U.K. Agency Adds Mtg. Unit

<B> U.K. Agency Adds Mtg. Unit</B>
<I>BTI Hogg Robinson Crosses The Pond In Search of Mice</I>

By Amon Cohen

Hogg Robinson, the U.K.-based powerhouse behind Business Travel International, is making a major play for the meetings and incentives market with the launch of a company called Global Event Solutions.

The company is starting with an initial investment of $3.3 million and becomes the third division of Hogg Robinson, the other two being business travel and financial services. Global Event Solutions will initially focus its efforts on the United Kingdom but also will roll out its services in other countries where its business travel division has ownership, including Canada and Scandinavia.

A move into the United States could follow on the back of an internal decision about who will replace BTI Americas as BTI's U.S. partner, an issue that should be resolved in the next couple of months. BTI has been in talks with both WorldTravel Partners and Maritz Travel (<I>BTN,</I> July 20), itself the worldwide leader in incentive management. Global Event Solutions also will work closely with other BTI partners, with a tie-in with Middle East-base DNATA likely to be the first co-operative venture.

The meetings, incentives, conferences and events (MICE) sector is estimated to be worth $5 billion in the U.K. alone and is growing at the rate of 10 percent each year. Even so, the number of large players remains small, which is why Hogg Robinson believes it has identified a market that it can dominate with its significant resources and a heavily branded product.

An early goal will be to take the lead position in the U. K. market. That should not be difficult, as chairman Kevin Ruffles claimed that no other company offers the full range of MICE activities, including strategic planning as well as implementation.

"The fact that this is the third element of Hogg Robinson is in itself quite a statement," said Ruffles. "We will do things differently by owning the whole process, not buying in services. And we will therefore be looking for acquisitions, such as in audio-visual production."

While most of the market is made up of small niche players, Ruffles noted, "we think the potential is huge and we can turn it into a proper market sector. Every organization wants to realize the potential of its human resources and retention of people is becoming a key issue for many of them.