How would you sum up 2024 for the MICE sector?
Véronique Holveck - On a global level, if we look at the latest quarterly consolidation of MPI's Meetings Outlook barometer, a large majority of our 15,000 members worldwide (70%) tell us that there is a trend towards a feeling of stability in terms of business since January 2024. In France, our respondents felt the same way. MICE demand has remained stable for several months, buyers are cautious in terms of the overall budget for their events, which are always affected by inflation. To counter this disadvantage, companies wishing to organise seminars, conferences or conventions try to reduce the number of participants, in particular by using a hybrid format when it is a global event, reduce the number of events or increase the number of in-house meetings. MICE buyers based in France who wish to organise an event outside the country continue to favour short- and medium-haul countries. Finally, stimulating and motivating employees and rewarding incentives are the main reasons for organising business events. Even so, incentives will lose some market share in 2024 compared with 2023, a record year in terms of demand. In 2023, incentives were mainly justified by the strategic need to recreate team cohesion after the Covid years.
How can we describe the effect of the Olympic Games on the industry in 2024? What impact can we expect from the event in the longer term, in 2025 and beyond?
Véronique Holveck - All the studies show that the average number of visitors to Paris this summer was 20% up on the previous year. But while the figures are unquestionably positive for the leisure segment, in the MICE segment, companies were reluctant to organise business meetings or events from June onwards. When they were scheduled in Paris, they preferred to postpone their projects to the last quarter of 2024, then to the first quarter of 2025, in view of the lack of availability of certain venues. If a postponement was not envisaged, our respondents told us that they avoided Paris between June and September, in favour of the provinces or Ile-de-France. In particular green seminars were very successful during the summer. The downturn in events activity had not really been anticipated by Parisian hoteliers, most of whom saw a drop in occupancy during this period, and especially in June 2024 compared with June 2023. We can expect the first quarter of 2025 to be better than the first quarter of 2024, thanks to this shift in the corporate events calendar. In my opinion, the positive impact of the Olympic Games on the events sector needs to be considered in the longer term. The 2024 Olympics were perfectly organised. They helped to improve the image, first and foremost, of the cities hosting the Olympic events, but also of France in general. France benefited from worldwide media coverage, many event infrastructures were renovated, public transport services were improved and these facilities are sustainable. It has been shown in the past that the economic and tourism spin-offs do not stop at the end of the Olympic Games, but that there are also other benefits to be gained. a real positive effect for around ten years, directly linked to the event.
Could the political situation in France, and the instability and uncertainty it is causing, have an impact on MICE?
Véronique Holveck - Players in the MICE sector and companies, whatever their country of origin, are taking into account the geopolitical and climatic issues, the economic context and the political stability of their countries. Unfortunately, political instability is beginning to have an impact on the attractiveness of France, despite the fact that it has some of the best event infrastructures in the world. This context is triggering a certain wait and see on the validation of future projects by major CAC 40 companies. Some budgets have even been frozen. For the time being, SMEs and SMIs are slightly less sensitive to this situation.
Do you have any visibility on the pricing conditions to be expected in 2025?
Véronique Holveck - Our quarterly MICE barometer still includes budgetary questions. Budget projections for the next 12 months are fairly stable according to 72 % of our respondents compared with 2024. Fewer respondents expect significant budget increases, i.e. an increase of at least 10%. Inflation is perceived to have slowed slightly in recent months.
More generally, what do you see as the main challenges for the MICE sector in 2025?
Véronique Holveck - In the global events sector: successfully managing the price factor, impacted by the high cost of energy and raw materials, particularly in catering. And develop a CSR strategy, favouring sustainable criteria for as many events as possible, while staying within an often tight budget. For France, we need to manage the post-Olympic period well and remain the world's leading tourist destination, despite the political uncertainties already mentioned.
When it comes to sustainable development, there's still a big gap between words and deeds. How can this be explained in the MICE sector, if not by price?
Véronique Holveck - In our latest quarterly barometer, 8 out of ten respondents mention the CSR criteria as an occasional or regular request. There were just 2 out of 10 in 2016, according to our barometers at that time. Nearly 3 out of 10 companies systematically carry out a carbon footprint of their event, compared with just 14% in 2016. Companies are undeniably paying increasing attention to service providers who are committed to sustainable development or who have been awarded a sustainable development label. But a reduction in the carbon footprint has a extra cost for a service provider who has to make the additional investments required to achieve CSR compliance and obtain the label. This can also be explained by waste sorting initiatives, for example. Although responsible aspects are taken into account during the selection phase, they do not always outweigh the additional costs involved.. CSR criteria are not yet the decisive factor in the final choice of a venue. Advanced CSR training in the sector, a proliferation of webinars to keep abreast of labels and different certifications, and more start-ups and companies winning awards for their efforts in sustainability are already triggering an undeniable sustainable change. This change is being accelerated by governmental decisionsThis is the case in Switzerland, where sustainable development was already enshrined in several places in the 1999 Swiss Federal Constitution. Systematic recycling, a transport pass that includes travel by train, tram, bus and boat in 90 towns and cities, combined with a cultural pass that gives access to 500 museums, strict CO2 emission standards, good waste management and controlled land-use planning for new hotel developments are all commonplace in Switzerland.
The last Kactus IFTM barometer pointed to a form of decentralisation in the French market in favour of the regions. Is this a long-term trend?
Véronique Holveck - In my opinion, this is a trend that will be seen over the long term, to the benefit of regions in France and border countries served by train, such as the UK, Benelux, Germany and Switzerland. The combined factors of inflation and CSR are encouraging companies to favour destinations that are close by and served by train. The latest findings show, unsurprisingly, that the CSR practices of MICE companies relate above all to transport, by reducing distances, car-pooling and giving preference to the train. Finally, the average price charged by event venues and hotel service providers is lower in the provinces than in the French capital.
