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27 Oct 2017

Ricoh Arena smashes record for number of events and visitors

Coventry Building Society Arena
Ricoh Arena smashes record for number of events and visitors

The Ricoh Arena has smashed its own record for the number of events and visitors it has hosted.

In the 12 months to June 2017, a total of 857 events were staged at the Ricoh Arena – an increase of over 10 per cent on the 777 events held for the previous 12 months. The latest yearly visitor numbers have also topped the 1.6 million mark, up from 1.2 million in 2015.

The Coventry venue has experienced the majority of this growth within the conference and meetings sector, taking 666 bookings in the last financial year compared to 583 bookings in the previous year.

It hosted an extra 11 exhibitions during the same period after attracting business from established media company the Mark Allen Group, as well as other trade shows such as Mechanex and Surfex.

The venue also encountered sporting success last year, hosting an additional 17 events in addition to 59 the year before. This was driven by a successful year for Wasps Rugby Club - who welcomed more than 300,000 fans through the turnstiles as they reached the Aviva Premiership play-off final.

The Ericsson Indoor Arena also hosted Wasps Netball for the first time, on top of memorable spectacles such as the Rugby League Four Nations tournament and Champion of Champions Snooker.

Over the past year, the Ricoh Arena also welcomed chart-topping music artists such as Robbie Williams, Catfish and the Bottlemen and Craig David.

Stuart Cain, Group Commercial Director for Wasps and Ricoh Arena, said: “These figures reflect the great deal of hard work and investment that has gone into making the Ricoh Arena one of the leading events venues in the UK.

“Conferences, meetings and exhibitions are performing well for us, driven by our location next to the M6 and on-site DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel. We've also worked hard to increase the flexibility of space within the Ericsson Exhibition Hall and wider Ricoh Arena, supported by strong Event Management and Technical Support teams that make thigs happen in spectacular fashion.

 “Having a record year, the challenge is maintaining such a strong performance in the future so we're investing in our facilities to keep them fresh and enhancing our digital capability.

“This includes the launch of CityFibre's ultra-fast Wi-Fi throughout the venue and the partnership with taxi app Gett, making it easier for people to order a taxi from their phone.

“We've also opened the new Ricoh Business Lounge which showcases the latest in office technology creating one of the most advanced meeting spaces in Coventry.â€'

ENDS

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