CHS Birmingham is celebrating its second outing in the city following confirmation that the show grew its buyer numbers by over 26%, it’s hosted buyers by +13% and its VIP attendance by just under +40%. The organisers put the growth down to the investments made in both hosted buyer acquisition and marketing in the run up to the show.
The exhibition was labelled The Growth Show, focusing on personal and professional development for the industry, but also every visitor who attended the event. The theme was reflected in the numbers that attended the event, and who added value to the experience of the 185+ exhibitors that bought it to life. It also led to high engagement across the event’s educational programme which saw just under a third of visitors attend sessions.
The success of CHS Birmingham also represents a massive endorsement of the city as one of the key event hubs in the UK, and the partnerships between CHS Birmingham, The Birmingham and West Midlands Convention Bureau, and Founding Partner, the ICC Birmingham.
This partnership, tied with the draw of the host city, is demonstrated by the show’s outstanding registration-to-attendance rates, which saw +95% conversion for hosted buyers and +72% for VIPs. Across these groups, CHS Birmingham also reported just under 1,000 unique and scheduled meetings, not including the hundreds of ad hoc meetings that took place across the show.
“We’re really proud of the event, our amazing partners and our exhibitors for putting on an exceptional show,” commented Emma Cartmell, CEO & Founder, CHS Birmingham. “So much of our journey started last year when we first launched, and despite pandemics and disruptions of every kind, we made a strong enough impression on our visitors that they returned in more numbers and engaged with everything about the show. It was an exceptional team effort which says a lot about the business events community in this city.”
Donna Cunningham, NEC Group Conventions Sales Director, added: “These figures speak for themselves – Birmingham is a key events city and the ICC can help you grow your event. We are proud to have worked with the CHS Group to make their 2022 Birmingham outing such a success and showcase the dynamism of our industry here in the Midlands.”
Steve Knight, Senior Business Tourism Manager at the Birmingham and the West Midlands Convention Bureau said: “It is brilliant that the return of CHS Birmingham has been such a success. With such high numbers of attendees and exhibitors in attendance, as well as insightful seminars throughout, it was an ideal opportunity to show our event hosting capabilities on a huge scale.”
“CHS Birmingham has been an excellent opportunity to show the breadth of event space, venues, and excellent talent that we have as a region. We hope those that attended CHS this year have Birmingham and the wider West Midlands region in mind when organising future events.”