18 July 2016 12:00 am
Embassy of Sri Lanka Beijing Commercial Manager Chami, David Jones of CCPITBM Beijing, CCPIT Beijing Deputy Director Zhang, World Hotel Association Chairman Wu, CCPITBM Beijing Vice President Zhou, Embassy of Sri Lanka Beijing Second Secretary Lashinka Dammullage, MP Events Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd Director Emile Gunesekera and CCPITBM Beijing Director Jane Fu
CCPITBM Beijing Vice President Zhizhou Zhou, MP Events Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd Director Emile Gunesekera, CCPITBM Beijing Director Jane Fu and David Jones of CCPITBM Beijing
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Beijing, together with MP Events Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd and the China Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Building Materials Sub Council Beijing launched Hotel, Hospitality & Food Asia 2016 Exhibition (HHF) amidst a large gathering of Chinese media and other supporting organisations in Beijing, China.
CCPIT is the largest state organisation, committed to promoting international trade in China and this will mark the first major exhibition partnership between a Sri Lankan company and a major state organisation in China, which have entered into a long-term cooperation to promote the trade show business in Sri Lanka. The first project they will embark on is the fourth HHF.
With this partnership, the two organisations plan to create a show that will not only cater to the local industry in Sri Lanka but also draw visitors from regional countries and make Sri Lanka a hospitality supply hub in the coming years. The exhibition element is a very important component to take MICE (meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions) business in Sri Lanka forward. This partnership could largely benefit the show as well as the larger exhibition industry in the country.
HHF is scheduled to take place from September 30 to October 2, 2016 at the Sri Lanka Exhibition & Convention Centre, Colombo and it is a must participate show for all the local suppliers as well as a must visit show for hoteliers and those involved in operating, managing, maintaining and building hotels. It will be the ideal meeting place for the industry. The show will also be packed with a host of seminars and workshops that the industry can largely benefit from.
HHF was created to open doors for quality foreign suppliers to come in and create partnerships with the existing suppliers in the market and to uplift the offer they make to the hospitality industry. It will also be an opportunity to extend the offering to other regional markets. This partnership will enable the industry to benefit by way of varied and quality supplies.
China is one of the largest suppliers to the world and Sri Lanka can immensely benefit by having good Chinese companies coming in and bringing the latest products that are on offer globally to the local market. This was the objective of the partnership and the show will be extensively promoted across mainland China to secure these suppliers.
The press conference saw some of the high-profile figures of the hospitality industry in China and they have extended their fullest cooperation towards making HHF a show that will be recognized in the region.
Speaking at the press conference, CCPITBM Vice President Zhizhou Zhou said, “We are glad to partner with MP Events Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd in presenting the fourth Hotel, Hospitality & Food Asia 2016 Exhibition. We hope together we can create an avenue for Chinese exhibitors to enter into this exciting and growing market to provide their best offerings to the Sri Lankan hospitality industry. We are also pleased to see the interest shown by Chinese tourists to visit this beautiful island nation. As our relations go a long way, we will make every effort to cultivate it and further strengthen our ties through this show and shows in the future.”
Among the other speakers at the event was the World Hotel Association Founding Chairman and Director Wu Junlin, who said, “China and Sri Lanka have a long history and we are very happy to support the efforts of the two organisations in presenting the fourth Hotel, Hospitality & Food Asia 2016 Exhibition. We are also very happy with this initiative and partnership which will further enhance the relationship between our two nations. I am sure China has much to offer Sri Lanka and the South Asian region and this show will no doubt be the ideal platform.”
Embassy of Sri Lanka Second Secretary Lashinka Dammullage highlighted the growth in tourism in Sri Lanka and emphasized on the significant increase in the arrivals in Chinese tourists to Sri Lanka.
She said, “We are very happy to note that CCPITBM has partnered with MP Events Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd to present Hotel, Hospitality & Food Asia 2016. It is the first time and we are very pleased to see a large state organisation partner with a local company to promote trade especially bring in the latest hospitality supplies to Sri Lanka.”
The growth prospects of Sri Lanka, confidence shown by the large hotel chains and the need for quality supplies and the opportunity for foreign suppliers and the future of HHF were highlighted in the presentation made by MP Events Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd Director Emile Gunesekera.
He also said, “Sri Lanka is an opportunity for quality suppliers. It’s a growing market and the need is great. The greater opportunity is that Sri Lanka could be an exhibition hub for the region and looking ahead, suppliers who establish themselves early can extend their offering to the entire South Asian region making Sri Lanka a central point. This is the future that we aspire for the industry and together with CCPITBM and Hotel, Hospitality & Food Asia exhibition we will make this happen in the not too distant future. We want our local suppliers as well as the foreign participants to benefit from a larger market that is beyond Sri Lanka and
the Maldives.”
The show is supported by the Tourism and Christian Affairs Ministry, Industry and Commerce Ministry, Bakery Owners’ Association of Sri Lanka, Green Building Council of Sri Lanka, Colombo City Hoteliers’ Association, Hotels Association of Sri Lanka, National Chamber of Exporters, Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Convention Bureau, Association for Small and Medium Enterprises in Tourism, Board of Investments and Sri Lanka Association of Professional Conference and Exhibition Organisers.