SINGAPORE, 10 October 2024: FCM Meetings & Events, ahead of its global relaunch, reveals that more than a quarter of customers allocate half their travel budgets to the MICE sector, according to its landmark global State of the Market* survey released on Wednesday.
The first-of-its-kind survey undertaken by Flight Centre Corporate shows that many customers allocate more than half of their travel budget to the MICE sector.
Surveying Flight Centre Corporate customers, 28% of businesses said more than 50% of their budget goes towards travelling for MICE, 11% revealed an allocation of between 25 and 50%, and 10% stated that 15 to 25% of their travel spend goes towards the MICE sector.
FCM Meetings & Events Global General Manager Simone Seiler said the findings came when the business was repositioning worldwide to deliver a unified offering, leveraging itself as a subsidiary of FCM Travel, and harnessing its global scale, but with regional customisation.
“Globalising the FCM M&E business will allow us to add consistency and scale for customers looking for a global meetings and events provider, with hub offices in all four regions, global consistency but local nuance to understand specific client needs,” Seiler explained.
“We now operate in more than a dozen countries globally, with future expansion plans in the works. Australia, India, and Mexico are currently thriving for us, and we see North America, Asia, and Europe as key regions with the largest opportunities for growth.
“FCM M&E is targeting exponential growth, and we’re already expanding into the likes of the United Arab Emirates and South Africa, which will allow us to expand our workforce to include the more than 365 people we already have servicing our valued customers.
“Our global vision for the future of meetings and travel management is centred around innovation, sustainability, accessibility and seamless integration of technology like our new FCM Venue Finder platform to enhance the overall experience for our clients.
“By combining our expertise in event management with cutting-edge technology and a commitment to sustainability, we aim to lead the industry in creating future-proof, impactful, and responsible meetings and events.”
As part of its global relaunch, FCM Meetings & Events has welcomed Joanne Shaw, the new Global Director of Enterprise Sales, to its London office.
“Joanne brings a wealth of MICE industry knowledge to drive strategic growth, articulating the MICE value proposition, excelling at building multi-level relationships, and stakeholder management. Her dedication to understanding client needs and crafting tailored solutions will play a key role.” said Seiler.
“Corporates are increasingly investing early in large-scale travel arrangements to optimise airline and hotel deals. The demand for new MICE destinations is at an all-time high, with destinations such as Doha, Seoul, Tbilisi, and Taipei growing in popularity. Established MICE destinations Singapore and Dubai are witnessing robust demand.
“There’s also a trend towards reinvigorating well-known locations with fresh, exciting offerings to ensure quick turnarounds. This dynamic is particularly notable among corporates managing multiple tours due to a spike in business activity.
“Clients seek a comprehensive global programme that consolidates what is often fragmented. I’m thrilled about Joanne joining our team to demonstrate our global solutions as part of our mission to globalise FCM Meetings & Events truly,” added FCM Meetings & Events Leader for Asia Manpreet Bindra.
For more information on the State of the market survey visit
https://www.fcmtravel.com/en/resources/news-hub/state-of-market-survey-results.
*The State of the Market survey was conducted online between 3 June 2024 to 11 July 2024. The target respondents were corporate travellers and FCM Travel customers, specifically decision-makers, travel managers, and authorised travel bookers. All Corporate Traveller and FCM Travel regions were included. A random sample of 562 responses was obtained utilising the innovative Qualtrics platform.
