Chile’s BTM 2009 Brought Innovation in Times of Needs

Focused on the MICE segment in Latin America, the second edition of the Business Travel Meeting (BTM) –held in Chile earlier this month- gathered a large number of travel industry companies and professionals from the country and all over the region willing to do what it takes in the face of the ongoing economic and financial crisis that’s sweeping the planet.

Regardless of its being one of the youngest fairs in the region, many people believe the fledgling tradeshow bears watching as the organizers are being urged to beef up the event by adding more attendees and opening new business opportunities for exhibitors and buyers alike. Caribbean News Digital was there and picked up a few opinions worth sharing with our readers.

For Alejandra Sastre, from Chilean tour operator Concord, “BTM is the only event that manages to gather all members from a particular segment at a national level. However, this fair needs better producers and organizers.”

Marisol Giraldo Ramirez, manager of a Colombian company involved in business travel and MICE, “the fair is a great opportunity to learn from both a theoretical and practical standpoint. BTM helps you stay tuned with the latest developments, posted on what’s going on and what the newest trends in the industry are. In a fair like this you can try out new alternatives and choices that have begun to trickle in as far as incentives are concerned.”

Other participants, though, agree there are quite a number of aspects that should be improved for next year’s edition. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t attend the seminars because they happened along with the appointments I’d previously arranged, said Graciela Leal, chief of SMF Events from Colombia. “This is something that must be taken into account for coming editions. Both activities are important and worth attending. Hopefully this won’t happened in 2010.”

As many as 3,000 visitors held over 2,000 business meetings in the course of BTM 2009, according to the Organizing Committee. Over two thirds of the participating companies hailed from Latin America.