Phuket Business: MICE expert to speak at AMCHAM event tomorrow

PHUKET: Tomorrow, March 14, the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) will host a tourism event at Angsana Laguna Phuket focusing on how to sustainably grow MICE business.

One of the keynote speakers at the event will be Mrs Supawan Teerarat, vice president of strategic and business development at the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB).

The TCEB is a government agency working under the direction of the Prime Minister’s office, and is the only agency in Thailand directly responsible for developing the kingdom’s MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) industry.

The agency was established with the aim of attracting more business events to Thailand and promoting Thailand as the preferred destination for MICE events in the Asia region.

Mrs Supawan has been working with the TCEB for almost five years, starting as the director of the Exhibitions Department, where she helped pave the way for Thailand to become the leading exhibition host country in the Asean region, in terms of net space sold and revenue per fair. She also led the push to establish Thailand Exhibition as a global brand.

Now, as vice president of strategic and business development, she is heading five strategic marketing departments: Meeting industry, Exhibitions, Domestic MICE, Marketing and Corporate Branding and MICE Capabilities.

She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, majoring in Finance Management, and holds a master’s degree in Public Administration, majoring in Public Policy. She has been working in the MICE industry for over 18 years, making her one of Thailand’s foremost experts on the exhibitions and conferences industry.

Prior to joining the TCEB, she worked in the incentive industry with Diethelm Travel, holding the position of group marketing director for venue management at Queen Sirikit National Convention Center, and gained experience as a professional exhibition organizer at BITEC (Bangkok International Exhibition Center) and the IMPACT convention center complex.

To hear Mrs Supawan speak about the development of Thailand’s MICE industry, make sure you attend the AMCHAM tourism event at Angsana Laguna Phuket. The event is open to the public and presents a tremendous opportunity for those associated with hotels, tourism and the service industry to learn more about Phuket’s MICE sector and how this important segment can contribute to the island’s focus in generating quality visitors versus quantity.

Other speakers will include: Welf Ebeling, vice president, APAC – Global Business Travel Association (GBTA); and Mark Simmons, vice president sales and marketing, Asia-Pacific – Outrigger Hotels and Resorts.

Registration for the event begins at 4pm, presentations start at 4:30pm and at 6pm there will be networking drinks. Entry costs 100 baht.