Increase quality UFI members,broadcast industrial voice

Please introduce the history of UFI office in Hong Kong and How is the changes of UFI memberships in Asia in terms of numbers and category structure in last few years.

Mark： UFI Hong Kong office was established in 2004， when we only had 44 members in the region. Now， our members in Asia has increased to about 220， covering all the important exhibition countries in the region. About 75% of our members are organizers， venues， and organizersvenues. In China alone we have more than 100 members and it is also our largest member source country in the world.

What are the top five countries in the region in member numbers？ Do you think these numbers is generally in balance with the development of the exhibition industry in these countries？ Mark： Our largest member source countries in the region include China， Korea， India， Hong Kong， and Singapore. I think this distribution generally reflect the industrial development in the region. Also， we would like to see more members from Japan， which is the second largest exhibition market in Asia.

Internationalization is one of the main development goals for the Chinese exhibition industry. In what channels do you think they can advance this goal？ Particularly， how do they have broader communication with global peers through associations like UFI？

Mark： I think China is on track to achieve this goal and the industry is doing a lot of the right things. Many world class facilities have been built not only in big cities like Beijing， Shanghai， Shenzhen， and Guangzhou， but also in second tier and third tier cities like Chengdu and Chongqing. Major multinational organizers have been operating in China for many years either to organize their own trade shows or through joint venture with local partners. Apart from this， many local Chinese organizers are developing very fast. Last week， I attended a seminar in Shanghai where Chinese organizers were encouraged to held their brand exhibitions worldwide. Many of these organizers have a clear international mindset. By joining associations like UFI， they would have better understanding of international standards， and can find global partner more easily.

In terms of competitive advantages of the exhibition industry， how do you compare China and other major emerging countries like India and Indonesia？

Mark： I think as long an individual exhibition serves its purpose of promoting local or regional markets， then it is a successful exhibition， and there is no need to compare it with other exhibitions or markets. However， the Chinese exhibition industry has been developing very fast， and the level of professionalism should be improved， which can be achieved through training. It is also worth to be noted that in the long run， the governments should weakening the role as organizers and leave room for strong， private exhibition companies， while governments play the regulation role to avoid vicious competition.

In the recent CEFCO in Yinchuan， the major gathering for exhibition professionals in China， what impressed you most？ Do you find it fruitful for your own mission？

Mark： CEFCO is the largest assembly for the Chinese exhibition industry. UFI has been the partner organization of it for the past 12 years and we find it a good communication platform. The topics are very relevant to the industry and the challenges it faces. This year， I gave a speed at CEFCO on how digital tools are changing the exhibition industry.

The UFI Open Seminar in Asia will soon take place in Chiang Mai. Could you introduce some of the highlights this year？

Mark： The UFI Open Seminar in Asia is the second largest UFI member events next to the annual meeting. To this day， we have got nearly 200 registered participants for this year. There will be many speakers to talk about how the current digital trends is shaping exhibitions and events. On 24 February， there will also be a co-located Focus Meeting on Sustainable Development to talk about sustainability within the exhibition industry.

Please share the development goal of UFI Hong Kong office in the next few years and how do you view the value of media cooperation in this process.

Mark： We will continue to attract more quality members in the region and in the same time keep the balance of the member structures. As an association for global exhibition industry， we will also strive to let the industrial voice be heard by governments and other decision makers， during which process the media can help greatly in broadcasting the news.