While the results of the 21st Bedouk/Coach Omnium Barometer may not send a positive message to industry professionals, they do provide an uncompromising assessment of a market in decline: spending by French and international companies based in France is down sharply on 2011 (-4.91TP3Q to €8.47 billion). The need to economise as a result of the crisis - but also the fear of an overly ostentatious image in these difficult times - has prompted companies to favour smaller, less time-consuming operations close to the business. The two traditional players in the MICE market, hotels and convention centres, were the main victims in 2012, posting a drop of around 20% in the Bedouk/Coach Omnium rankings: companies preferred original venues (historic monuments, boats) or even in-house operations, right on their premises. "The gradual recovery in 2010 and 2011 gave rise to a great deal of hope, which has now been dashed," sums up Mark Watkins, Director of Coach Omnium, echoed by Stéphane Barbarin, General Commissioner of the Bedouk trade show: "Companies are clearly continuing to reduce the budgets allocated to business meetings, in a global context of spending cuts, while recognising the importance of bringing together both internal and external audiences.
