The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) announced the launch of the SingapoReimagine MICE Virtual Show, the first such collaboration between STB and local MICE players.
Organised by STB, the two-day event will be held from 3 to 4 March 2021 and is part of Singapore’s efforts to catalyse the MICE industry’s recovery and generate business opportunities for partners. About 700 participants are expected at the show.
The SingapoReimagine MICE Virtual Show will feature a locally curated programme that includes live-streamed cultural and leisure tours, culinary masterclasses by celebrity chefs, and a live panel discussion with industry leaders on organising pilot events in Singapore.
It will also facilitate 1-on-1 virtual meetings between participants and up to 40 leading suppliers like hotels, convention centres, and tour operators.
Within the virtual 3D environment, participants can navigate the virtual tradeshow floor easily with their mobile devices and connect with exhibitors, such as Gardens by the Bay, Singapore Airlines and Sentosa Development Corporation.
They can also catch up on various event programmes on demand and take part in trivia quizzes to win prizes. The top 5 voted buyers will each win a hosted trip to Singapore on Singapore Airlines, inclusive of a hosted stay and exclusive experiences.
To bring the SingapoReimagine MICE Virtual Show to life, STB has partnered with established local event organisers (EO) MICE Neurol, Aspen Event Planners and TLC Events. The EOs have organised over 48 digital events between them in the last eight months, including providing production and event management services for the 2020 Alzheimer’s Disease International Conference, a 3-day event with over 1,000 delegates.
Dr Edward Koh, Executive Director (Conventions, Meetings & Incentive Travel), Singapore Tourism Board, said: “Singapore has started its journey to reimagine the future of business events, and we are doing so in partnership with our MICE industry to push new boundaries using technology and creativity. The SingapoReimagine MICE Virtual Show demonstrates how we are transforming industry models to seize new opportunities, and underlines our reputation as a safe, trusted, and innovative destination for business events. We look forward to having delegates from around the world join us in this journey of exploration and reimagination.”
Kenny Goh, the founder of MICE Neurol, said, “We are excited to partner STB for the SingapoReimagine MICE Virtual show, not just to deliver a platform to connect buyers and sellers, but also to co-curate experiences and gamification to enhance the Singapore destination experience. Singapore has both the physical and digital infrastructure to be the centre of global events and we hope to do our part to reignite the MICE industry and continue to brand Singapore as a leading MICE destination.”
Innovation in a time of disruption
The SingapoReimagine MICE virtual show aims to bring like-minded industry stakeholders together. It also presents an opportunity for local MICE industry players and tour operators to showcase their creativity, as they transform their businesses in the new COVID-19 environment.
STB has partnered with MICE Depot to deliver the event’s digital content and live panel discussion. The event agency pivoted its business last year, tapping on STB’s Business Improvement Fund (BIF) 2 to develop its digital capabilities and cater to the strong demand for virtual and hybrid events.
Francis Tan, Director of MICE Depot said, “Partnering STB for this event has allowed us to showcase our technical know-how in creating digital content for events and also enabled us to sharpen our skillsets. With the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a need to pivot and adapt our business. As such, we invested in the development of our own in-house event studio and created internal training programmes to equip our employees with skillsets for broadcasting events in order to create quality virtual and hybrid events.”
Participants can also look forward to 7 unique experiences exclusively curated for them, including live cultural tours at Waterloo Street and Little India; masterclasses by homegrown distillery Brass Lion Distillery and Malcolm Lee, chef-owner of the world’s first Michelin star Peranakan restaurant Candlenut; and a behind-the-scenes tour of one of Singapore’s oldest coffee shops, Killiney.
To further enhance the experience, experience kits will be sent to selected participants, allowing them to participate alongside the sessions or enjoy the activities at their own pace.
Jamie Koh, the founder of Brass Lion Distillery, said,” For SingapoReimagine MICE Virtual Show, we’ve created a gin-tasting followed by a hands-on cocktail-making session for participants to learn about the Brass Lion brand in a more engaging way. We are excited to share our brand story, and we hope that it will help us to bring the Singapore Dry Gin to more people beyond Singapore.”
Chef Malcolm, Candlenut, said, “I am happy to be able to connect with local and international foodies through this platform. For this culinary masterclass, I will be whipping up one of my simplest dishes and sharing a slice of the Peranakan culture in Singapore in the way I know best – food.”
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