EUROPE – The Swedish Exhibition and Congress Centre has reported 2012 saw its highest sales and earnings since its 1918 inception, yet it was a weak year for hosting congresses at the venue.
The venue made US$139m in sale,s achieving an operation profit of $18m and profit after financial items of $11m.
Venue CEO Carin Kindbom says: “The reason for weak congress business in 2012 is due to past problems, as planning of a major congress usually takes between three and five years. Fortunately we are not seeing a downward trend in future congress sales. Moreover our events business continues to perform positively and we are seeing an increase in corporate event business wins.”
Trade show business was the strongest performer in 2012 and the venue hosted 27 trade shows organised in-house. The net area sold increased by 23 per cent and trade show sales totalled US$62m, which was an all-time record for the venue.
Hotels onsite at the venue reported a 73 per cent occupancy rate and welcomed 271,969 guests. A multi-million-dollar investment is being put into an expansion of these facilities, due to open this summer (2013).
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