MICE: A closer look at Saint-Etienne as a destination

Who are the main event organisers in Saint-Etienne?

Fleurine Buriane (Saint Etienne Convention Office) : Federations and major national associations, as well as numerous medical congresses and more regional seminars. In May alone, we hosted three conferences with 500, 700 and 900 participants respectively. The CHU has a strong reputation and its healthcare professionals are keen to hold meetings on subjects such as transplants and dialysis, obesity surgery and support at the end of life. The region's sectors of excellence will also attract events. I'm thinking of design, of course, but also medtech, with the region's big names in medical textiles such as Thuasne and Sigvaris, or Dessintey, a company specialising in rehabilitation after a stroke, which works with designers on a daily basis to create highly specific machines that meet the needs of patients, doctors and carers as closely as possible.

Mikaël Henriot (Saint-Étienne Events) : There's a real know-how here. We often talk about the past, but there are some great success stories, often little known. In June, we will be hosting an international conference at La Platine, in the Cité du Design. Organised by the Hubert Curien laboratory at the Université Jean-Monnet, the conference will take place over three days and will be attended by around a hundred people. It's an event that shows that, on highly targeted subjects, we can attract events of European or international stature. For all that, Saint-Etienne focuses on regional and national events. As far as the latter are concerned, we can go further, stronger and higher, and we're working on it. With the transformation and expansion of the exhibition centre, which now covers 16,000 m², we can position ourselves for national events that we weren't looking for before.

What is the ideal size for an event in Saint-Etienne?

Fleurine Buriane : The ideal capacity is around 800 to 900 people. We have the right offer for this, with the right facilities and the right equipment. 800 people for the convention centre's plenary hall and a total of 2,000 rooms in the metropolitan area, including 1,000 in Saint-Etienne. But we can obviously accommodate larger events.

Mikaël Henriot : In the case of large-scale events, we can now cater for conferences of up to 2,000 people, and even events for the general public of between 4 and 5,000 people during the day, with no need for accommodation in the city. Until 2023, we were limited to events for up to 800 people. The exhibition centre was delivered in 2020, and let's move on to the Covid wave that followed. In 2023, we demonstrated our capacity to host a conference with 1800 people in the plenary hall. We tested it, it worked and our customers were satisfied. What's interesting about this new park is that it allows us not only to hold congresses, but also trade fairs and large-scale corporate events. And it's all just a 10-minute walk from the station, which helps to seal the deal.

When you think of Saint-Etienne, you immediately think of its football team, Les Verts. Does its aura reflect on events?

Fleurine Buriane : It plays a huge part. Whether you follow football or not, everyone has heard of Les Verts and the atmosphere in the 'cauldron'. Conference organisers often want to an evening at Geoffroy Guichard stadium. Outside of match days, when everything is privatised by the club and companies, this is perfectly possible. But even when the stadium is taken. For example, a conference on obesity surgery will not be held at the stadium, but a football tournament will be held next door the day before the event, on the women's training pitch. Last December, we welcomed the chamber of removers from all over France. Because Geoffroy Guichard was not available on that date, they organised their evening at La Verrière, but they recreated the venue as a small 'cauldron' with balls and fake grass.

Mikaël Henriot : The theme was very close to their hearts for the gala evening. We worked hard to organise an event entirely in the colours of the Greens. It's a great memory for the customer, and it also shows the possibilities we can offer. This conference only required 500 seats for the plenary session, but at the same time needed space for the exhibitions. The plenary session, exhibitions, workshops and catering were all held at the Parc expo, in a single location, before the final evening at La Verrière. For the older generation who still have the Greens on their minds, the image of Saint-Etienne is closely linked to it, but we're starting to have decision-makers opposite us who didn't live through that era and who are therefore less sensitive to it. Having been to other regions, there's one thing that stands out among the tourism players in Saint-Etienne, and that's a real sense of teamwork, which is also the DNA of the Greens, a very strong sense of solidarity that means we're all moving forward together. And that's reflected in our customers. What I take away from the thanks we receive is that they feel welcomed and expected. Their conferences weren't just another event in the middle of a big city. That makes all the difference.

To continue with the link between football and events, the rivalry between Saint-Etienne and Lyon is legendary. Is this also the case for MICE between these two neighbouring cities?

Mikaël Henriot : No, it's not at all like football. Take the GL Events group, which has a global reach and originates from Lyon: Olivier Ginon, its chairman, is very attached to Saint-Etienne. Our Chief Operating Officer, Olivier Ferraton, grew up here. Beyond these internal factors, the destination has all the advantages that Lyon does not haveWe've got a lot to offer, starting with the greenery all around us, just 5 minutes away by car, an incredible living environment. While we like to host an event in its entirety at our event venues, when clients request it, we have the capacity to take them to Saint-Victor for the Loire gorges, in the Pilat mountains. It's right next door. I see the proximity of Lyon as an opportunity. Especially as Lyon is becoming saturated with business tourism. In fact, we're working with the GL Events teams in Lyon to organise postponements if they're not available.

Fleurine Buriane : Lyon is both going to take from us and give to us. A lot of Lyon-based companies tend to come to Saint-Etienne because they can go greenbecause it's cheaper too. For companies or associations based in Lyon, it also allows them to rotate their events and not just organise them in Lyon. So, it's true that Lyon has an image of a more touristy city, of a major metropolis. However, prices are not the same and there are so many things to discover in Saint-Etienne.