We highlight key comments from some buyers and exhibitors attending the the M!CE Travel Show, organised by DDP Exhibitions.

BUYERS Gaurav Shekhar Nagwekar

Head-Corporate Travel & Logistics, Reliance Industries

A recent study delved into how corporate travel is going to evolve. It stated that 20 per cent of corporate travellers do not want to come back, specifically from the IT sector. The remaining 20 per cent of the sector – pharma, banking, and so on – never left. The remaining 60 per cent are in a dilemma and are not sure if they want to have M!CE movements. For Reliance, we are looking at mitigating our carbon footprint. With immediate effect, we have tightened travel restrictions and will investigate how and which departments should actually travel. We want to move to accommodation options that have sustainability goals.

Shashi Kiran P

Global Front Office Lead, ABB

I am interested in understanding what's new in the market and how companies have evolved since the pandemic and what the future looks like. I am looking more at the logistics part of it. I see an upward trend in corporate travel. We are in an industry that is customer-focused. It is face-to-face and while we have done virtual meetings for over two years, we can see the fatigue setting in. A lot of things get done face-to-face, and so we see a lot of travel happening now. It may not be as much as 2019 – it may be 80 per cent of that but still, international corporate travel will happen. Of course, it does depend on the industry.

Manian SGS

Manager-Administration, Olam

Presently, corporate travel from a larger perspective, we see a lot of group meetings or bigger conferences with the leadership team taking place, where the teams are travelling from different origins to the destination city. This is where people can really meet one-on-one after a gap of almost two years to share their experiences of the growth of the organisation. There are a lot of employees who are keen to come out and meet and connect with people. We are currently looking at leadership offsites from Chennai to Singapore, where our company is headquartered. We are also looking at the UK. A

Gaurav Narula

Regional Category Manager-Travel & Marcom, GSC-Indirect Procurement, Schneider Electric

M!CE and corporate travel have begun, but with some limits in place. We are now considering smaller events, but not any team trips just yet. There is no major scope for travel until Q2 2022. We may look at bigger events in Q3. We intend to go global soon. We also have plans for local MICE within India. There is no doubt that the sector is recovering. Looking at hotel prices, you will see that they are already at 80-85 per cent occupancy. The airlines are also doing well.

Sriram Seetharam

General Manager-Global Travel, Hexaware

As an IT business, our M!CE travel has been limited, and even if we do start, it will be in small numbers at first. There is movement within India. Of course, travel to the US, the UK, and Europe has surged. In terms of hotels, I see a lot of renowned names, since we have some specific destinations where these properties are located on our radar. We are seeing some progress in terms of conferences, but M!CE will take some time. But, we are working on a FIT movement to incentivize our staff. Our leadership offsites might take place in the US and Singapore. We are also looking at employee engagement right away, and we are interested in Singapore.

Beena Kokku

Head-Global Real Estate & Procurement, Excelity

We are seeking global contracts with hotels to provide consistency in guest service to travellers. While group travel has not yet begun, it is on its way. Ceridian acquired another firm, so we are undergoing an integration process. We are also integrating two teams into one space. As the firm comes together, we are planning world tours. This is followed by other team members who will begin to travel to other countries. We do not have any plans to travel within India. Going forward, we will see our company's outbound travel grow. Because it is a new business, short-haul travel will be used to train staff.

EXHIBITORS GB Srithar

Regional Director, India, Middle East & South Asia, Singapore Tourism Board

It was important for us to communicate that Singapore M!CE is open to Indian corporates. We interacted with many key corporates and they have been asking how they can have meaningful, socially responsible travel. This demand for a sustainable option is a positive signal for destinations, including Singapore, planning meetings, and incentives. We are very deliberate in our sustainable efforts. We are making a lot of effort in the M!CE space as well. A lot of the stakeholders, whether it is Marina Bay Sands, Resorts World Sentosa or Gardens by the Bay, have implemented sustainable practices and that is set to grow.

Sunil VA

Regional Vice President-APAC, Oman Air

Under the air bubble agreement, we had flights from Oman to India. And when the scheduled flights resumed, we restarted services to eight cities in India, first with Delhi in the north and following with Goa, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Cochin, Calicut, and Bengaluru. These cities have daily flights, and I am glad to say that demand has not dropped. We had a few corporate travellers resuming their travels. We have closed a few M!CE groups to Oman. We hope that everything goes well because travel was one of the businesses that was severely impacted.

Gagan Katyal

Head of Sales & Marketing, Ananta Hotels & Resorts

Hotel bookings used to be long-term, but they are now short-term. Wellness is a differentiator for us, and we are working hard to capitalise on it at our resorts. Fortunately, we have always had a strong hold on domestic leisure, which has only grown. When it begins, international inbound will fill the gap, giving a healthy mix. Competitive MICE packages are being floated to lure buyers. Participation in business trade shows, as well as a large number of sales calls and distribution, are beneficial. Multiple venues serve to break up the monotony of outdoor events. Big, fat weddings are making a comeback.

Ankur Dhawan

Account Director-RSO India, Corinthia Hotels

As per the hotel portfolio Corinthia now has, we are looking at traffic into London, which has slowed in recent years. I see a lot of demand for business-related travel. The corporate market is catching up in the incentive area, and while overseas travel may be a bit slow, we will recover in terms of big group incentives from this market. Given the demand for corporate FIT, we are exploring ways to drive business travel to London by working with corporates on top management trips, including long-stay options. So we are presently looking at creating demand for this before launching into a worldwide RFP programme and signing contracts.

Ramnik Choudhary

Director of Sales & Marketing, Raffles Udaipur

We are seeing a rise in travel spending in the IT and pharma industries. These are the two industries we want to focus on right now. Because we are a leisure destination, our key avenues are MICE, holidays, honeymooners, incentives, and the wedding sector, which is our largest. Luckily, all of these segments have resumed full-time travel. People just want to escape the routine of working from home. They like to indulge, and the Raffles brand is the ideal choice for them. Social events are doing well in MICE, but this is also due to the limits of overseas travel. We are now seeing NRI weddings return to India, which is a good sign for us.

Amit Sidana

Vice President-Sales & Marketing, Pride Hotels & Resorts

All of our business hotels are either in the city centre or near the airport. These are the two prime locations, and no company can miss them. We also have leisure hotels that can hold large M!CE and wedding groups. While the last two years have been hard, the kind of business we are seeing now, the lost business of the lockdown, will be cleared within the next six months. The hotel sector will rebound, in terms of ADRs, price, or occupancy. Our corporate clients have all returned, and leisure is back on track. The group size for M!CE travel is growing. They started with 20, then 40, and now it is getting bigger.