IBTM Comes to North America October 10, 2008 Reed Travel Exhibitions to bring AIBTM to Baltimore in 2010
By Alex Palmer
Reed Travel Exhibitions announced on October 7 that it will be launching a new international trade show for the global meetings and incentive industry—the Americas Incentive Business Travel and Meetings Exhibition (AIBTM). The show will be held in Baltimore, Md. from June 29 to July 1, 2010.
This new major event joins the company's portfolio of exhibitions, which includes EIBTM in Barcelona, GIBTM in Abu Dhabi, and CIBTM in Beijing. Like the other ITBMs, the show will be a Hosted Buyer program in which exhibitors are matched with pre-qualified buyers in appointments scheduled prior to the show.
"AIBTM will be based on the hugely successful EIBTM model and with our considerable expertise and reputation in the meetings sector in providing best business, best education and best networking," says Paul Kennedy MBE, group exhibition director of Reed Travel Exhibitions Meetings and Incentive Events.
Kennedy says that Baltimore was chosen as the host city because of "the enthusiasm, desire and ability shown by the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association, The Convention Center, DMCs and hotels." The city also offers logistical ease, according to Kennedy. The Baltimore Convention Center, where AIBTM will be held, is in close proximity to the Baltimore-Washington International Airport with plenty of quality hotels (and 2,400 new rooms currently under construction), venues and amenities nearby. The city’s proximity to Washington D.C. also expands the transport options for international visitors.
Tom Noonan, president and CEO of the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association, is enthusiastic about the choice of Baltimore for AIBTM. He points to the economic boost that EIBTM brought to Barcelona and Spain in general not only from the conference itself but also from the business that meeting and event planners brought in after visiting the area. "It's really going to put us on the international map," says Noonan. "It's the most significant convention booking Baltimore has ever had."
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