Brand Licensing Europe (BLE) opened its Matchmaking service this week following huge success in 2018, when more than 2,800 meetings were pre-arranged using the service with average attendance rising from 71 to 85%.
“The BLE Matchmaking service is a free online tool that exhibitors and visitors can use to pre-book meetings, helping them make the best use of their time at the show,” explained event director Anna Knight.
“The show is a meetings event – people come here to do business. Exhibitors’ and visitors’ diaries are jam-packed for three sold days, from the second the show opens, and the Matchmaking service helps them to maximise their time at the show and meet people they may have otherwise missed. We’re delighted to see its use – and popularity – rise exponentially year on year.”
Last year, over 1,400 licensors were connected with licensees and 12,800 contacts were made available for meetings across a wide range of sectors and interests.
Visitors can use the service to search by region, company name, property name, category. They can also discover new properties by using the search tool to narrow down exhibitors by property type, as well as introduce themselves pre-show to increase meeting efficiency.
Exhibitors, meanwhile, can also access a dedicated meetings space in the Matchmaking lounge. Together with retailers and global partners, exhibitors can also take advantage of a free VIP concierge service which offers support in setting up and building online profiles, as well as booking meetings with a tailored ‘wish list’ of relevant visitors.
BLE 2019 takes place from October 1-3 at ExCeL London. Register for free by clicking on this link.
Top: Visitors at last year’s Brand Licensing Europe.
