Riyadh Exhibitions Company (REC) has participated at IMEX Frankfurt, the global exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events held place last May 16-18 in Frankfurt, Germany. IMEX 2017 is an annual event that witnesses the participation of more than 3,500 exhibitors from 150 countries representing tourist boards, convention bureaus, international hotel chains, airlines and destination management companies, offering global business opportunities and a unique networking platform to discuss the latest trends in the MICE industry. The tourism sector in Saudi Arabia was mostly dependent on religious tourism, however the objectives of the Vision 2030 redirected the focus on diversifying tourism to include more business, conference and exhibition travelers. Thus, comes the participation of the Kingdom at this important global exhibition to achieve its objective of positioning itself as a strategic destination for meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions in the region. Through its national pavilion at IMEX 2017, the Kingdom sought to attract international exhibitions and conferences that will contribute to the development of the various economic sectors in the Kingdom and to facilitate the communication channels between the Saudi private sector and the major international companies specialized in exhibitions and conferences. Hence, REC's participation at IMEX showcased its 36 years of experience in the exhibitions and conferences industry and examined the best international practices and trends on this industry. REC also benefitted from the knowledge and expertise exchange with international peers, which will reflect positively on the level of services provided, and thus would contribute to leveraging the local MICE industry as a whole in the Kingdom to help achieve the sector's broad goals as the preferred destination for creation of exhibitions and conferences in the region. Khalid Alamdar, Director of Sales and Marketing at Riyadh Exhibitions Company, said "this participation comes in line with our strategic vision of attracting global events and forums to be hosted in the Kingdom, in addition to discussing the upcoming investment opportunities, benefiting from the international expertise and strengthening our presence globally." REC is a Saudi company specialized in organizing local & international exhibitions, conferences and other trade events. Throughout its 36 years, REC has organized more than 440 unique and successful shows and conferences renowned for their innovation, professionalism and attention to details. — SG
