Sometimes it can be difficult to gauge whether a new venue will prove suitable for an established event. In the case of the 93rd annual Vancouver International Auto Show though, the venue in question helped result in one of the most memorable motoring expos of recent times. According to Paul McGeachie, executive director of the show, this year’s event happened to fall smack dab in the middle of a glorious, sunny March, not often the best scenario for getting people to go to a major indoor event. “After what seemed like endless rain, the show ends up in a 10 day run of perfect, sunny weather,” he said. Nevertheless, although attendance was slightly down (a reduction of five per cent, with 80,760 visitors going through the doors), the 2013 Vancouver International Auto Show was a great success.
By taking up residence at the Vancouver Convention Centre, the show gained favourable feedback, both from visitors and exhibitors. McGeachie says that a formal survey for this year’s event, in which participants were asked to rate their satisfaction on a scale of 1-5 (with one being poor and five being excellent), not only saw more than 5,300 individual surveys completed but overall ratings for the show stood at 3.9, while exhibitor satisfaction stood at 4.2. “Those are some impressive numbers for a consumer event,” says McGeachie, who also noted that more than 50 per cent of visitors to the show’s website gave the event a four out of five rating. Additionally, 40 per cent of actual visitors were first time attendees to the show, an encouraging sign by any measure.
McGeachie says that the new pilot program with Tourism Vancouver which included a booking portal on the show’s website, as well as the ability for attendees to reserve hotel rooms and book dining functions, proved popular and will likely become a staple part of the event in the future.
“The Auto Show has moved onto the official planning schedule for Tourism Vancouver,” he remarked, “so we are confident this will become a big part of the [show] experience.”
Key highlights at this year’s Vancouver show were the Canadian premiere of the 2014 Range Rover Sport (a day after the vehicle’s debut in New York) the sit-down Gala Night, which was pleasantly received and the Green Ride and Drive program, which saw more than 1,000 people sign up for test drives. “That was one aspect that really benefited from the weather,” says McGeachie in reference to the the ride and drive program. “This event took a lot of support, negotiation and cooperation with the City of Vancouver, as well as the province and the Convention Centre.”
