PRESS OFFICE
LISTING
Homenewsabout usContact UsWebsite
News

Gallagher attracts over half a million

During 2009 Gallagher Convention Centre recorded over half a million visitors who attended a myriad of events of all shapes and sizes, from small executive meetings in boardrooms to prestigious events and exhibitions which drew audiences in droves.
Adolf Venter, acting chief executive for Gallagher
Adolf Venter, acting chief executive for Gallagher

Says Adolf Venter, acting chief executive for Gallagher: “Although our financials only close in March, we enjoyed a good calendar year of feet that crossed all of our facilities, ending on a high note with the spectacular presentation of the Miss World Pageant in December. We had good support from both the public and private sectors, while many exhibition and event organizers continued to utilise Gallagher as a venue of choice.”

Some of the other upmarket events that were hosted at Gallagher were the three-day COSATU conference which also included international visitors and the media, as well as the Black Management Forum conference and gala dinner that attracted foreign dignitaries and international organisations.

Public sector initiatives such as the Nepad Transport Summit and Africa Expo was hosted to fast-track work on the continent's cross border transport networks as well as to streamline and simplify border formalities. The main objective was to promote regional integration of national economies across the continent. With nearly 30 African countries and representatives from France, Brussels, Japan, India and Russia this was a truly a summit with global proportions. The Africa Water Week Conference, which was initiated by the Department of Water Affairs & Forestry, drew many international guests.

Year-end functions included well known brands such as Gijima, Computershare, e.tv and Wesbank. Major exhibitions such as Decorex, SARCDA, Africa's big seven and the Energy Efficiency Exhibition raised the bar again for the industry as a whole. Gallagher's own production of Ben 10 took the parental market by storm.

Venter is upbeat about 2010 saying that, due to the diversity of the Gallagher offering, the World Cup is unlikely to have any effect on its business as bookings have already been recorded for months ahead. “We will continue to enjoy the support from many representative bodies and Associations. The Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa will be presenting their annual PRISM awards for public relations practitioners in March. Many of their members are in the business of event management and their choice of venues is most certainly underscored by the decision of their representative body to come to Midrand for their annual premiere event.”

13 Jan 2010 11:42

<<Back