‘Significant’ rise in M&E spend reported

CORPORATE spend per meeting and per delegate rose significantly in 2017, despite a slight decline in the average daily delegate rate (DDR), according to the HBAA.

The HBAA Meetings Barometer for 2017 shows the average spend per meeting rose to £1,954 in 2017, up 21.2% from £1,613 in 2016. Meanwhile, the average spend per delegate rose 21% to £88.35 in 2017, up from £73.04. With the average DDR falling slightly to £32.88 from £33.06 in 2016, the key driving force behind the growth is the increase in the average meeting size, says the HBAA. Its report found the average number of delegates increased from 50 to 53, while the average lead-time fell from 83 to 77 days. HBAA members operate over 4,000 venues in the UK.