EC&O Venues Earls Court And Olympia

Despite the uncertain economic climate, a raft of shows hosted by Earls Court & Olympia have delivered exceptional attendance figures during the first quarter of 2009.

Railtex, the international exhibition of railway equipment systems and services, achieved a total visitor attendance of 8,257 when it returned to Earls Court between 10 and 12 March. It marked a 22% visitor increase on its previous outing that took place at ExCeL London.

In the same month Ecobuild, the dedicated event for sustainable design, construction and the built environment, celebrated around a 34% increase on its 2008 attendance. The show welcomed 34,617 visitors to Earls Court between 3 and 5 March 2009. Its organiser, International Business Events, plans to extend opening times in 2010 to accommodate its expanding crowds.

Also at Olympia, BETT celebrated its 25th year in January with a 4% increase in attendance. The educational information and communications technology event, which is organised by Emap Connect, enticed 30,007 visitors across the four days.

Interestingly, it’s not just trade events that are bucking visitor trends. At Olympia, consumer dance show Move It posted a 13% increase in visitors this year over 2008, with 19,190 guests visiting the event between 5 and 8 March. The organiser, Upper Street Events, is now forging ahead with plans for the 2010 outing, which returns to Olympia on 11 March.

The Vitality Show which took place in Earls Court 2 between 26th and 29th March announced an incredible 19% visitor increase on last year and A Place in the Sun Live (also hosted by the Birmingham NEC) attracted their highest ever visitor attendance with over 9,000 visitors between the 3rd and 5th April in Earls Court 2.

“We’re delighted about the increasing success of both new and established shows at our venues,” said Earls Court and Olympia Exhibition Sales Director Jeremy Rees. “Visitors’ continued commitment to events hosted here is testament to the superior content our customers provide, as well as our prime London location. We hope to build on this encouraging start to 2009 by continuing to host market leading events that entice expanding crowds.”

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Notes to editors:

For further information please contact:

Claire Kenton, Communications Manager, EC&O Venues

claire.kenton@eco.co.uk / 020 7370 8838

www.eco.co.uk

EC&O Venues is one of the UK’s premier exhibition and conference venue manager. The business comprises Earls Court, Olympia and the Brewery, London’s leading venues for exhibitions, conferences and special events. The three venues hold over 1000 events each year, attracting over 2.3 million visitors and 30,000 exhibiting companies.