Getting to Know Nantes:Lessons from Competing in a Challenging Market

Our 2016 Annual Conference host La Cité Nantes Events Center exemplifies the circumstances in which many centres find themselves today – competing for business – sometimes against larger competitors - in an intensely competitive market while at the same time having to demonstrate value to their owners and local community. Here’s how they’ve approached that challenge， including a number of features that will be on full display at the upcoming Annual Conference.

Competition amongst centres today is intense and growing. What is Nantes’ strategy for competing with other， maybe larger， centres in France and beyond？

Nantes： Our strategy is to place our client first. We are proud when our clients reach and exceed their expectations， or when they organize in Nantes a better event than the ones they have held in any other destination. Our focus on quality issues is key： Nantes has been involved in pursuing the best quality standards for more than 15 years； for example， La Cité Nantes Events Center is the first and still the only French Venue to have been awarded the AIPC Quality standard at the Gold Level.

How do you distinguish yourself from competing centres？ What makes Nantes a special place to hold an event？

Nantes： We try to bring the best possible value for our customer in everything we do and this focus is embedded in our staff mentality. At la Cité Nantes Events Center， our best asset is the wonderful people （73 people representing 46 different positions and competencies） that belong to our structure. From the sales team， to the event managers， the technical teams， the central services， everyone is dedicated and involved in delivering the best possible event， and this is something our clients acknowledge. We also invest a fair amount of money in our building and equipment， keeping it up-to-date and renewed， so you know as a client you are going to be provided with the best technologies， in-house technical equipment， and that the service will be delivered by well trained and highly professional staff.

Overall， Nantes has adopted a Charter for hosting events with a view to making life easier for corporate event organisers. Through this Charter， the Nantes region demonstrates its determination and ability to work closely together with public and private players.

What benefits do you think a centre in a mid-size destination can offer over those in the biggest cities？ How do you use this in your marketing？

Nantes： In a city like ours， the same event will look much larger than it does in a huge one， so when we host a 3，000 people event in Nantes， delegates really feel they make this 900，000-person city beat. People will be friendly to them， not as stressed out as in bigger cities， and as a result， delegates feel totally welcome. We developed a welcome pack that is really appreciated and involves all the local players， from hotels， to the international airport， the train station and all the other points of contact a delegate is likely to make.

As an economic tool for creating global exposure， La Cité helps to promote the regional centres of excellence both in France and internationally. Close partnerships have been established with local competitive clusters to stage international meetings， and we use these close relationships and are happy to offer our clients access to our partners， so that they can easily be linked to local top players.

What kinds of more local / regional events can help a centre diversify its business mix？

Nantes： In today’s economy we do believe that every centre needs to be as effective as possible， and therefore needs to find a good and appropriate business mix. The proportion of regional and local events is bigger in mid-sized cities like Nantes； for us it is approximately 30% of our revenue， with the balance being equally split between international and national events.

What do you think local residents would see as the biggest benefits your centre creates？

Nantes： Apart from hosting events， La Cité also organizes and produces its own events， which are most of the time showcasing fields in which Nantes can be seen as a leader. In 2015 we hosted Velocity， a global conference that showcased how Nantes successfully develops new approaches of bicycle use in a city. We also had the Ecocity conference in 2013， the year Nantes was chosen as the European Green Capital.

In 2016， and following Paris COP’21 we will host an international event called Climate Chance and whose purpose is to work on operational solutions that local authorities could implement to work on climate regulation. We are in the position to organize this event thanks to Nantes Presidency of Eurocities， the structure that gathers all the European metropolis.

What advice would you give to other centres in similar destinations to yours about how they can best increase their business？

Nantes： Centres in mid-size cities really need to work hard to help their destination emerge from the competition， not just by being the best possible venue， but also by being at the forefront of the efforts in making the destination as recognizable as possible.

In Nantes， a decision was made many years ago to develop a new positioning for the city， which used to be a major industrial port until the late 80’s， and which has now become a cutting-edge cultural place， where people come to discover new things and be surprised. This major turn reshaped our destination and at the same time offers great assets on which we can develop our convention centre business. Our clients now find our city amazingly creative， bustling and above all surprising， with stunning venues， the giant elephant walking in the city centre， gala dinner venues among huge odd creatures and other elements of delight that can become an integral part of their event experience.