Market Challenges And Opportunities
Singapore Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) Market Drivers:
- Growth of Corporate Travel and Events: The growth of corporate travel and rising number of corporate events and trade fairs is a major driver for Singapore Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) market. Companies are increasingly investing in face-to-face meetings, conferences, and exhibitions to launch new products, generate leads, and build relations with clients. The trend is likely to continue with more product launches, sales conferences, and team building events. According to the Singapore Tourism Board data, Singapore hosted over 600 business events and exhibitions in 2021 compared to around 500 in 2020. This included marquee events like Credit Suisse Annual Forum and OCBC Securities Forum which brought thousands of CEOs, entrepreneurs and policymakers to Singapore. This helped generate over 4.5 million tourism receipts in 2021, a 100% increase over the previous year.
- Infrastructure for Hosting Large Events: Singapore has established a state-of-the-art infrastructure comprising convention centers, venues, and hotels that can host large-scale international MICE events seamlessly. Locations like the Sands Expo and Convention Center at Marina Bay, Singapore EXPO, and MAX Atria convention center offer huge capacity and customizable options. Supporting transport infrastructure and connectivity within Singapore enables participants to travel efficiently. Such advanced infrastructure will enable Singapore to host more global events and conferences in the coming years. According to the Singapore Tourism Board, meetings and conferences witnessed a growth of over 100% from 2015 to 2019 in terms of delegates hosted in the country. Similarly, exhibition floor space in Singapore grew by 30% during the same period. This growth has been fuelled by Singapore's ability to successfully bid for and host many large scale regional and international events. More recently in 2022, the island nation hosted World Economic Forum's annual meeting, bringing global leaders from politics and business together.
- Government Support and Initiatives: The Singapore government has recognized MICE industry as a key economic pillar and provides substantial policy support. It has set up the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) which provides funding, assistance and incentives to attract major events and exhibitions. For instance, STB provides the BEI grant which co-funds up to 50% of costs for approved MICE events in Singapore. There are also bespoke incentives, subsidies and tax exemptions offered to MICE event organizers which lower overall costs. Such government aid will boost growth. STB arranged for participation in over 60 international trade fairs and roadshows from 2020-2022 to promote Singapore. As a result, Singapore welcomed over 28,000 participants for association meetings in 2022, a significant increase over pre-pandemic levels according to the International Congress and Convention Association.
- Strong International Connectivity: Singapore's connectivity to global source markets via air transport is a major advantage for MICE tourism. Changi Airport serves over 100 international airlines and provides direct connections to key regions worldwide. The frequency of flights from cities like New Delhi, Dubai, London, Sydney and others lowers cost and duration of travel for MICE participants. Singapore's global connectivity will drive rising inflow of business travelers and MICE visitors in the future. Singapore is connected to over 330 cities globally through Changi Airport. In 2021, Changi Airport handled about 2.5 million tonnes of cargo and hosted nearly 46 million passenger movements before the pandemic.
Singapore Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) Market Restraints:
- Budget Constraints: High costs of venues, Food and beverage service (F&B), accommodation, and logistics in Singapore makes it an expensive choice for event organizers, especially for small and medium scale events. Furthermore, corporate budget cuts on travel, venue, and activities post COVID-19 has impacted MICE spending. Cost advantage of other Asian destinations like Bangkok, Hong Kong relative to Singapore is a restraint. Providing affordable MICE packages is needed to overcome this. According to a 2023 report by the World Bank, Singapore had one of the highest costs of doing business in Asia This puts additional pressure on organizers who are trying to keep budgets low. The buying power is diminished which limits the scale and size of events that can be held. Offering competitive pricing for event venues, services, and accommodations to encourage more organizations to choose Singapore for their events.
- Geopolitical Uncertainties: Being an international business hub, uncertainties like trade tensions, health advisories or travel restrictions can negatively impact future MICE tourism in Singapore. For instance, the ongoing geopolitical issues between China and Taiwan or potential health risks can alter corporate travel or cause event cancellations. Managing such external risks through planning and coordination will be vital. As evidenced in industry surveys conducted by Association of Event Organizers in 2021 and Singapore Tourism Board in early 2022, over 60% of respondents stated that geopolitical volatility in the Indo-Pacific region is one of the top concerns impacting their decision to choose Singapore for future business events. Expanding service offerings to cater to different types of events and clientele can reduce dependency on any single market segment.
- Rising Competition: Intensifying competition from other established and upcoming MICE destinations in Asia Pacific like Seoul, Macau, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, and Shenzhen poses a threat to Singapore's market share. Many destinations are offering competitive costs, bespoke services, and destination incentives to attract events. Singapore needs to actively promote its differentiators through marketing and new offerings to tackle competition. According to the Singapore Tourism Board annual report for 2022, Singapore witnessed a 10% decline in the number of international conferences and exhibitions held in the city as compared to pre-pandemic levels of 2019. While maintaining quality, review pricing strategies to ensure they are competitive with other emerging MICE destinations.
Singapore Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) Market Opportunities:
- Niche Offerings: Singapore can offer differentiated and niche offerings within the MICE segment to gain competitive advantage. This includes promoting local themes, unique venues, customized dining options, and team engagement activities. For instance, choosing colonial sites for product launches or local food for conference lunches. Rope courses, ethnic arts, and culture sessions can be offered as engagement activities. Such localization and personalization will attract more events. Developing niche segments allows Singapore's MICE industry to stay innovative and tap into expanding interests. The Singapore Tourism Board projects adventure tourism in Southeast Asia will grow by over 5% annually through 2025, indicating demand for alternative experience-based events (Singapore Tourism Board, 2022).
- Hybrid Events: Hybrid events which combine physical venues and virtual broadcast offer huge potential for Singapore. Investments into broadcasting and streaming facilities at key convention centers can help attract organizers to host hybrid international conferences, sales meetups and exhibitions in Singapore. Options like virtual booths, online attendee registration and e-payments can be offered. This will increase Singapore's appeal for global events. According to 2022 data from the Singapore Tourism Board, international visitor arrivals have begun trending upwards in 2022 but remain more than 50% below pre-pandemic levels from 2019.
- Regional Markets: Singapore can strategically promote its offerings and provide competitive packages to target growing Asian markets like India, China, and Indonesia for MICE tourism. Rising business investments and corporate travel from these countries present an opportunity for Singapore to host more regional MICE events catering to APAC audiences in the coming decade. Focused marketing is needed to tap these markets. Recent data from ASEAN UP shows international visitor arrivals to Singapore from Asian countries rebounded strongly in 2022, exceeding pre-pandemic levels as travel restrictions eased.
- Sectoral Diversification: Currently, most MICE events in Singapore are concentrated in the technology, pharmaceuticals, and financial sectors. Singapore can diversify into other high potential sectors like manufacturing, healthcare, education, and defense. STB can create sector-specific offerings like site visits, dedicated venues, and customized activities. This sectoral diversification can open up new segmentation for Singapore. According to projections by the EU-Singapore Business Chamber, the biomedical manufacturing industry is expected to contribute over US$ 4 billion to the Singapore economy by 2023. Growing sectors like these could sustain new streams of MICE demand in the coming years.
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