The industry is leveraging on trade exhibitions as business platforms to get access to international and domestic business. Come September and Andheri East-based companies like UBM India, IED Communications and Pico Event Management will start warming up for their future trade on processed food, energy etc. Increasing number of trade shows being organised reflects the keenness of the industry to leverage on trade exhibitions and conferences. However, over the time trade shows have turned into routine affairs that are dismissed as yet another creative game plan to attract customers without delivering results. "Fairs reach a saturation point, when show organisers stop innovating or don't know how to handle competition. It is the show organiser's ability to forecast and read market trends to stay competitive," said Pradeep Gopalan, organiser of shows like Bakery Business, Restaurant and Catering and Salon Culinaire's. Thus, the learned lot is resorting to discretion before being part of any fair. Prakash Vaswani from New India Electric in south Mumbai said, "We have taken a deliberate decision to visit one show per city in a year. This helps us manage our budget." Vaswani is a regular at shows held by Andheri organisers. Trade fairs' relevance and success reflects the progress of the sector being showcased. According to Gopalan, in the early '90s, during the IT (information technology) boom, fairs on computer hardware and software were the order of the day. Post 9/11, tourism fairs raised its head. The number of shows multiplied when the industry realised that foreign traffic could not be relied on and domestic tourism emerged as the saving grace for the industry. Thus, travel shows started appearing immediately in almost all metros and tier II and III cities. Similarly with real estate, food and hospitality and gems and jewellery. As the industry gains prominence, shows mushroom. SHOW DEFICIENCIES Fairs, nowadays, lack exciting ideas leaving an illusionary impression on participants seeking an insight on changing business dynamics. "Visitors seek a good bargain from such shows, while the exhibitor is bothered about the quantity and quality of the audience that will purchase or influence decisions," Gopalan said. For a country like India, which house over a thousand exhibitions every year, need for information services endorsing technologically and professionally planned fairs is realised. The Indian Trade Promotion Council (ITPO) seems to serve very little purpose in this regard. Few trade organisers in the country care to create a set up that promote business in a genuine way while the rest are busy selling space to fill the slots. Thus, it becomes even important for a company, which allots a huge share of its promotional budget on trade fairs, to discriminate between the two. Infrastructure deficiencies are also irk exhibitors. Rob Sahi, marketing head of Andheri-based UBM India said, "We spend as much money in India as we pay in Germany to buy rental space for exhibitions. However, India is nowhere close to the West, China or countries like Indonesia and Thailand." "Though cities like Hyderabad and Gurgaon have seen some new convention centres but they are very small in size to hold large scale exhibitions. The one in White fields in Bangalore is over 80 km away from the city," Andheri-based businessman Bipin Sinha said. "Apart from proper infrastructure, the security aspect also needs to be taken care of," said Vaswani from New India Electric. Nilesh Amritker from EnvironcareLabs, who is a frequent at Andheri-based conferences added, "There are just too many shows happening. It would be great if organisers of smaller shows come together to make it a one big event." Gopalan says, "For staging a 20-stall exhibition show or a 100-stall exhibition the effort that goes into delivering a successful show is the same. Preparations for a brand new trade fair should ideally have at least a minimum 2-year head start. There are many aspects as far as preparation is concerned. Three key areas being; exhibitor acquisition, visitor promotion, back end operations and on site capabilities." Sahi said, "To promote a show to exhibitors we need at least 18 months and six months to attract visitors." UBM India holds around 23 shows in the country along with over 70 conferences for diverse sectors like pharma, security, tourism, energy, construction, jewelry, transport and logistics and food. The company has an upcoming show, Fi India, targeting the food ingredients industry in September this year. The show promises to play a driving force to India's processed food sector. The most important tool required for preparing for a fair is networking through the right channels. According to Sinha, who has years of experience in organising trade exhibitions said, "Networking is scientifically done and is a carefully executed process."

Event management company IMG on Saturday denied charges that it was involved in planning a 'rebel' Twenty20 league in England in conjunction with suspended IPL Chairman Lalit Modi, who was sent a show cause notice on this count by the BCCI. A statement from the events management group, which was involved in running the IPL in the first three seasons, said in its 50-year existence it had always respected the authority and sovereignty of official sports federations. The response came in the wake of news reports quoting Giles Clarke, chairman of The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), that IMG had been involved in planning an unsanctioned Twenty20 cricket league with a number of ECB member-counties. "IMG has a 50-year record of integrity and probity in the business of sport and at all times IMG respects the authority and sovereignty of official federations and governing bodies," the statement said. "IMG has not been involved in any plans of the kind suggested in the quotes attributed to Mr Clarke. Representatives of certain ECB member-counties requested a meeting with Mr Lalit Modi through IMG. An informal lunch meeting subsequently took place on 31st March 2010 in Delhi and was attended by IMG executives," it said. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Event management company IMG on Saturday denied charges that it was involved in planning a 'rebel' Twenty20 league in England in conjunction with suspended IPL Chairman Lalit Modi, who was sent a show cause notice on this count by the BCCI. A statement from the events management group, which was involved in running the IPL in the first three seasons, said in its 50-year existence it had always respected the authority and sovereignty of official sports federations. The response came in the wake of news reports quoting Giles Clarke, chairman of The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), that IMG had been involved in planning an unsanctioned Twenty20 cricket league with a number of ECB member-counties. "IMG has a 50-year record of integrity and probity in the business of sport and at all times IMG respects the authority and sovereignty of official federations and governing bodies," the statement said. "IMG has not been involved in any plans of the kind suggested in the quotes attributed to Mr Clarke. Representatives of certain ECB member-counties requested a meeting with Mr Lalit Modi through IMG. An informal lunch meeting subsequently took place on 31st March 2010 in Delhi and was attended by IMG executives," it said. www.dg3.dgevent.in

OgilvyAction one of the largest brand activation agencies in the world has entered Philippines - through a joint venture company formed by Ogilvy & Mather Philippines and A+B Expedio Integrated Marketing Communications. The latter is a leading below-the-line agency in the Asian country with expertise in trade activation and events management. While John Goodman, President OgilvyAction Asia Pacific refused to disclose the current client-roster of the agency, he did aver that "We are seeing extensive growth potential for brand activation in the Philippines and A+B Expedio's expertise, network, and reputation will certainly strengthen our local OgilvyAction offering." When asked about what makes Philippines different from other Asian markets, Goodman said, " It has a very complex infrastructure because of the island nature of the country, and a new dynamic driven by the youth of the country." As per a press release issued, OgilvyAction brings together A+B Expedio's field marketing capabilities, local activation experience and network with Ogilvy & Mather's strength in analytics, strategy, development, digital and creative to offer activation solutions. The joint venture company will be led by Mae Dichupa, General Manager, who returns to Ogilvy after seven years with the Nike organization in the Philippines, most recently as its Country Marketing Manager. "Coming home to Ogilvy gives me the opportunity to leverage my insights and experience in this field to lead a team of retail specialists that is already best-in-class," she says. www.dg3.dgevent.in

OgilvyAction one of the largest brand activation agencies in the world has entered Philippines - through a joint venture company formed by Ogilvy & Mather Philippines and A+B Expedio Integrated Marketing Communications. The latter is a leading below-the-line agency in the Asian country with expertise in trade activation and events management. While John Goodman, President OgilvyAction Asia Pacific refused to disclose the current client-roster of the agency, he did aver that "We are seeing extensive growth potential for brand activation in the Philippines and A+B Expedio's expertise, network, and reputation will certainly strengthen our local OgilvyAction offering." When asked about what makes Philippines different from other Asian markets, Goodman said, " It has a very complex infrastructure because of the island nature of the country, and a new dynamic driven by the youth of the country." As per a press release issued, OgilvyAction brings together A+B Expedio's field marketing capabilities, local activation experience and network with Ogilvy & Mather's strength in analytics, strategy, development, digital and creative to offer activation solutions. The joint venture company will be led by Mae Dichupa, General Manager, who returns to Ogilvy after seven years with the Nike organization in the Philippines, most recently as its Country Marketing Manager. "Coming home to Ogilvy gives me the opportunity to leverage my insights and experience in this field to lead a team of retail specialists that is already best-in-class," she says. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Taxmen carry out 'surveys' on dealers

Taxmen on Friday carried out nationwide "surveys" on art dealers and event managers for alleged tax evasion."The surveys were routine. It was carried out on buyers and sellers of art objects and event managers," a Finance Ministry official told the agency.Taxmen got suspicious on some high value transactions on art objects and were planning to survey office premises of people, who have either bought or sold them.The surveys were carried out under Section 133A of the Income Tax Act, the official said.The taxmen also unearthed unaccounted money running into crores of rupees from some jewellers in Guwahati. www.dg3.dgevent.in

With India becoming a signatory to the WTO and the product patent regime set to become a reality by 2005, home-grown pharma companies are seeking to entrench themselves in the domestic market before the free-for-all slugfest begins. And, some of these companies have aggressively begun to adopt methods used by FMCG companies to push products and build brand equity. For instance, pharma majors like Ranbaxy, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Wockhardt and Aurobindo have been using event management techniques extensively over the last two years. "Some of the event management tools such as roadshows through patient awareness programmes, direct marketing to customers, doctors' meet, social marketing and health camps are very well patronised under the 'event management' tag," Mr Venkat Jasti, president, Bulk Drugs Manufacturers Association (BDMA), told ET. Pharma companies such as Cipla have started holding contests for doctors too. Cipla, for instance, had recently organised a brand association contest for doctors which helped the company to have a better brand recall value in doctors' minds. These activities were channelised through event management professionals, industry sources said. Natco Pharma which launched its anti-cancer drug Veenat early this year, has held health camps and undertaken drug donation programmes. The company claims to have built a relationship with more than 250 patients suffering from cancer by supplying Veenat free of cost. "The programme has found recognition and acclamation," Mr Rajeev Nannapaneni, vice-president (business development), Natco Pharma, said. Application of social marketing in event management too is happening, especially in marketing Hepatitis-B vaccines. "The social marketing techniques have helped companies like Shantha Biotech, Serum Institute of India and Wockhardt to improve their sales in the vaccine segment," industry sources said. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Event managers in Koramangala record growth upto 112 per cent

Gone are the days when every family member was involved in organising a wedding or a party. Parties now are outsourced in Koramangala. Thanks to the several event management companies in the area, residents now have all the help they needed for their parties, and they don't mind the heavy price tag either. So much so, that now Koramangala is now the new hub for event management companies. "Earlier the hub was Indiranagar, but now it's Koramangala," says Prawal Narayan, founder and general manager of Koramangala-based event management company, Event-u-all. Despite the growing competition most of the companies have recorded an annual growth between 30 percent to a whopping 112 percent. The growth story In the past few years, more companies have opened shop and thus, the competition has gone up. Besides this, the economic slowdown also raises its ugly head time and again. But, none of these challenges has hit the industry, thus owing to an exponential increase in demand. The growth of Snap Events substantiates the above fact. "Our business is growing. And we often have to limit the number of parties we organise to give special attention and superior quality. On an average we do at least 15 parties every month, business has grown to 112 percent from last year," says Ashwin Suresh, managing director, Snap events, who has been organising events since 2004. Similar is the growth trajectory for Event-u-all, "In spite of tight competition and a slowdown in corporate space we are seeing 40-50 percent year-on-year business growth," said Narayan. Ilyas Akthar, CEO of Koramangala-based Idreams Events is happy with the business growth. "We have seen an average growth of 30 percent every year. The numbers may seem low. But going by the fact that the event industry was hit pretty bad during recession, the numbers are fair." Akhtar also attributes the growth to an increasing number of youngsters in Koramangala and spending power of the residents. "I think with the growing youth population in Koramangala we see an increase in the clients' budgets." he says. According to the report by Ernst & Young and Event & Entertainment Management Association (EEMA), the organised portion of the Indian event management industry has grown at over 20 percent during the last two years and has been estimated around Rs 2,800 crore in 2011-12. The industry is expected to reach Rs 4,375 crore in 2013-14 driven by weddings, sports and higher spends on below-the-line promotional events. The report also states that there is a large unorganised events and activation sector as well, which could be as large or even larger than the organised portion of the industry. Demand for Personal Events The event industry has two markets to cash on, personal events and corporate events. According to industry players, there is a slowdown in the corporate events' market, but personal events seem to be slow-down proof. For Event-u-all, the personal events' segment in Koramangala has grown by 20 percent, whereas, the corporate event segment has seen a downfall by 50 percent. Event Mechanic's director Rajiv Stephen reiterates the same: "Corporate companies are now cost-cutting as far as events are concerned - they have cut costs by as much as 30 percent." Ashwin echoes the same trend. "Spending patterns in personal parties are increasing, but corporate budgets are getting tighter," says Ashwin. He also adds that number of personal parties or events has shot up in last two years. "From last year, the number of personal parties has increased by 45 percent." According to various event managers, the Bangalore market has become more 'glamorous' or in other words, 'Bollywoodish' with regard to weddings. Functions like 'sangeet' that were earlier unheard off in South India are now being organised by the event management companies. A client in Koramangala is ready to pay Rs 25 lakh to Rs 50 lakh for adding dash of glamour to wedding parties. "Koramangala has the right clientele for event management companies. Lot of high net worth individuals live in Koramangala, who want to have lavish and glamorous parties," explains Narayan. The last wedding that his company organised was for Rs 50 lakhs. Theme Parties Over the years the event management companies have seen a considerable rise in demand of theme parties in Koramangala. "Apart from weddings and sangeet there is a huge demand for theme parties," says Akthar. For, Event-u-all, queries for theme parties have grown by 70 percent from last year. And otherwise, the number of theme parties has gone up by 40 percent. These parties are usually organised for children. And parents are ready to shell out an amount of Rs 30,000 to Rs 35,000 depending on the theme and the size of the party. "Themes like Mickey Mouse, Disney Princess, Chota Bheem, Little Krishna are some of the most popular themes in Koramangala," says Ashwin. www.dg3.dgevent.in

4 UP cities register 68 pc growth in job generation

Four cities of Uttar Pradesh -- Lucknow, Kanpur, Meerut and Allahabad -- posted a staggering 68 per cent growth in job generation in the last fiscal, industry body Assocham has said. Education, banking, insurance, event management, real estate, IT/ITeS, human resources, hospitality and FMCG are leading job generating sectors in the state, according to an analysis of Assocham. Majority of other tier-I, -II and -III cities, however, saw a decline in job generation between the first quarter and last quarter of 2011-12 fiscal, it said. "Although, Uttar Pradesh accounts for a paltry 1.3 per cent in the overall job generation in India, it has undoubtedly emerged as the single most state with all leading cities registering significant growth in job generation," Assocham national secretary general D S Rawat said. "India has registered a dip of about 20 per cent in the total job generation during the aforesaid period which showcases a clear slowdown in employment," Rawat said. "This basically reinforces the picture that employers in India are turning very cautious in wake of the global economic slowdown which has also lead to a sharp decline in attrition levels at India Inc." Lucknow generated almost 1,700 jobs in the first quarter of the this fiscal, against about 1,100 jobs in the previous quarter, registering a growth rate of over 54 per cent. While Meerut registered a growth rate of over 133 per cent in the quarter over quarter job growth analysis, job generation in Allahabad registered a growth rate of over 127 per cent and Kanpur registered job generation growth rate of over 24 per cent, respectively, according to the analysis. Delhi-NCR generated over 29,000 jobs in the Q1 of the current financial year while over 1.2 lakh jobs were generated across India. Besides, Delhi-NCR with a share of about 23 per cent has also generated maximum jobs across different sectors throughout India and in the metros during the last two consecutive quarters. There has also been a dip ranging between 14-33 per cent across eight metros -- Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune, Assocham said. Assocham tracked the data on a daily basis for vacancies posted by about 3,500 companies via job portals and advertisements in the national/regional dailies and the news journals for 56 cities and 32 sectors offering job opportunities. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Delhi HC moved for credit for IPL awards function

Ahead of the IPL awards function in Mumbai on Friday, a company, which claims to have conceptualised the awards, on Thursday approached the Delhi High Court with a petition demanding it be given credit and compensation for the work. Propaganda Media and Marketing, an event management company, claims that it conceptualised the event but the management of IPL are giving credit to another company Cineyug Worldwide, the petition said. "The company is being denied the due credit and monetary benefits which are legally due to it. It seems that real intention behind such denial of credit and concomitant remuneration has been to illegally usurp the creative concept proposed by the company, thereby depriving it of the entire financial and monetary benefits accruing from the execution of the said concept," advocate Abhishekh Malhotra, who filed the petition on behalf of the event management company, said. "We want due credit to be given for our work and marketing and execution of IPL award 2010," said the advocate who would be pleading for compensation from the court when the matter is heard tomorrow. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Delhi becoming a hub for fashion education

With five fashion institutes up and running and more slated to arrive, fashion education in West Delhi is here to stay. It is presenting a good opportunity for students looking for a career in fashion design and they are ready to shell out a fee as high as Rs 6 lakh - Rs 8 lakh. Several other institutes offer similar yet cheaper alternatives for students who don't want to spend much. Institutes say the response in West Delhi has been impressive. According to Pearl Academy of Fashion, the leader among fashion institutes in the area, about 40 per cent of their students come from West Delhi at their Naraina centre that was started in 1993. "Our Naraina centre was a garment firm then," says Nandita Abraham, vice president, marketing & corporate affairs, Pearl Academy. "Now, we own about 7 buildings in the area where students come in from all over India and even from countries like Germany, the US and several European countries." Currently, Pearl Academy has about 700 students in the Naraina centre itself and the institute intakes about 1,000 students across its four centres in India. These private institutes also come up as a popular alternative for those who are not able to qualify for the more preferred government run institutes such as the National Institute of Fashion Technology and Nation Institute of Design. Unlike Pearl Academy other institutes in the area have a much smaller infrastructure but the investments are never less. Harish Arora, director, International Fashion Academy (IFA), which has his centre at Rajouri Garden explains, "The rentals for my institute run up to Rs 12 lakh - Rs 15 lakh a year. Other costs include faculty remuneration, recurring costs run up to Rs 3 lakh and all that is after excluding the electricity and water costs." IFA opened up last year itself with 140 students and has set a target of achieving a 50 per cent growth by this year. FOREIGN CONNECTION Most of these institutes make it a point to tie up with international universities to lure students. While Pearl Academy has a tie-up with Nottingham Trent University, IFA on the other hand is in talks with International Foundation of Fashion Technology to initiate such programmes in their institute. Moreover, student exchange programmes at different universities have been a hit among students as well as for the institutes. "Last year, we had sent about 100 students to countries under our student exchange programme," said Nandita, who is currently presiding over Pearl Academy's Chennai centre. DIFFERENT STROKES Fashion Institutes have now diversified into offering courses not just in fashion designing but other intertwined disciplines. International Institute of Fashion Technology (IIFT) that has one of its centres in Naraina offers courses in event management, documentation and quality control, interior designing and modelling as well. IFA, for that matter, has also forayed into retail management. Moreover, it has short term courses for dropouts and executives who couldn't continue their studies for multiple reasons. "In a year we see about 15 percent dropouts which are primarily students who get placed or are people who had left professional life for some reason." He adds further, "As far as retail management is concerned, once FDI in retail gets approved we are expecting this to be a much sought after course in the coming days." Similarly, Pearl Academy even has courses in digital film making, photography and new media design. However, Lisa Institute of Fashion, based in Rajouri Garden prefers to stick to basics and offer courses in the conventional streams of fashion and textile design and interior design. COMPETITIVE SPIRIT Though Pearl Academy is preferred among the students, other institutes welcome the competition. "Competition is a very healthy spirit, even if students don't get into Pearl they would look upon other institutes in the vicinity. More awareness leads to more competition and more growth for each one of us. This also encourages us to change ourselves to match better standards" says Harish Arora from IFA. WELL PLACED Institutes maintain that students have gone on and made it big after passing out and even during the course of their studies. Most of the students join big export houses, business houses and design houses or big fashion labels. Others even start their own companies and become entrepreneurs. "For this purpose itself we organise fashion shows and events, take part in competitions outside India just to give the students the adequate exposure which can help them look ahead," says Sanjew Larma, HOD, Lisa Institute of Fashion, Rajouri Garden. FRANCHISEE ISSUES Most of these institutes that succeed in building a brand name opt for inviting franchisees in order to expand further. However, not always does this franchisee model succeed. In an effort to expand their business, IIFT chose the franchisee model only to be left with more competition amongst their centres. In 1993, IIFT opened a centre in West Delhi's Rajouri Garden that received great response until 2009 when two other centres were opened by IIFT at Naraina, Paschim Vihar and Karol Bagh. When students opted for other centres that were easily reachable, Rajouri Garden centre had to be closed down. PK Suri, director, IIFT Naraina, says, "We are making all efforts to revive the centre. We have the best campus and facilities which other centres do not have. Unlike other centres we don't operate from rented spaces. This helps us accumulate and match the institute expenses." IIFT has a 1200 sq yard campus at Naraina. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Demand for organising hassle-free, entertaining events pushing business of professional event managers

There was a time, when birthday parties involved hosting kids from neighbourhood at home for some cake and snacks, while weddings usually saw hassled family members running around making arrangements for a number of functions on the itinerary, starting from the venue to catering to decorations. Today parents and family members in Pimpri Chinchwad region are happily leaving the logistics and arrangements that go with organising weddings and parties to event managers. Besides traditional mass events like Sangeet, baby shower, bachelor parties, etc., PCMC-based event managers are also getting a lot of demand to organise corporate events "The business of event management has become very professional now," said Chetan Londe, director of Pune Hunagama events management group. "People have very little time to look into the logistics of organising any event, be it their kid's first birthday party, or their anniversary. With increased budgets, people don't mind spending the money for everything being managed professionally, so that they can enjoy occasion without hassles." Pune Hunagama, which started three years back, has been seeing 20 customers or so every month especially during the wedding season. "In the last five years or so, from small parties at home to big fat Indian weddings, people hire events management companies for both convenience and creativity," adds Londe. From just a few, the number of event management companies has more than doubled in the last three years in PCMC belt. "The industry is seeing a growth of 25 percent every year and the customers in PCMC region are opening up to involving event managers even for cultural events such as garba and other festival-related events. While the budgets for birthdays can start at Rs 25000 or so, weddings and receptions start after Rs 5 lakh and can run in up to Rs 30 lakh or even more," said Allwyn Kocheta, event manager at Sterling 3. Besides the reason of convenience, customers are looking for something unique and different from their parties. This is another reason for event managers pushing up the demand. Theme-based events catch the fancy of the customers today. "Customers want their events to be creative and unique," said Rupali Kulkarni of Kulkarni's event management company. "Immensely popular are children's theme-based birthday parties. From cartoon characters such as Chota Bheem, or Scooby Doo, to themes revolving around colours or subjects such as history or science are a hit. Parents find it easier to let us make these arrangements as we find the right entertainment group, ensure that children have fun, arrange costumes, masks, return gifts etc.," she said. FOOD FOR THOUGHT Food still remains a crucial part of an event. "It is no longer the only focus of an event," says Rocky Samuel Bhakara owner of Dynamites event management company. "Entertainment, venue, ambience. They all make a great impact today and young people's tastes too have changed. They want electro and trance music, they want international dancers and they want bold and unique decorations." Dr Swati Burute who threw a birthday party for her son says that having an event manager take care of things helps the family relax. "I am a gynecologist and have little time to go running around for decorations, food, invitations etc. Also it's a task to keep children, and adults entertained and engaged for four hours. The company helped us get a good anchor, had games and other activities planned for children, and fashion shows and dance performances for adults. This ensures that the party is a success, even if we pay a little more to the company," she explained. Corporate events today too are entrusted to event management companies, rather than being handled internally and bigger the event, the more number of event partners, who are part of the programme. Typically when big companies such as Tata Motors are hosting an event in their plant in Chakan, then their main event managing company attached to their headquarters will partner with us for the event organised here. From a time when HR team took care of events, this is a changed scenario today," said Bhakara. Commercial events too today have a host of activities starting from family outings for employees to promotional events and inaugurations etc. "Corporate events now involve a lot of planning. There are road shows, mall promotions, customer activities etc. And event management companies have to come up with creative activities to make these events stick in the minds of the consumers," said Rohit Kumar Jaiswal, assistant operations manager at Glance Events. "Companies have a budget of Rs 1 lakh or more depending on the size of the event. Many of them want posters, advertising as well as events to be handled by the same company, in which case we have a number of events with one client itself," said Sanjay Patil, proprietor of Yash events management company. www.dg3.dgevent.in

BEN bags IFFI-2006

The Delhi based event management company, Brilliant Entertainment Networks (BEN) has bagged the contract as the official event management agency for the International Film Festival of India, 2006, to be held in Goa this November. BEN was selected after an elaborate selection procedure that went on for 3 months. This will be for the first time that the Event Management agency will take care of the inaugural and the closing ceremonies too, this is because the state government has been entrusted by the Union Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. The Chief Secretary, ESG, Mr.J.P.Singh said, "The firm has been selected because of their creative design and marketing strategy." Speaking on this achievement, Mr.Raman Raheja, Director, BEN, said," This is one of the biggest projects of our events industry. IFFI-2006 gives us an opportunity to use our technical and creative expertise to take this event to the level of Cannes Film Festival." www.dg3.dgevent.in

C Sivasankaran to sell his 3.75% stake in Tata Teleservices

Serial entrepreneur C Sivasankaran has initiated moves to sell his 3.75% stake in Tata Teleservices as he looks to raise cash to build a war chest for newer investment opportunities during the economic slowdown. The billionaire investor, or Siva as he's popularly called, has mandated the Nimesh Kampani-promoted investment bank JM Financial to find a potential buyer, and the bank has sounded out private equity funds and hedge funds, said two people close to the transaction. The Siva group owns 27.46 crore shares, translating into a 3.75% stake in Tata Teleservices. The shares have been held through Siva Industries & Holdings, SIG Event Management and Enterprises and Goldman Dealer Pvt Ltd, according to a recent filing made by Tata Teleservices with the Registrar of Companies (RoC). Neither Sivasankaran nor Tata Teleservices responded to a set of e-mail questions on the issue, while JM Financial declined to comment. "Siva wants to strengthen the balance sheet at a time when the slowdown opens up good investment opportunities. He had recently exited from Aamby Valley and Hindoostan Mills," said a person close to the Siva group. Sivasankaran, 55, who is known for his skill to buy stake in companies at lower valuations and then exit with handsome profits, pared his stake in the country's second largest CDMA operator from 8% in 2006. The Siva group chairman had sold part of the stake to Tata Tele's strategic partner DoCoMo in 2009. Japanese major DoCoMo, which bought 26% stake in Tata Teleservices, had acquired 6% from the then shareholders on a pro-rata basis. The Tatas own close to 60% in the telecom company. The Siva group, which paid Rs 1,000-1,200 crore to buy 8% stake in Tata Tele in 2006, will find it difficult to get a good valuation as revenues in the telecom sector have been hit by stiff competition and adverse regulatory and tax laws. Country's top telecom player Bharti Airtel reported its 10th straight quarter profit decline as competition squeezed margins and most carriers in the once-booming sector are languishing in the red. Figures for the unlisted telecom company Tata Teleservices are not available in the public domain. However, its listed arm Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) widened its net loss to Rs 162 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2012. "Telecom sector isn't performing well. Debts have reached alarming levels and regulatory hurdles are posing a major threat. It's difficult to get good valuations at this point in time," said Ankita Somani, research analyst at Mumbai-based Angel Broking. Despite the economic slowdown pushing down valuation in the real estate sector, Siva group had recently sold its 50% stake in Mumbai-based Hindoostan Mills property. It had exited Sahara Group's Aamby Valley project last year, netting a profit of around Rs 600 crore in four years. www.dg3.dgevent.in

Casino giant Caesars Entertainment plans to open hotel in India

Caesars Entertainment, the world's biggest casino company, is entering India through non-gaming businesses such as luxury hotels and entertainment businesses such as managing Bollywood-centric events, concerts, musicals, drama and stand-up comedy. India does not allow foreigners in the gaming business. The Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment, which owns 50 hotels and casinos and several golf resorts around the world, plans to open up to 15 hotels in India in a decade and has already initiated talks with around half-a-dozen real estate developers, a top official of the $9-billion firm said. "We spent the last year exploring the Indian market and there are great opportunities for us," Neera Chanani, South Asia head at Caesars Entertainment Hospitality, said. "In the non-gaming space we will focus on hotels and convention centres and building entertainment destinations within or adjacent to them," she said. The company plans to bring its global brands and offerings such as upscale hotel brand Caesars Hotel and luxury offering Caesars Palace, and customise them for the local market. "In the entertainment space one of the major focus areas will be Bollywood. We are looking to create content that is specific to the Indian market," Chanani said. Caesars is in talks with large event management companies as well as production houses in India for partnerships. Experts say it's a good time for Ceasars to enter the country. "In case of non-gaming entertainment, this could be the right time for Caesars to evaluate and introduce new concepts in India," Vivek Dahiya, CEO of real estate consultancy GenReal, said. "Though the market is not evolved yet and is still unstructured, with the success of Formula 1 (Grand Prix), Kingdom of Dreams (alive entertainment destination), bowling destinations in the country, it is clear that Indians are willing to experiment beyond films and F&B and spend money," he said. "The entertainment offering could be a differentiating factor for Caesars in India in comparison to other hospitality companies," Dahiya said. Caesars' entry will mean that India could host performances by music stars Elton John, Celine Dion and Rod Stewart, and stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who all have traditionally been associated with the hotel's entertainment properties such as The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Internationally, Caesars has about 15 destinations for live entertainment events like concerts, musicals, drama and stand-up comedy events. Many of them are in the Las Vegas strip, known for its casino business. "We will look at big cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, besides tapping locations like Goa and Tier-II markets," Chanani said. The firm is primarily scouting for management partnerships, but is also open to investing in properties. When asked about the investment planned for India, she said: "There is no fixed figure in our mind at the moment." The company is also exploring the market in the gaming space, although Indian policies do not permit foreign direct investment in casino and gambling, which are banned in most states. Some states like Goa and Sikkim territories like Daman have given limited licences to Indian entrepreneurs to run casinos. These businesses have been making huge money on the back of growing prosperity of Indians. There is no report or data that has estimated the quantum of gaming activity in India. A PwC report estimates the casino market in Asia Pacific to more than double to $79.3 billion (approx 4 lakh crore) in 2015 from $34.2 billion in 2010. Swiss wealth manager Julius Baer expects the number of high net worth individuals in India, with assets of $1 million or more, would more than double to 4,03,000 by 2015. Recently Michael A Leven, president and CEO of integrated resort developer Las Vegas Sands Corp, had told ET that his company is open to having operations in India, but it would be either in Delhi and Mumbai. "We have looked at India as a potential market but there are problems like gaming is not legal and lack of infrastructure is another issue," Leven had said. www.dgevent.in

Let's get this show on the road

What lies beneath the bright lights, movie icons, rock stars and super models...the breathless extravaganzas that frenzied crowds shell out a few thousands to experience...the concerts, award ceremonies and corporate promotions? Lurking behind the scenes is a still-nascent industry that every now and again explodes into a few hours of pure enthrallment. It's an industry that is slowly creeping into the corporate consciousness as a viable alternative to more traditional communication methods. Event management as an industry is just taking off in India. It's hard to estimate the industry's exact size due to the unorganised nature of the different segments it comprises, but in '02 gross earnings from live entertainment and event management were estimated at Rs 330 crore. According to a FICCI report, event management of promotions and launches constituted the major part at Rs 170 crore. By '07, rationalisation of entertainment taxes could further boost industry revenues to Rs 1,160 crore. In 1991, live entertainment was just a Rs 2-crore industry, which grew to Rs 150 crore in '01. It is projected to grow at 30% per annum to a size of Rs 560 crore by '06. In '02, the industry managed over 1,000 live events. The increasing clutter, escalating costs and reduced efficiency of traditional media has encouraged disillusioned corporates to looks further afield, and many have settled on the more cost-effective event marketing option. Events allow a company to break through the ad clutter and target an audience by enhancing or creating an image via association with a particular event, while reinforcing the product or service and driving sales. Says Farid Currim, asst director of Event Management Development Institute, "There is a lot of competition with different brands being launched. Organisations need to innovate to keep people coming back. Events are also often accompanied with editorial (press) coverage, which increases visibility." Traditionally, events were considered useful for rural markets and for products with a ban on advertising like liquor and cigarettes. Low literacy levels and limited media penetration made events an imperative exercise in rural markets. But today, events are no longer confined to a few products and markets. Event marketing is gaining popularity in long-term brand image building and humanising of corporates. Sponsorship as a promotional activity has grown remarkably in recent years with current world-wide sponsorships estimated at $22bn. Moreover, recent professional reports show that 75% of marketing practitioners favour further developments of this communication tool. Unfortunately, in India, event marketing is still in a nascent stage. The lack of formal training in event management means that there is an shortage of professionals. Says Sabbas Joseph of Wizcraft, "There are no event managers we can hire, we create them." Still, training and education opportunities are evolving. There are now a handful of institutes that offer specialisations, diplomas and certificates in event management at the graduate and post-graduate level. Mudra Institute of Communications Ahmedabad (MICA) offers a specialisation in event management and direct marketing to students of its two-year post graduate (PG) programme in communications. The Mumbai-based International Institute of Event Management (IEM) offers a one-year part-time certificate course in event management. Event Management Development Institute (EMDI), Mumbai, offers a one-year PG diploma and a diploma in event management. The National Institute of Event Management (NIEM) offers two courses open to students with a higher secondary degree. NIEM runs a one-year diploma in event management and a three-year diploma in event management & mass media communication. The one-year diploma in event management covers basic and advanced event management, whereas the three-year course includes PR, advertising, mass communications, and film & TV techniques. Course content of these programmes includes theoretical concepts as well as practical training. In many cases institutes tie-up with event houses and clients so students can get on-the-job training. Event planning & marketing, PR, production, legal, technical and financial issues and measurement are some broad areas covered in these programmes. Recently, two more courses have found their way onto the event management scene: The Department of Continuing and Adult Education and Extension Work of SNDT Women's University, in collaboration with the IEM, has launched a diploma in event management for students who have passed their HSC or equivalent exams; and MICA has launched a nine months PG certificate programme in PR and event management. MICA also conducts a professional development programme on 'brand building through event management' directed at professionals from marketing, media, entertainment, event management, PR, advertising agencies and aspiring entrepreneurs. www.dgevet.in www.facebook.com/djvideek www.dg3.dgevent.in

Luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Armani make a beeline for Chennai

Venu Srinivasan, chairman and managing director of TVS Motor, says he belongs to the 'dinosaur era' when fellow Tamilians were embarrassed to buy a car, let alone flaunt it. "I used to drive around in a Hyundai Santro even seven years ago. But today, our children cannot do without big cars, premium homes, and shopping at luxury stores."
Contrast the 57-year-old Srinivasan's simplicity with the opulence of 34-year-old entrepreneur TT Siddharth. The director of operations at Maya Appliances owns nine superbikes and two BMWs. "I am a bike enthusiast, and have Harleys, Ducatis and Hondas in my collection," he says. "My parents belonged to a different generation. But times are changing. The younger lot likes to spend on luxury products as they are in line with global fashion and trends."
Chennai has changed dramatically over the past few years. Rapid growth, which triggered migration from other parts of India and an influx of expat workers, exposed the traditionally conservative society to a swanky lifestyle, prodding rich families to spend on luxury shopping. Car and bike makers, luxury hotels and a host of brands like Louis Vuitton and Armani are rushing in to make hay in this sunshine of wealth and consumerism.
The city, home to over 4.6 million, is embracing this change with open arms. The day French luxury brand Louis Vuitton opened its store in Chennai-its fifth in India-there was a rush of eager shoppers. Louis Vuitton's products sell for between Rs 10,000 and Rs 7.5 lakh, the upper end of the range the average annual income for an Indian middle-class family. Louis Vuitton also expects shoppers from cities like Salem, Coimbatore and Madurai to visit its new store. Luxury destination 'Bergamo' that houses the Louis Vuitton store will soon have exclusive outlets of Bottega Venetta, Cartier watches and Jimmy Choo shoes, says Ajay Agarwal, managing director of Bergamo.
Earlier this year, iconic bike brand Harley-Davidson opened an outlet after it saw many people from the city buying from its Bangalore outlet. The city has now got two brand new five-star luxury hotels: ITC's Grand Chola and The Leela Palace, which are changing the luxury skyline of the city.
Genesis Luxury, which markets several big luxury brands in India, operates a format called Luxxe Box in Chennai that houses brands like Canali, Paul Smith and Etro. "Chennai is a new market for luxury and has growing potential since people are well-travelled and aware of international brands," says Sanjay Kapoor, managing director of Genesis Luxury.

In 2010, Chennai gave jobs to one lakh people and found its place in the Forbes list of ten fastest growing cities in the world. According to experts, the city may have smaller demand for luxury goods compared to Delhi and Mumbai, but it is growing rapidly.
"Consumers' taste, exposure to luxury and aesthetic sense is at par with the rest," says Atul Malhotra, founder of Evoluzione, a multi-brand retailer of Chic designer outfits. "This is the reason why we are opening another store in the city."
Leela Hotels, which recently soft launched a super luxury hotel in the city, is betting on big business from corporate conferences and weddings. "We already have seven weddings booked," says Amruda Nair, head of asset management at The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts.
According to wedding planners, many Chennaites are choosing plush hotels over temples or other religious places, where weddings are held traditionally. "There is a lot of exposure to north India. Brides and grooms today want functions like mehendi and ladies' sangeet, which was never part of the tradition here," says Vidya Gajapati Raju Singh, a Chennai-based wedding planner. A wedding at a five-star hotel can cost between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 1 crore.
Chennai has seen an influx of people not only from rest of India, but also from other countries. "A lot of expats working in software firms and automobile companies are repeat customers," says Soumya Keshavan, Good Earth's business partner in Chennai. Good Earth, the premier lifestyle and home decor design house, set up a store in the city four years ago and has not been disappointed.
"There are a lot of self-made men, entrepreneurs, and senior executives in the city who are buying our products. Many of them have worked with global companies and have developed a taste for biking over time," said Anoop Prakash, managing director of Harley-Davidson India. In Chennai, customers are known for their loyalty, but they insist on value for money. "The customers here are mostly practical, not whimsical. They are getting bolder," says jewellery designer Bharathi Raviprakash, who owns Studio Tara. The younger generation is fond of flashing luxury brands, she adds.

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Event management industry to touch Rs 5k cr by 2015'

Hyderabad-based Rachnoutsav Events Academy, which plans to open five new centres offering integrated full-time learning programme in event management and wedding planning, today said it expects the event management industry to attain Rs 5,000 crore size by 2015.
"With a compounded annual growth of 14 per cent, it (event management industry) is projected to be Rs 5,000 crore by 2015 in the country," Director of Rachnoutsav Events Academy Sanjay Kankaria told reporters here.
According to industry experts, annual wedding and events is pegged at around Rs 1,500-1,800 crore.
The event management industry in Andhra Pradesh alone is put at around Rs 300 to 500 crore, Kankaria said.
Advancements in technology is helping the industry in all the spheres, like production, multi-location, exhibitions and marketing, and it is getting more professional, he added.
Talking about Rachnoutsav Events Academy, he said, "Our programme is attracting youth to consider unconventional careers in view of unlimited opportunities in event management and wedding planning."
The academy has been floated by Rachnoutsav Events Pvt Ltd, which has an experience of over a decade in handling events of clients including Google, Microsoft, Airtel, Godrej, Motorola, Novartis, Femina, State Bank of India, Ramky, Toyota, SAB Miller, Suzuki, Apollo Hospitals and GE Money.
Soon, Rachnoutsav will also offer wedding planning services in South Africa.
As many Indians live in South Africa, there is a huge demand for this service, Kankaria said.
The academy has been accorded Africa Bridal Industry Accreditation and a South African Wedding Planning School has also approached it to share experience in handling Indian weddings as well as train students, he said.
He said the academy will initially offer three courses in event management and one in wedding planning. The company will also set up five new training centres in five years and plans to have 10 centres under franchisee-model.
"We also provide placement assistance through our networking advantage with over 100 top event management companies association EEMA (Entertainment & Event Management Association) in the country," he said.
"We have been in touch with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to recognise Event Management as a skill development," he said.
In 12 years, Rachnoutsav plans to train over 33,000 people, he said, adding the project cost envisaged over next 10 years is Rs 75 crore.

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HP announces addition to security solutions portfolio

HP today announced additions to its security solutions portfolio that will enable enterprises to proactively protect their data and network rather than just reacting to threats.
" Cloud, mobility and big data initiatives are helping firms solve challenges, while driving innovation and bringing in agility and improved financial management. However, these initiatives also can introduce big security concerns," HP India MD Neelam Dhawan told reporters here.

According to a study commissioned by HP and conducted by Coleman Parkes Research, more focus is placed on reactive security measures than proactive security measures with half of respondents said time and budget spent on reactive security outweighs investments in proactive measures.
However, the study added that organisations in India are becoming more proactive in their approach to security with more focus on strategy, governance and security intelligence with 93 per cent of respondents indicating that they are exploring Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) measures.
"Cybersecurity threats are growing exponentially, and without a proactive information risk management strategy, enterprise growth, innovation and efficiencies are hindered," Damanjit S Uberoi, Chief Solutions Architect and Evangelist, South Asia, HP Enterprise Security Products said.
New features added include HP Assured Identity (solution offering identity, credential and access management), Comprehensive Applications Threat Analysis (CATA) on demand and HP Security Operations Center (SOC) consulting services.
Other features include HP Data Center Protection Services, HP ArcSight Enterprise Security Manager 6.0c and HP TippingPoint NX Platform Next Generation Intrusion Prevention Systems (NGIPS).
HP also announced a mobile application for IT security professionals as well as HP Access Control (HP AC) Printing Solutions to protect against printer-based intrusions.
The Indian SIEM market stood at about USD 12 million and is expected to grow at about 21 per cent in 2012.
As a whole, the key spenders for network security in India are the banking, financial services and insurance players, government and service providers like telecom, IT and ITeS companies.

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International MBA; the GMAT way

I have completed my 1st year MCom and am now employed. Am I eligible to give the GMAT? My 2nd year exam is due this year, but I won't be able to appear for it. Would a diploma from a university fulfil the requirement for GMAT?

Kshitiz Pandey
GMAT scores are used by B-schools to admit students into MBA programmes. In the case of B-schools in the US and most other international locations, the basic requirement for admission to MBA is 16 years of formal education and 2-6 years of work experience after graduation. You have completed 16 years of education, but certain universities would not consider the one year of M Com relevant because it is not a complete degree. A university administered one-year postgraduate diploma would be acceptable. In your case, if you could manage to complete the 2nd year of M Com, you need not consider any other course.
Event Management
I am a graduate and I want to learn more about event management. Which institutes conduct this course?
Ritu Parmar
Event management involves overall concept of the event, arrangement of sponsorship, preparation of an advertising and communication plan, process design for the complete event, identification and arrangements of technical infrastructure, planning and execution, seeking necessary permissions from the appropriate authorities and ensuring that the event conforms to existing laws and regulations, etc. Among the training institutes are Event Management Development Institute, Mumbai (www.emdiindia.com), KC College of Management Studies, Mumbai, National Institute of Event Management, Mumbai (www.niemindia.com) with branches in other cities, SNDT Women's University, Mumbai (in collaboration with International Institute of Event Management), International Centre For Event Marketing and Management (icemindia@yahoo.com) New Delhi and Indian Institute of Event Management, New Delhi. An MBA or equivalent degree or public relations training could also lead to event management. Listing is indicative.

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