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FoMU in Antwerp
Bikes in Mechelen
EVELYNE BARDYN
Leading in innovation Evelyne Bardyn, Meeting Manager at Meet in Flanders (the convention Bureau of Visit Flanders) talks to MIM Magazine about the Meeting Industry’s changing nature, as well as new opportunities and challenges for the Flemish region in Belgium. With the flagship idea of innovative meetings tied to product lines and social capital, Bardyn discusses the importance of globalisation and the new strategy of Visit Flanders. INTERVIEW BY SAMUEL DOVERI VESTERBYE, MANAGING EDITOR What’s your view on the meetings industry and how has it changed since your started? My take is that the Meeting Industry was underestimated for a long while. Thankfully, things are a changing right now and that’s something the Meeting Industry professionals in Flanders and Brussels are grateful for. I’ve experienced the Meeting Industry being influenced by globalisation, professionalizing, demographic shifting, and technological progress, as well as the demand for “customization” and the need to adapt to the desires of the consumer. It is clear that the number of internationally organized conferences will keep growing because more and more small scale, regional and/or specialized conferences are taking place around the world. This development fits the Meet in Flanders strategy like a glove: the
“experience” and the peculiarity of the destination is the focal point. This also fits destination Flanders very well with the Art Cities being promoted as “meetcentive” cities. The situation of Brussels is unique because, after Singapore, it hosts the largest number of international association meetings in the world.
Evelyne Bardyn
and shines the light on the Flemish hands-on mentality, know-how and modesty. Think of our Flemish Primitives, our authentic beer brewers, or our chocolate masters. Flanders becomes a story of creative people, driven by knowledge and skills.
“I’ve experienced the Meeting Industry being influenced by globalisation, pro-fessionalizing, demographic shifting, and technological progress, as well as the demand for “customization” and the need to adapt to the desires of the consumer.” Sustainability will remain a guiding principle to influence all areas of meeting planning, form construction and renovation of venues. Can you talk about the new strategy of Visit Flanders? The new strategy focuses on the visitor’s point of view, rather than the destination. Flanders’ DNA can be defined as cutting-edge craftsmanship
There are four focal points accentuating our cutting edge craftsmanship on all target markets: gastronomy, cultural heritage, fashion and design, and our cycling tradition. These varied offerings provide a rich potential for the meeting planners and conference delegates. We would like to inspire and motivate our event bureaus and DMCs to create ground-breaking, rebellious team buildings, incentives, and pre-or post-tours.