Ashwin Gunasekeran: "PWCC will Complement our Built Infrastructure Along with Setia SPICE"

Magazine:
HQ Asia Pacific
27th Oct, 2024
Category:
Interview
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The 7th edition of the Penang International Travel Exchange (PITE), the international events and tourism fair for the Malaysian region, took place in October 2024 and brought with it several surprises and announcements. Organised by Ace Conferences and supported by the Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB), PITE 2024 welcomed over 40 exhibitors and 100 buyers from around the world, continuing to promote Penang as a leading business events destination in Asia Pacific.

This three-day event provided a privileged platform to, as is customary at such national tradeshows, connect buyers and exhibitors through one-on-one business meetings, providing mutual opportunities for interaction between international agencies and trade exhibitors from across Malaysia. Among the new features, we could visit the still under construction Penang Waterfront Convention Centre which delighted us with its scale and complexity. With an estimated cost of RM4.5 billion, PWCC is set to be Penang's third and largest MICE venue when it opens in October 2025.
 
During this journey, we also had the opportunity to get to know both sides of this small island on the northwest coast of the peninsula, through a familiarization tour, which revealed to us the cultural, sustainable, ecological and historical side of a rich legacy that has expanded for centuries. We had the opportunity to visit places such as the UNESCO Penang Hill Biosphere Reserve, Entopia Butterfly Farm, Tropical Spice Garden, th suburb of Batu Ferringhi, and hold a Batik craft workshop, witnessing first-hand all this cultural richness and the incentive offers that Penang has for delegates. One of the most interesting places we discovered was the Hin Bus Depot, a creative community hub in George Town that acts as a key platform to support and showcase the work of artists and creatives throughout their careers. With several connected spaces clustered around a small square, Hin Bus Depot is perfect for cocktail receptions, workshops and teambuilding gatherings where Penang’s arts and street culture combine with the city’s vibrant DNA. It was here that we said goodbye with a really fun closing party.
 
After the press conference at Setia SPICE, we were able to speak to Ashwin Gunasekeran, Chief Executive Officer at Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau. According to Gunasekeran, PWCC will boost the MICE industry growth by 35% next year given the number of events already lined up, such as the 7th Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Housing and Urban Development, K-Brand Week with K-Beauty Expo Malaysia, and Water Tech Asia 2025. We asked him these following questions:
 

Regarding Penang waterfront, you just did like a brief presentation about the capabilities and the aim that that new convention centre is going to have in the region. You also said that there was a gap to be filled in terms of exhibitions. How is Penang’s event biddings going to unfold between Setia Spice and this new convention centre?


So, Penang didn’t have a proper exhibition venue. Setia SPICE Convention Centre was aimed very much towards meetings, conferences and congresses and we have been pushing for this particular investment to bring in an exhibition centre and, fortunately, we will see that happening next year. Therefore, there will be no competition per se between the Penang Waterfront Convention Centre (PWCC) and Setia SPICE because PWCC will be a purpose-built venue focusing very much on heavy exhibition with almost close to 80,000 square feet of pillar-less ground. It will have a super ramp where a 40-foot trailer could drive in for unloading, for example. They've also got huge unloading lifts and when I say heavy shows, we arre looking at automation, heavy machinery shows, even boat shows. These are the kind of exhibitions that this particular hall would be able to cater. Once again, there will be no competition, only complementarity with the built infrastructure, providing yet another raw space where many customisations can also be made in the exhibition hall.

So that's one advantage which will bring a key new segment for Penang. Other than that, we have already got business requests coming in as we started the exhibition marketing last year and the promotion of the new convention centre. I would say that a lot of requests are already in place and clients are now waiting for inspection appointments. Within the industry and even in the region, we have already done about three hard-hat tours to the particular hall, and all the pointers are very positive from conference and exhibition organisers. They definitely see it as a plus, as it's really one of a kind. It is the only convention centre that is literally by the sea in a very scenic environment facing our first Penang bridge. I think it's very different.


“The scale of engagement for this year’s event has increased significantly, and we are optimistic about the opportunities that lie ahead.


Regarding Setia SPICE, what will fall into this building?

Setia SPICE will continue attracting the convention markets, very much on association meetings and corporate gatherings. Therefore, this particular business will continue to grow as Setia SPICE’s calendar is currently quite advanced, with a schedule already scheduled for three to four years. I do not see any drop in terms of such businesses because as I said, PWCC will be a purpose-built venue and it will complement the potential and reach of the sector in Penang.

If you are still looking for corporate meetings with breakout rooms or association meetings with large rooms and plenary halls, the choice will certainly fall on Setia SPICE. Just look at this PITE 2024 and all the immense space possibilities between function rooms, ballrooms and the grand foyer. We were the first hybrid solar-powered meeting venue in the world and one of the outdoor spaces where we can capture renewable energy, recover resources spent on events and present a concrete sustainability plan for our clients. So to summarise, this will be more straight forward for association conferences, whereas PWCC will focus very much on the exhibition format.


What is the future for support for the association sector in the region? How are you carrying out your ongoing work with European-based associations?


We are an ICCA member for eight years now and we work closely with many associations. The leading segments for Penang are still R&D, medical sciences, pharmaceutical, but we are also pushing for agriculture, marine as well as biodiversity. These are all the key segments that are growing into Penang. Regarding new upcoming sectors, we do also see government-related meetings, such as G2G as well as the education segment that is also coming in strongly. The support for associations are wide open. There are various support models. There is no fixed model for specific associations because we want to adopt a flexible and customisable attitude, so that the association benefits as much as possible from their stay and so that we can respond to what they really need. That's one of the reasons why I think we're so different, and it gives an advantage not only to the destination, but also to the association.


What about incentive offerings?

We’ve made our incentive application much easier and more flexible, meaning we’ll provide support even for just 50 people. Basically, we don’t limit you to the incentive options available, which means you get multiple choices. You can choose from the ones you want and from there we will provide you with the relevant options. So you can have a choice of, for example, over 30 or 40 incentive options available, and - because a particular setting may or may not be suitable for your delegates - it gives you the option to choose otherwise.

There are some convention bureaus that limit you to only a certain amount of support, so if you bring a certain number of people, for so many days, and based on the expense, those are the supports that will be provided. However, in the case of Penang, it is more flexible. We let you choose and switch support, so it's relevant to what you want.


Any future prospects in terms of conferences in these new areas you just mentioned?

Oh yes, our calendar goes up to the year 2031 for Penang and most of the conferences fall under the segments I mentioned earlier. So these are the lineups. I want to believe that, over the years, we will see changes in political and economic trends with a view to new emerging segments. However, for now, these are the main segments we have.

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