OLD BUSINESS  6.

COMMITTEE MEMORANDUM

KEY INTENDED OUTCOME:
Enhance Cultural and Recreational Activities

HISTORY:

Organized by IFEMA from 17 to 21 January at Feria de Madrid, FITUR 2018 is adding a new monographic section FITUR Festivals, organized in collaboration with Spain Live Music, the Spanish Music Tourism Association.

According to the SGAE, almost 22 million people attended music events this year. This has led promoters, organizers and tourist companies to increasingly work together to provide the best shows, services and experiences for millions of travelers from around the world, and FITUR Festivals seeks to provide a stage for giving them the tools that will help them boost this growing tourist niche.

FITUR Festivals wants to combine the industry’s professional offerings with the offers available to the general public. The international outreach of FITUR 2018 planned to provide a showcase in which festival organizers, promoters, destinations, the industry’s supplier and ancillary companies, specialized travel agencies, ticketing companies and festival sponsors, among others, can display their offerings and create business.

FITUR wants to provide an exhibition area integrating an auditorium for live presentations and round tables -  feature demonstrations by exhibitors and a chillout zones for networking.

ANALYSIS:

Other Latin America countries have expressed interest in hosting the show i.e. Mexico, Peru and Chile in Miami Beach. Fitur believes that Greater Miami & the Beaches to be a much more attractive destination in which to hold the annual event given everything the destination has to offer including:

• A newly renovated/reimagined convention center with a headquarter hotel as well as large citywide hotel inventory
• Extensive airlift from domestic, Latin American, Canadian and European cities
• Opportunity to increase the number of buyers from Latin America as well as attracting domestic and Canadian buyers which they currently don’t receive many

A major consideration for them is the support, namely financial from the host country or city would offer IFEMA to host the Latin America edition.

Representative of Fitur have mentioned in visiting Miami in the Q1 of 2019 to tour facilities and continue a conversation.

On February 20, 2019 FITUR did a tour of the Miami Beach Convention Center, where the producers thought the space could work for their needs.  

In an email dated March 7, 2019, Jaime de la Figuera, Director of International Expansion for IFEMA / FITUR, stated that "the process and evaluation of Fitur Miami will require some time before any decision is made." 

It was noted that considering the timeframe discussed for 2020, they felt it would be too rushed, and that 2021 would be a more realistic option for them.  FITURE / IFEMA will review their conclusions and come back to the City of Miami Beach, GMCVB, and MBCC once they have more information confirmed on their end.

CONCLUSION:
The administration recommends that we continue to work with FITUR / IFEMA to source suitable dates, but that this item be removed from the agenda, until a confirmed date and concrete financial package has been delievered.