An official Team Leicester delegation is planning to attend the MIPIM property and construction conference on the French Riviera this spring.
The city and county of Leicestershire had to pull plans for the 2020 conference when it was cancelled due to the pandemic. There was also no event in 2021, though a smaller four day event did take place last September.
Two weeks ago it was announce the global showcase will return to Cannes, from March 15 to March 18, amid growing hopes that the world is getting to grips with the coronavirus.
Other cities and regions which have been confirmed include London, Liverpool, Newcastle, Cardiff, West of England, Dudley and Lancashire and “Central South”, which covers Hampshire, Dorset, the Isle of Wight, Surrey and Sussex.
MIPIM is seen by many as an opportunity to get close to business contacts in a social setting, who it might take months to set up meetings with back home. Deals can be done and new business relationships launched over a glass of beer or a bite to eat on the seafront.
In past years the event has attracted several dozen delegates from across Leicestershire ranging from lawyers, architects, builders and engineering consultants to property developers and investors as well as representatives of the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership and inward investment teams at the city and country councils.
For the past few events members of Team Leicester rented a superyacht in the Cannes marina to host meetings and drinks receptions – and make a bold statement that the region meant business.
A spokesman said it was unlikely there would be a yacht this year, though there would likely be a dinner reception and possible presentations.
He said plans were now in full swing, even though he expected the first post-Covid conference to be slightly smaller than past years.
He said: “Team Leicester will be going, representing Leicester and Leicestershire on the international stage.
“We know there are some areas that are not going – such as Derby and Nottingham – which were stung financially when MIPIM was cancelled before, but luckily Team Leicester were not.
“Everyone is aware that MIPIM will be scaled down this year, and the organisers says they expect something like 70-80 per cent of the usual number of exhibitors.”
In previous years the city and county have taken a portfolio of investment opportunities to MIPIM including the Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park, Charnwood Campus, Leicester Riverside Regeneration Zone and MIRA Technology Park, near Hinckley.
The spokesman said a list of opportunities to promote was being looked at with formal preparations for the delegation still being discussed.
He said: “One of the positives that we’ve seen is that most of the people we have spoken to who are sending someone will be sending their most senior individuals – the people who will be looking to do business.
“There are a number of big property and construction companies that we know will be attending, but who won’t necessarily be sending their normal groups of 15 to 20 people – instead they will just have two or three decision-makers there. It’s not just about numbers, but the quality of the delegates.
“Our local authority friends have said they support us, but it’s yet to be confirmed which of them might be attending.
“The object of Team Leicester is to demonstrate that this area is an option for inward investment in property and construction, and can compete with anywhere else in the world.
“As in the last few years we won’t take space in the main Palais des Festivals, but we will organise one if not two events during the course of MIPIM and we’re still waiting to hear what the Department for International Trade are doing so we can align with them and the Midlands Engine.
“Overall, Team Leicester will be going with caution in a slightly more scaled back manner than past years, but with a focus on taking the opportunity to put Leicester and Leicestershire front and centre.”
