The Coca-Cola Co.
Growth for CWIEME Berlin and new partnership with UKTI are among the highlights of 2013
2013 was also a year of firsts for i2i Events Group and the CWIEME (Coil Winding, Insulations and Electrical Manufacturing) portfolio of exhibitions, as i2i hosted several of the events for the first time since their acquisition of the portfolio in 2012.  Of particular significance was CWIEME Berlin in June 2013.  Eighteen years of continuous growth have made CWIEME Berlin the world's largest and most influential trade show and conference for the coil winding industry. In its first year of hosting the event, i2i was able to maintain that record and deliver an increase in exhibitor numbers to 750, an overall increase in space of 16% and an increase of 22% in visitor numbers.  i2i also hosted CWIEME Chicago for the first time in October and CWIEME Bangalore in November. In May it was announced that the first CWIEME Shanghai event would be held in May 2014.
In September 2013, i2i announced a partnership with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) that will see the two organisations working together to support the attendance of UK companies at i2i events. The partnership initially covered 11 events for 2013 but was strengthened in October to make UKTI i2i's official International Business Partner, and extended to cover events in 2014.Â
Other highlights of 2013 included strong growth for RWM (Resource Efficiency & Waste Management Solutions) in September, with record breaking re-bookings necessitating a move to larger halls for 2014. Alongside RWM, over 6,000 visitors attended The Energy Event and sister events The Renewables Event and the inaugural Water Event making 2013 a stand out year for i2i's energy portfolio.Â
2014 looks set to be another year of sustainable growth for i2i Events Group
From 22 – 25 January 2014, Bett, the world's leading event for learning technology, will celebrate its 30th year. As part of the celebrations marking 3 decades of classroom innovation, Bett is launching a competition for UK schools and the event itself will welcome over 700 exhibitors, more than 35,000 visitors and feature interactive demonstrations, workshops and CPD accredited conference sessions. Key speakers in the Bett Arena will include British film producer and educator Lord David Puttnam, educational technology visionary Professor Stephen Heppell, Headmaster of Eton Tony Little and many more.
Spring Fair 2014 follows from 2 – 6 February at the NEC in Birmingham. As the UK's largest retail trade exhibition, Spring Fair will once again feature a rich variety of content, over 300,000 new product lines, more than 3,000 exhibitors across 13 vertical show sectors and welcome some 70,000 retailers.
Commenting on 2013 and looking ahead to 2014, Mark Shashoua CEO i2i Events Group, says, “It gives me great pleasure to look back on the successes of the past year – from the growth of established events to the successful launches and the partnership agreements that will shape the future of i2i Events Group. We aim to build on those successes - we will continue to review the global potential of our leading brands and look at ways of taking them to new markets, and we will continue to review all our events regularly to ensure that year on year they provide the content, the scope and the excellent customer service that our clients have come to expect.â€'
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