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Clarion call
Tuesday, 8 September, 2009
Clarion Events, the UK’s largest independent and one of the top three event organisers, has a growing portfolio of security and defence events, which has been developed through acquisition and launches over the past year. The latest acquisition of the Counter Terror Expo conference from Niche Events, announced in July, and the launch of CNi Expo, which is focused on the security and resilience of the nation’s critical infrastructure, brings the total to seven.
The portfolio is led by Defence Systems & Equipment International (DSEi), the leading exhibition for land, sea and air, and also includes ITEC, Europe’s premier event for military training and education; LAAD – Latin America Aero & Defense exhibition and conference; and Undersea Defence Technology in Europe and Asia.
Defence and the fast emerging security sector were seen as a more reliable and less cyclical market and the best way for the company to expand globally, said Clarion defence and security managing director, Gordon Payne. “The acquisition of the defence business was transformational for us,” he remarked, “and put us into a new league. Our ambition is to become the largest global player in this area, and we are looking for more acquisitions to achieve this aim. We have identified several events, which we are looking at with interest.”
He also revealed Clarion has launched into the standalone conference sector, having already staged one on vehicle survivability, and is planning to cover land munitions, antisubmarine warfare and platform survivability.
A year after buying DSEi, Payne is impressed and delighted with the resilience of the company’s flagship event in a tough market. He added that it had contributed greatly towards its defence business, having reached a quarter of Clarion’s turnover in such a short time.
Clarion serves 15 market sectors, from leisure and entertainment to finance, from retail to gaming, fine art to energy, in addition to defence and security. Its events are staged across five continents.
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