Huge opportunities for the attractions business in the Middle East region were highlighted at the recent MENALAC conference.
The trade association that covers the amusement industry in the region held its conference virtually and looked forward to what it called 'An Economic Book' in 2021.
The Leisure Entertainment and Amusement (LEA) Conference, reports the association, was very successful, bringing together top industry experts to address key issues, challenges and trends in the industry through presentations and panel discussions.
It highlighted the massive business opportunities in the Gulf and elsewhere in the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia, where government and private sector investors are injecting billions of dollars to build new theme parks, amusement parks, large cinema complexes and shopping malls with family entertainment centres.
The conference began with a keynote speech by Clive Stephens, director of operations at Expo 2020 Dubai, in which he encouraged attendees to explore the significant business opportunities at his event.
“Expo 2020 Dubai will be a six-month celebration of creativity, innovation, humanity and world cultures. Our teams have been working diligently to ensure we are more than ready to open our doors on October 1, 2021, when our visitors will enjoy a truly breathtaking experience, including 17 stages hosting dozens of live shows per day. For the first time, every participating country will have its own pavilion, each filled with an amazing variety of spectacular content," he said.
Expo 2020 Dubai - the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region and the largest event ever held in the Arab world - is set to create major business opportunities for leisure and entertainment suppliers, including members of MENALAC, when it opens its doors.
More than 46,000 organisations from over 180 countries are registered to do business with Expo 2020, with the Expo committing 20 per cent of direct and indirect spending to SMEs. As of the end of October 2020, Expo 2020 had awarded almost AED 5.12bn to SMEs. More than 200 participants - including countries, companies, international organisations and educational institutions - are participating in Expo 2020, which will run until March 31, 2022.
The MENALAC Virtual Conference took place as the Middle East has seen massive development of leisure entertainment and attractions projects, with confirmed investment of more than $350bn in the theme parks and attractions sector, according to reports.
Rosa Tahmaseb, secretary general of MENALAC, says: “Hosting a virtual conference during the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic has been a huge success, especially with the participation of so many industry experts and thought leaders who discussed the regions upcoming business opportunities with phenomenal facts and figures. My team and I have had a huge amount of incredibly positive feedback from our attendees with multiple references to the ground-breaking content and presentation of this conference.
“The purpose of a council such as MENALAC is to ensure we are at the forefront of our industries’ opportunities and trends and to use this knowledge in the best way possible when supporting our members throughout the MENA region. We produced and delivered this conference with the aim of reigniting the passion and energy that the MENA leisure and attractions industry is known for. Yes, there have been and will continue to be some hard times ahead as the industry picks itself up and dusts off the impact of Covid-19. However, what lies ahead for our industry is starting to look very positive and there are a number of great opportunities out there which will truly help to boost business for all our members."
The conference hosted three panel discussions with the first entitled 'Future of Entertainment – Beyond 2020', on how the MENA leisure and attractions industry is preparing to remain at the forefront as it moves past this year.
The panel discussion was moderated by Charles Read and participants were Silvio Liedtke, CEO of Landmark Leisure; Cameron Mitchell, CEO of MAF Leisure, Entertainment and Cinemas; Jakob Wahl, executive director and vice-president of IAAPA EMEA and Damien Latham, head of attractions at SEVEN.
Speakers discussed how the industry is embracing digitisation. They recognised that technology will change the industry as user experience will be driven by touchless and seamless experiences. Covid-19 has pushed industry operators to fast-track the digitisation process.
This was followed by a panel discussion on 'Women Leaders in the MENA Leisure Industry'. The discussion was moderated by Rupkatha Bhowmick, a seasoned journalist and blogger, in which the panel shared its success stories and views on the benefits of women leaders in leisure. Panelists were Zeina Dagher, CEO of Emaar Entertainment; Sheikha Monira Khaled Al Sabah, CEO Play Enterprises and co-founder of Trampo Extreme; Shifa Yusuffali, CEO of Ideacrate Edutainment and Maria Gedeon, marketing director of MAF Leisure, Entertainment and Cinemas. They discussed at length the contribution of women leaders in MENA leisure industry.
The third session focused on 'The Power of Local Suppliers'. Participants were Mike Rigby, executive VP, Middle East and India WhiteWater, Prakash Vivekanand, founder and managing director Amusement Services International Group, Renee Welsh, CEO EMBED and Alberto Zamperla, president Antonio Zamperla SPA.
The lively session was moderated by Rosa Tahmaseb. The panel discussed the topic of garnering the power of local and regional suppliers and how this will help operations globally to have more effective solutions from their suppliers.
Another key topic was that of the MENA region’s business culture and how important it is for suppliers to truly know and understand how to work within this business culture effectively. The panel concluded by discussing how a local supplier with the right level of knowledge and experience in understanding their region's business culture, customer needs, local market awareness and demographic knowledge will always be able to give the best possible solution to their prospective customers, resulting in strong partnerships for both parties.
Panelist Prakash Vivekanand said: “The leisure and attractions industry is a global business that certainly needs local expertise to thrive as the MENA region and its demographic significances are unique. Most suppliers and manufacturers who are based in the region understand these unique requirements and are committed to meeting them. We are well informed about what's going on in the rest of the world and are able to adapt this knowledge to local operating conditions. New investors in particular can truly benefit from this level of local expertise and on the ground know-how.”
Following this discussion, there was a presentation on Saudi Arabia’s leisure sector development and opportunities by Don Potts, president of Parks and Attractions, Qiddiya. Potts offered a glimpse of the opportunities for the suppliers and manufacturers active in the industry.
He said: “Qiddiya is a catalyst for national transformation, spurring innovation, sparking inspiration and creating opportunities. We have been doing wonderful things in Qiddiya, which is right outside Riyadh. It’s really a formidable initiative to transform both social and business opportunities for Saudis and international tourism in the region.
“After Saudi opened its doors to international tourism last year, we saw great numbers of visitors’ pre-Covid. There are 33m people in Saudi and 8.5m are in Riyadh and 67 per cent of them are 35 years old or younger. There are millennials and young adults looking for entertainment and 69 per cent of Saudis are of middle income or above. This reflects a robust purchasing power.”
The 366sq.km site of Qiddiya is larger than Walt Disney World and the developed area will be divided into five zones: Resort Core, City Centre, Motion Zone, Eco Zone and Golf Community.
“There will be parks and attractions, sports and wellness, as our key initiative is to transform the Saudi population and expose them to activities, exercises and wellness,” said Potts. “There will be fast rides, art and culture, motor sports, city walks, residential offerings with golf on top and a football stadium as well. We are going to have some coasters, racing and water parks and all kinds of fun."
Finally, Prakash Vivekanand presented MENALAC’s latest initiative, the MENA Leisure Report, an industry benchmark publication for industry stakeholders that will contain value information on the leisure and entertainment industry specific to each country in the MENA region.
He said: “The MENA L&E industry certainly ranks among one of the best in the world. However, the regional industry lacks qualified data on its performance and its contribution to the economy of each country. This report aims to collect, collate and present such valuable data on the industry, market demographics and entertainment operations across the region, thus helping all stakeholders to understand and interpret our industry better.”
MENALAC is the key representative organisation for the entire leisure entertainment and amusement industry in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. With over 470 operations and 200 brands from over 22 countries in the MENA region in addition to Pakistan and Afghanistan, MENALAC offers great benefits to the industry as a platform for stakeholders to interact and stay informed.
