Northstar

43 MAY-JUN 2019 MEETINGS & CONVENTIONS MCMAG-ASIA.COM In late 2018, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) released its annual Cities Report, which covers 72 of the world's most important tourism cities. Shanghai, more than any other city, accounted for US$35 billion in market size and topped the charts in terms of travel and tourism volume. In fact, Shanghai is expected to double the size of Paris in terms of travel and tourism's direct contribution to GDP by 2027. MICE, too, has been a big contributor. In 2018, the number of events increased by a whopping 18.05%, where according to the statistics from the Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Industry Association, Shanghai held a total of 994 MICE-related events with an estimated value of US$150 billion. "These gures explain why major international hotel chains in China, despite the country's economic slowdown, are ramping up expansion plans to cater to the growing Chinese MICE demand," shared Christian With Shanghai accounting for 3.63% of China's overall GDP, it's no wonder hospitality stalwarts are entering the market swiftly to get a slice of the pie. saw the opening of luxury properties including Amanyangyun, Bellagio Shanghai, InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland, The Shanghai Edition and Bvlgari Hotel Shanghai. In 2019, the hospitality race is continuing with the upcoming June launch of JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Shanghai Pudong. As the city continues its investment in infrastructure and MICE facilities, general manager Angela Pan is condent that "Shanghai will denitely generate more tourism opportunities". She added, "As a luxury hotel that targets the MICE market, [our] large inventory of 515 rooms and 3,100sqm of multi- functional event space, coupled with the essence of JW Treatment, makes us an ideal place for MICE business". Humbert, general manager at W Shanghai — The Bund, home to the largest hotel event space in Western Shanghai. Some have even gone beyond the perimeters of a traditional hotelier's territory, such as The Kunlun Jing An. The former Hilton Shanghai is "proud to have been the rst Shanghai hotel to be granted an ocial licence for outside catering," said Gerd Knaust, general manager of The Kunlun Jing An. Her portfolio for the past decade includes ATP Shanghai Masters, Formula One Chinese Grand Prix and Shanghai Longines Global Champions Tour, while also catering for corporate, exhibition and cruise ship events. Hospitality outlook Although Beijing is China's capital, Shanghai is the one taking the top GDP rank in 2018 at 3.27 trillion yuan, with Beijing trailing at 3.03 trillion yuan. As the city continues its push towards elevating its MICE sector—even outdoing capital Beijing in GDP—hospitality stalwarts want a slice of this lucrative pie. WORDS NATALIE JOY LEE Shanghai's Hospitality Race "[The MICE numbers] explain why major international hotel chains in China, chains in China, despite the country's economic slowdown, are ramping up expansion plans to cater to the growing Chinese MICE demand." CHRISTIAN HUMBERT, GENERAL MANAGER, W SHANGHAI THE BUND W SHANGHAI THE BUND The view from the top of W Shanghai — The Bund.

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