Welcome to the eighth edition of Lowdown, the internal newsletter for dmg events

Middle East that help you stay connected to all that is taking place across the business. Looking back, its hard to believe that it has been three years since the first issue of Lowdown, so much has developed and growth since then. I’m delighted to welcome you to this edition, brought to you by the collective efforts of the Abu Dhabi ADIPEC team, the Operations team and the newly formed Media Services teams that incorporate Reflex publishing, data services and digital online teams from Construct Arabia. I’d like to acknowledge the tremendous quality of work that these teams contribute to the business, be it forging new online markets via Construct Arabia; developing the contacts and databases we rely so heavily upon; publishing Pipeline and organizing the Oil Barons Ball which helps to raise so much money for cancer care in the region; delivering complex events and exhibitions through operational excellence or managing the annualization of one of the region’s largest events in ADIPEC. The teams have enjoyed a tremendous year, finding new solutions to the market challenges, exceeding our customers’ expectations, meeting targets and managing to do all this with a smile… I’m humbled to work as a part of the Energy team and thank you one and all.

In this edition we have so much to offer you including updates from the recent shows, namely INDEX, the Office show, the Hotel Show awards night. Saudi Arabia features heavily in this month’s news with reports from the Saudi Big 5 team, MedExpo as well as an introduction to our partners in Jeddah, MICE Arabia who have been a constant element of our success in the Kingdom. Geoff has been kind enough provide a summary of the past three years and a more in depth look at this year’s performance. On the social side we review what’s coming from the Sports & Social team, headed by Chris and Alex and they forge forward with the club. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has always been a part of the business, we take a few minutes to showcase all of the energy we’ve invested. And last but by no means least we have articles from the consumer shows launching later this year in Abu Dhabi. As a final note, I’d like to highlight the recent Middle East Awards. This year, dmg events had three entries featured on the shortlists for these prestigious awards that took place in Dubai. Big 5 and ADIPEC were nominated for the Trade Show of the year, and dmg events were nominated as the Employer of the year. It is such a huge honor to make the shortlists, as the competition was particularly intense this year, congratulations to the those teams that represented the business. Sadly we didn’t secure either of the awards, missing narrowly…… but maybe next year. Enjoy the issue and please provide any suggestions for features in the future. A big thank you to Mike Hughes and the Reflex design team for the creative layout and writing skills……. Simon MellorSenior Vice President – Energy team

MID

DLE

EA

ST

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ITIO

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Update from Geoff 2

Update from H.Q 3

CSR Activities 4

BLT CSR 5

OBCB Review 6-7

Operations Team 8-9

7th Floor 10-11

Big 5 Saudi Review 12

Office Exhibition Review 13

Med Expo Review 14-15

Index Review 16

Hotel Show Review 17

New Show Life & Style Pre-view 18-19

New Show Leisure Show Pre-view 20

MICE 21

Social ActivitiesAlmost Champion 22

Sports & Social Event 23

Joiners & Leavers 25

Competition 26

lowdownthe dmgConnecting People, Creating Communities, Facilitating Businessissue 8, June 2013

Connecting People, Creating Communities, Facilitating BusinessConnecting People, Creating Communities, Facilitating Businessissue 8, June 2013issue 8, June 2013Facilitating BusinessFacilitating BusinessFacilitating Businessissue 8, June 2013

SUMMER ISSUECONTENTS

lowdownlowdownthe dmgthe dmglowdownlowdownlowdownlowdownthe dmglowdownlowdownlowdownthe dmglowdownthe dmg

GROWTHGROWTH

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In a few months I will have been with the business for three years and it

seems hard to believe what you have achieved in that time.

We are launching many new events and we are now operating in many new territories. Our division now runs shows in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Singapore, Qatar, Kuwait and India. Not everything we do will work, but, we know that and we are prepared not just for the rewards, but, also the risks.

In the next twelve months we will operate a variety of new events including Life & Style, Abilities ME, Big 5 Construct India, Big 5 Kuwait, and Hospitality 360 Singapore. ADIPEC will go annual for the first time this coming November and in 2014 we hope to run some new events in Qatar.

Expansion to date has come from both the growth of our existing events and also from our launches. This will soon be complemented by acquisitions. We have already performed a lot of work on looking to buy events, but, we will only move forward if we are confident that these events will have a truly positive impact on the business. To that end we pulled out of an acquisition earlier this year, but, we are now actively engaged in working on a new acquisition.

I am delighted to say that we are working on growing Reflex our print and online publishing operation under Nick Pomeroy and I am also very happy to welcome our wonderful data team to the 7th floor of The Palladium building. We continue to expand our data operation and see this as a cornerstone of our future business development.

As we continue to grow it gets harder for us all to get to know each other and to be aware of the so many initiatives that we are pioneering to grow the business. It also gets harder for me to express my gratitude to all of you for what you all day every day - making this a quality customer driven business that constantly seeks out new opportunities. This newsletter gives me the chance to express my gratitude to all of you for your continued excellent performance – you are without doubt a really nice and talented team and it is a pleasure to work with you.

It continues to be an extraordinary privilege

to work with such a talented and hard-

working team that have seen us consistently

grow at an incredible pace for nearly three

years now.

Geoff Dickinson

President dmg events Middle East & Asia

and more

Galen joined dmg events in January 2011

after spending ten years as President

of Hanley Wood Exhibitions. Based in

Dallas, he oversees the entire global portfolio

of events in the Middle East, Canada, USA,

South America, Asia and Europe. With a

stellar career spanning 35 years in the global

events industry Galen contributes to Lowdown for the first

time to share his views

Galen Poss

Chief Operating Officer, dmg events

Currently dmg events is the fastest growing division within DMGT with

growth in revenues and profits over the last three years averaging over 15% annually. This has not always been the case. Looking back five years ago dmge was a very different entity. The focus was on a combination of Business to Consumer (B to C) and Business to Business ( B to B) businesses, with the heavier leaning toward B to C. The market focus was across many sectors with dominance in a limited few. Portfolio growth was driven primary by acquisition and core growth was low and slow. As you might imagine these results did not place dmge in the best stead with DMGT senior management. Fast forward to today and dmge has transformed into a fast growing B to B group of sector/geography specific businesses that are driven by organic growth, internal launches and value enhancing bolt-on acquisitions. This remarkable turnaround has been spearheaded by the success of dmge Middle East, which currently accounts for more than 50% of the dmge’s revenues and profits. Over the course of this positive metamorphosis, dmge had gained increased favor within DMGT and is now regularly mentioned as an example of DMGT’s commitment to aggressive growth and focus on emerging markets.

The over all global events business is estimated to be in excess of $25 Billion annually in total. The largest “player”, Reed Exhibitions, represents just over 4% in annual revenue turnover, which is a clear indication of the fragmentation and opportunity that exist within the global market. dmge is a significant player in the global events community with other leaders such as UBM, ITE, Tarsus, Informa and the German Messes. The world is a big place and as such focus is important. DMGT and dmge are currently

targeting specific markets and geographies with industry leading events in construction and related industries, oil and gas, and digital marketing with a geographic focus on the Middle East (third fastest growing region or the world with a projected 9.1% annual growth rate well into the future) the U.S. (the largest events market by three fold with over 10,000 trade events annually)and Asia. Future expansion is expected in Latin America and Africa.

A few of the core commitments that have led to the transformation of dmge include dedication to finding, training and keeping the best talent (“You don’t win races with plowd horses”), rigid portfolio management (investing in products and geographies that align with the division and the company’s strategies, and divesting those that do not), distinctive customer commitment (listening and reacting in a proactive manner), being bold…but failing or succeeding quickly ( take well researched and planned initiatives but if they don’t work out…move on) and staying true to the investment criteria that has been established, when looking at new businesses whether they be launches or acquisitions. Clearly dmge ME has been a poster child for these “business drivers” with examples such as its terrific launches throughout the GCC and beyond, its core business growth and the remarkable achievement of taking ADIPEC to an annualized event.

Clearly the last several years have been a terrific and positive time for dmge and the division has most certainly moved “From the Out House to the Penthouse”. However this transition would not have been possible without the terrific performance of dmge ME “greasing the skids” along the way! Many thanks to each of you for your individual and collective efforts.

FASTEST GROWINGDIVISION OF DMGT

DMG EVENTS

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Minding the Gap’ is AbilitiesME awareness initiative. As a new event

for dmg, Abilitiesme can be thought of as a strategic and grassroots CSR initiative aimed at supporting people with disabilities and special needs communities by engaging government and civil society. The ‘Minding the Gap’ campaign has taken the team to various events around Dubai, raising money for different charities ….. here are just some

CSR ACTIVITIES ABILITIESme team attended the following CSR initiatives in 2013

Dubai Marathon: January 2013

Autism Trust Foundation Open Day: February 2013

On the 29th April, 6 members of The Hotel Show team took park in a global

initiative organized by the Global Poverty Project, Live Below the Line. This entailed living below the defined line of poverty of just 1GBP per day for all your food and drink for 5 days. Everything had to be included in this, from the milk in your tea, to adding extra seasoning on your meals, to the butter on your morning toast. Trying to find and create enough meals for just 28AED was a challenge in itself. How do you make 15 balanced meals with a daily budget of 5.51Dhs, when it costs on average 9Dhs just for a sandwich? We each tried different methods, with some pooling their money together and others set rigid menus for the week.

When the week began, we all started on a high with the novelty of the challenge carrying us through the first 24 hours, each of us came in with our lunch boxes and food all portioned out as per our menus. Meals ranged from 1 scrambled egg on plain bread, to spaghetti or noodles and plain vegetables on a baked potato. The options were

actually quite surprising, however it was the monotony and restriction of having such limited budgets and tasteless meals that really started to wear down the team morale as the week went by.

So, why we were doing this (as it definitely wasn’t for the benefit of our waste lines)? As part of our research into conference programme topics for The Hotel Show, we delved into the subject of food wastage and came across some surprising facts. Did you know that more than $1trillion of food is wasted or lost each year; equating to more than a 1billion tones of perfectly edible food being lost annually. This is enough food to feed the 900million+ people living in extreme poverty around the world (approximately 3 times the population of North America). Most shockingly, more than 2 million children die every year because they can’t get enough to eat.

As a team, we wanted to raise not only funds

for UNICEF, but raise awareness of such a large-scale issue that actually each one of us has the ability to help solve. In being more mindful of how much food we eat, use and throw away it’s very simple for each of us to make a small change.

On the 8th June, the G8 will be hosting a Hunger Summit in London discussing how the global food system can function more effectively. If you have two minutes spare, we highly recommend you visit enoughfoodif.org

The Live Below the Line campaign taught each of us many things and we raised more than 10,000Dhs for UNICEF. Thank you to each of you who put your hand in your pocket and donated, it really will make a difference.

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LIVE BELOW THE LINE

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On the 8th March, the Oil Barons Charity Ball celebrated its 10th

Anniversary under the fanfare of fireworks at the Meydan Racecourse with the Dubai skyline providing a stunning backdrop. More than 1,200 guests joined in the celebration, which included royalty, previous oil barons, senior oil and gas professionals plus members of

the public who were all eager to see who would be crowned the coveted 10th Oil Baron and help raise money for our nominated charity – Friends of Cancer Patients (FOCP) .

Under the theme ‘The Glitter Ball’ guests dressed up and celebrated by wearing either Silver for Glitter or Purple for

Charity. Entertained by Take a Chance (ABBA Tribute Band) and Million Dollar Band (70’s cover band), guests danced the night away after raising a staggering AED 1.1million on the night for charity – this beat last year’s record of AED 1 Million and now takes the event to an unbelievable amount AED3.5 Million for FOCP since it started supporting the charity in 2008 ….. an outstanding contribution from the oil and gas industry and one which dmg thanks them for.

The opening address by H.E Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, then Minister for Higher Education and patron for the OBCB, thanked and congratulated the audience for their generosity and support to such a worthy cause. The highlight of the evening came with the crowning of the 10th Oil Baron. It was great to see many of the previous oil baron’s continuing to support the event and they entered the stage to welcome and congratulate the new baron. Befitting to the 10th Anniversary celebrations, the new oil baron – Jim Watson - entered

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the stage in true style by driving his own Harley Davidson motorbike right onto the stage under the fanfare of fireworks which lit up the Dubai skyline.

On a final note, the 10th Oil Barons Charity Ball was also a last for Robyn Sokol who has been the heart and soul of the event for the last 6 years. We thank Robyn for all her energy and contribution over the years but this doesn’t mean the end of the event …… we are delighted to welcome aboard Eleanor Head who will now be responsible for taking the OBCB to new heights under the new leadership of Nick Pomeroy – look out for more information on the theme and dates for OBCB 2014!

THE AMAZING OPERATIONS TEAMSamer Alyain Senior Operations Manager

FEATURES FROM 2012 SHOWS:

The Museum at ADIPEC: first time launch at ADIPEC 2012. Visitors and exhibitors enjoyed it very much, while walking around the display pictures you gets the impression of leaving in the 20th century and that was amazing!! Marketing to supply photos

The Middle East Petroleum Club: first launch at ADIPEC 2012 as a part of the special VIP Program. It‘s an exclusive business club reserved for decision makers of the Middle East oil and gas industry. Marketing to supply photos

The Majlis Competition at INDEX 2012: it is a traditional feature at INDEX, of the Arabic interior design. The Majlis was launched 5 years ago and is a very successful feature! Marketing to supply photos

Boulevard D’Editeurs: first time launch at INDEX 2012, this feature includes the best and exclusive companies of design solutions in UAE, France, etc. Marketing to supply photos

ADIPEC MUSEUM THE MIDDLE EAST PETROLEUM CLUB

THE MAJLIS COMPETITION AT INDEX 2012 BOULEVARD D’EDITEURS

Savitha Abreo Operations Executive

New joiner:

Chris Seymour Senior Operations Manager

Julie AllenOperations Director

Bunnie Blankley Operations Assistant

Salma Hosni Operations Supervisor

Matt Kidd Operations Executive

Leaver:

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Samer and his wife are expecting their 2nd baby in September (hopefully it’s a girl)

OPERATIONS TEAM NEWS:

BIG 5 SAUDI: 9-12 March

MEDEXPO SAUDI: 6-8 April

INDEX DUBAI: 20-23 May

OFFICE DUBAI: 20-23 May

BIG 5 INDIA: 2-4 September

BIG 5 KUWAIT: 16-18 September

HOTEL DUBAI: 28-30 September

INDEX SAUDI: 12-14 November

ADIPEC: 10-13 November

BIG5/PMV/MEC: 25-28 November

LIFESTYLE UAE: 5-7 December

ABILITIES: 9-11 December

2013 SHOWS:

Salma got her 3rd baby girl

in September 2012, princess

Sirine.

Salma got her 3rd baby girl

in September 2012, princess

Sirine.

Salma got her Salma got her Salma got her 3rd baby girl 3rd baby girl 3rd baby girl

in September in September in September 2012, princess 2012, princess 2012, princess

Sirine. Sirine. Sirine.

Salma got her 3rd baby girl

in September 2012, princess

Sirine.

the dmg lowdown 10

DMG MEDIA SERVICESTHE 7TH FLOOR

DATABASE TEAM

You may not have all been aware of the office moves that have taken place

recently, but the 7th Floor is now almost half occupied by dmg events, with Media Services leading the way for the Hotel Show team. The database team has relocated from the Oasis Centre, the web and digital sales team moved up from the 2nd floor and Reflex Publishing (Pipeline Magazine and the Oil Baron’s Charity Ball) moved from the 5th floor, leaving Operations with some space of their own.

It means we now have 34 staff all working together in one office, in relative comfort, thanks mainly to Gehan and Majella’s organizational skills and their ability to ‘manage’ the contractors.

So, who are Media Services and what do they do, I hear you ask? This division has been established to broaden the scope of dmg events’ business and focus more on publishing, as opposed to just events. Historically, as a company, we have outsourced most of our publishing, online and database activities, but now, with our scale, we are in a position to manage it in-house. Some of the recent changes are producing the show daily newspapers and previews, more internal web development for show teams as well as creating new stand alone brands, the continued development of our database facility – the life blood of any events business, brand extensions around our Reflex Publishing products and the continued drive to educate the market on digital marketing advantages, to go alongside our face-to-face events.The largest team is the

Database Department, under the tutelage of Josephine Dias, taking over from the ever-popular Priyani Jayawickrama, who

has now returned to Sri Lanka with her family. Many of you will have had some dealings with this team, but they are not just telephone operators, constantly verifying, updating and building new data as dmg continues its drive into new markets. They also manage the bouncebacks from the millions of emails we send (2.4 million alone in April this year), update all the online enquiry forms into the database, sift and update the returned mail from marketing campaigns and will be taking care of registration data entry for the UAE exhibitions this year – another great example of how we are bringing more work in-house for greater efficiency and cost-savings. So, next time you are on the 7th

Floor, I suggest you pop your head in, say hello and offer your thanks for the tasks they perform with great enthusiasm and minimal fuss.

The Web Team work very closely with the Database Team, as they are not only responsible for all the in-house web developments

and design, the constant updates of email templates and the various tweaks to our myriad of websites, they also hold the key to the dmg DBMS (database management system). The DBMS was designed and built by Leony D’Silva, who remains plugged-in to deliver the evolutionary requirements that our business demands. Some of the other great products the Web Team has produced, under the guidance of Tharish Jabbar, include www.abilitiesme.com, www.theoilbaronscharityball.com, www.dmgeventsme.com and all of the

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Conferences & Training Division’s web collateral. Again, it’s great to see work that we once farmed out to agencies, now being designed and delivered by our own staff for dmg events.

Introducing the Pipeline Team , who are responsible for Pipeline Magazine, www.pipelineme.com , which was recently redesigned and

relaunched, the ADIPEC Show Dailies, the ADIPEC Newsletter Supplements, plus a variety of other supplements and bespoke publishing collateral. These guys are focused on Oil and Gas, the foundations that the UAE is built on. So while Scott ‘The Generator’ Woodall and his team sport sweet and crude smiles, be sure that there is serious energy in these geysers, delivering refined publications and always drilling that extra kilometer.

Our other commercial team is the Digital Sales Team, managed by David “The Foreman” Bentley and are responsible for digital

marketing sales, the Big 5 Preview and Show Dailies and www.constructarabia.com, our first stand-alone web brand, that will soon be followed by other vertical sector community portals. Focusing mainly on the construction and design markets, this team is building concrete relationships with strong editorial and innovative advertising solutions to cement their position as the place to be for our clients to market their brands.

Last, but by no means least, is the Oil Baron’s Charity Ball. The annual oil and gas industry fund raiser has been under the Baroness Robyn

Sokol for the past seven years. However, with Robyn’s return to Australia, we’ve got a new team and a fresh approach. Eleanor Bull is now in the hot seat to steer the Oil Baron’s hat forward and build on the success that Robyn achieved. It’s exciting times with new Oil Baron’s lunches, special breakfast events and ADIPEC-related activities all in the pipeline, as well as developing the theme and flavor for the Oil Baron’s Charity Ball 2014.

2013 is an exciting year for Media Services and everyone plans to make it a successful one. Keep an eye out for the new products and as ever, when on the 7th Floor, pop-in and say hello.

WEB TEAM

DIGITAL SALES TEAM

PIPELINE TEAM

THE OIL BARONS CHARITY BALL

ELEANOR BULL

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When the dust had settled, both literally and metaphorically, The Big

5 Saudi Arabia 2013 proved to have been the most successful outing yet, with more visitors and exhibitors than ever before.

This, the third edition, was not only the largest to date, but also firmly established The Big 5 Saudi as the leading international construction exhibition in the Kingdom, with a staggering 37 countries represented. Visitors responded positively and we managed to break the 10,000 visitor barrier for the first time, a 10% increase on 2012.

Not only that, but with the introduction of the Platinum Club for the first time at The Big 5 Saudi we were able to provide a dedicated offering for our key buyers, which proved instrumental in ensuring attendance from the top ten architecture and contracting firms in Saudi Arabia.

Perhaps more importantly, many of the visa issues which had proved to be a stumbling block at previous shows were now ironed out, with Rose and her team doing sterling work this side, and collaborating closely with MICE Arabia to ensure we had practically no

fallout from exhibitors who were unable to get visas. Even to the extent that, in our third year of trying, we were finally able to secure visas for our Saudi marketing team of Faye and Sabah….who both rocked the abaya look!

Last but not least, special mention must go to our Ops Team, and particularly Ops Superhero Samer whose general wheeling and dealing, cajoling, pressurising, pleading, sleepless nights and commitment to the

cause ensured that the 9,000 square metre marquee went up in excellent time, and as a far more robust and visually appealing structure than ever before.

To take a show from a turnover of zero to almost $4.5million in three years, in an environment as challenging as Saudi Arabia, is a great achievement and stands the team in good stead to grow and evolve the event in future years.

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Along with the introduction of a brand new team for this year’s Office

Exhibition came a brand new look and feel to the show, as dmg looks to reposition the event in line with the underlying trends of the industry. Also new for this year was the Office Exhibition’s co-location with INDEX.

As with all niche business-to-business exhibitions, Office faced many challenges with its goals for growing the event’s exhibitor and visitor participation; however, through the tireless efforts of the sales team the show achieved some great wins; such as a 20% increase in exhibiting companies compared

to last year, with new exhibiting countries including Spain, South Africa, and Cyprus – and a new country pavilion from Egypt.

Other countries loyal to the event, including the US, truly appreciated the ongoing efforts in raising the show’s profile and have reconfirmed their commitment to the show for 2014.

The co-location with INDEX brought many advantages, such as the introduction of the Office Trend Tour, the rebranding of the Office seminar sessions to the Design Talks at Office, collaboration with INDEX on the Middle East Interior Design Awards and the INDEX-Office Product Awards, as well as healthy crossover of visitor traffic.

However, it is also fair to say that the co-location also presented several challenges, including how to effectively promote the show as a standalone event under the immense shadow of the region’s largest interior design show. Despite these challenges, visitor numbers were higher than last year, although still at a modest level

in comparison to our aspirations; and the age-old exhibitor perception versus reality concerning the number of visitors remains a challenge that still needs to be adequately addressed.

What was most evident however was the quality of visitors; which was generally perceived by exhibitors as being very good indeed.

Once again, congratulations to all departments involved in delivering a thoroughly respectable event, and as we look forward towards Office 2014, there may be one or two exciting announcements in the offing in the not too distant future.

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Medexpo introduced the Kingdoms first Round Table platform for the medical industry which was attended by the top players in the industry such as the • Dr. Sami Badawood, Director General,

Jeddah Health Affairs, Saudi MOH• Dr. Majid Al Tuwaijri, CIO, NGHA• Prof. Ibrahin Alsarra, President, Saudi

Pharma Society• Eng. Sobhi Batterjee, President and CEO,

Saudi German Hospitals Group• H.E. Senator Cornelia Pruefer-Storcks, Head of

the Hamburg Ministry of Health, Germany• Dr. Wael Kaawach, CEO, Healthcare

Development Holdings

Medexpo held its second edition in April 2013 and that was an accomplishment

as only 4 weeks earlier; we were informed that the show had been cancelled by the Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia. Since the team seems to adhere to the ‘selective hearing’ campaign, they elected to ignore this minor challenge and proceed forward.

The event did however manage to bring in approx a 50/50 split as the international companies were equal to the companies from the KSA with the show coming in at:• Floor space - 4572• Exhibitors - 166• Exhibiting countries -19• Forum delegates -126

• Country Pavilions -8

The event also grew in profile with this latest event adding• Laboratory• Pharmaceutical• Bio-technology and Medical Tourism

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• Mr. Bassam Chahine, COO, Specialized Medical Center

• Dr. Bandar Al Haqtani , President, Saudi Association for Health Informatics and Director General for KAAHE / NGHA

• Dr. Salem Al Wahabi, Secretary General, Central Board for Accreditation of Healthcare Institutions

• Dr. Mohammed Mutabqani, General Manager, National Jeddah Hospital

• Dr. Walid Fatahi, CEO, International Medical Center, Jeddah

• Mr. Charles Ranado, Commercial Consul, US Consulate

• Official, Saudi Food and Drug Authority• Mr. Nasser Al Nasser, CEO, CARE (with

Healthcare Development Holding)• Mr. Elias Abu Shdeed, GM, CARE (with

Healthcare Development Holding)• Mr. Benoit Tamalet, Health Attache, French

Embassy in Saudi Arabia• Mrs. Hager Ben Nasr, Trade Development,

French Trade Commission Ubifrance – General Consulate of France

For the first time ever in a medical event within the KSA, Medexpo was able to secure the participation of a German State, Hamburg with a country pavilion. As such, Medexpo was honored to have H.E. Senator Cornelia Pruefer-Storcks, Head of the Hamburg Ministry of Health, Germany attend the Round Table and the official opening.

Another first in this profile was the participation of a USA sponsored country pavilion from Illinois and this was followed up with a visit from the US Commercial Consulate on the final day.

For this edition,

Medexpo was

able to team with the Saudi

scientific Society

for Biomedical

Engineering to

organize a two

day workshop

which was CME

accredited.

Certainly none of this would have been achievable without the

relentless help of all the teams such as Accounts, Operations,

Marketing and Administration.

Several members of the team that I will not name (John, Goutam

and Samer) apparently enjoyed the event and Jeddah so much, that

they have now all applied for Saudi citizenship.

Finally, we must also acknowledge our partners MICE Arabia for all

their assistance with the sales, visas and on-site assistance.

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As all dmg’ers can appreciate, time flies when your show team is fully

engrossed in a busy event cycle, but for the INDEX team, the challenge of delivering a show within a far shorter event cycle didn’t faze anyone!

Opening its doors less than eight months after INDEX 2012 closed, INDEX 2013 presented what can arguably be described as the most eye-catching, and innovative selection of interior design products the show has seen for many, many years.

Quality was definitely the theme for this year’s exhibition, with the show receiving an array of positive comments from visitors and exhibitors alike regarding the both the look and feel of the show and the range of new products being showcased.

Despite the short lead time, INDEX 2013 benefited from the presence of new exhibiting countries such as Peru, Iran, and Tunisia; as well as from some amazing country pavilions including Brazil, Egypt, and Turkey.Once again, the team worked tirelessly to

create and deliver a number of value-driven features and events, including INDEX regulars such as the Artists’ Avenue, Contemporary Majlis Design Competition, Design Talks, and the Trend Tour; but also brand new initiatives such as the Middle East Interior Design Awards, INDEX-Office Product Awards, and an exclusive closed-door business breakfast with internationally renowned Danish designer Morten Georgsen.

The entire team – admin, sales, marketing, accounts, and operations – did a sterling

job and delivered a great show despite the challenges of time and budget constraints, and all those involved should be extremely proud of the show they helped deliver.

Looking forward towards INDEX 2014, a brand new sector was announced at the 2013 show. ‘Iconic’ will provide an exclusive platform for elite and luxury brands to present their products to an invitation-only audience from the region’s most affluent and influential interiors buyers and procurers.

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The Middle East Hotel Awards once again cast the spotlight on the great and the

good in the hotel and hospitality industry. More than 300 key industry figures descended on the Jumeirah Creekside Hotel for an evening of celebration as 11 awards were presented across categories including Best Hotel, Best Restaurant and Best Hotel Suite.

The event was first introduced last year as part of The Hotel Show exhibition and was turned into a stand-alone event this year to further raise its profile amongst the hotel and hospitality audience and provide an additional date in the industry calendar in the space that The Hotel Show left behind.

The evening began with a VIP networking cocktail reception before guests made their way to the ballroom for the awards ceremony itself. Hosted by Jeff Price, local radio and TV presenter, the awards were presented as guests enjoyed a four-course dinner after which Million Dollar Band played the evening out with a selection of the latest hits.

The winners of the awards were:

Best Convention, Conference Or Banquet Facility: Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh

Best Hotel Apartment: Marriott Executive Apartments Saudi Arabia

Best Hotel Suite: The Atlantis Hotel, Dubai

Best Technology Integration: Jumeirah Emirates Towers

Best Restaurant Or Food & Beverage Outlet:Ossaiano, The Atlantis

Best Marketing Campaign: Hilton Worldwide

Best Sustainable Initiative: Six Senses Zighy BayBest Fitness & Leisure Facilities In A Hotel: Grand Hyatt, Dubai

Best Outdoor Area: The Westin Abu Dhabi

Best Lobby Reception or Guest Lounge: Jumeirah Creekside Hotel

Best Hotel: Six Senses Zighy Bay

The Middle East Hotel Awards 2013 was a great success and received many positive compliments and feedback from its delegates and sponsors. The next awards ceremony will be the Middle East Spa Awards, held on the 28th September.

To view all the pictures from the evening, please visit facebook.com/thehotelshow however you can see a few shots of the night below:

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The Life & Style Show UAE was launched at the end of 2012 and is something of a

first for dmg events Middle East being that it is a consumer event. Taking place from 5th to 7th December 2013 at ADNEC, the show will comprise of six individual events that shall all be held at the same time; Speed & Power, Sports & Leisure, Gizmos, Gadgets & Tech, Toys, Hobbies & Games, Fashion & Beauty and Home & Living. Collectively, the six events shall form the largest consumer lifestyle event in the Middle East. One ticket shall give visitors admission to all six events, including access to all of the feature areas.

Here is a glimpse of what you can expect to see at The Life & Style Show UAE:

Speed & PowerHarley Davidson shall be offering the opportunity to kick start a Harley Davidson Fat Boy motorcycle as well as showcasing some of their

latest bikes and merchandise. Sunseeker, the manufacturer of some of most expensive super yachts in the world, shall be displaying a collection of the mid-range boats allowing visitors to board them and see just how the rich and famous live.

Sports & LeisureThe event is now under the patronage of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council who shall be offering every school child up to grade 7 in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain

the opportunity to attend the events free of charge, as well as promoting their members, such as Al Jazera FC. Visitors will also have

the chance to take part in the Duplays’ 32 team football tournament, awarding the winning team a selection of prizes from Adidas.

Gizmos, Gadgets & TechThis shall truly be a gamers’ paradise with gaming stages from both Nintendo and Playstation who will be launching the brand

new PlayStation 4 at the show in addition to Tbreak’s, the Middle East’s largest gaming portal, PC gaming tournament. The latest range of products will also be on display from companies such as BlackBerry, Pioneer and Bose.

Toys, Hobbies & GamesKidzania shall be recreating part of their Dubai based role play theme park where children can try their hands at being a as a

fireman, doctor, police officer, journalist, or a shopkeeper for the day. There shall be a Mompreneur Market in the form of Momsouq which shall be showcasing mother entrepreneur businesses, and the products and services that they offer.

Fashion & BeautyFeatures within this event include the catwalk stage that shall include contributions from local and international designers as well as a dedicated

catwalk show from graduate London Fashion Week designers who shall be promoting fashion from every continent on the globe. Dawn Williamson, the guest fashion presenter of Dubai One and La Moda Dubai, will be offering visitors the chance to gain expert advice on hair, makeup and styling advice in an informal environment.

Home & LivingVisitors will have the opportunity to step

inside a full size house to see some of the latest ranges from companies such as Vileroy & Boch, Poggenpohl, Natuzzi through to DG+. Several

of the region’s best chefs shall be hosting cooking demonstrations in the Celebrity Cooking Stage where chefs such as Gary Rhodes shall be promoting the restaurants.

PREVIEW

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Media SupportThe Life & Style Show UAE has had a great response from the media, and already we have an extensive list of media sponsors and partners, including:

Government PartnersAbu Dhabi Sports CouncilAbu Dhabi Events

Official Newspaper PartnersThe NationalAl Ittihad

Official Radio PartnersStarFMEmarat FMRadio Mirchi

Official Food MagazineBBC Good Food ME

Official Interiors MagazinesEmirates HomeOfficial Outdoor MagazineOutdoor UAE

Media SponsorsGood HousekeepingEmirates Parent PlusLonely Planet TravellerMother, Baby & ChildLifestyle magazine

Media Partners• ADMCSport.com• Ahlan!• AnaZahra.com• Arabian Business• Bab Al Shabab• Boat Owner• Car & Driver ME• Charged ME• Citruss TV

• Cosmopolitan• Esquire• Ethiad InFlight• Grazia• Harpers Bazaar• Majid• Masala!• ME Golfer• ME Kids• Men’s Fitness• Mumzworld• OK! Middle East• Shape• Tbreak• The Entertainer• TimeOut Abu Dhabi• TimeOut Dubai• TimeOut Kids• UAE Exchange• UAE4Kidz• VIVA• Zaharat Al Khaleej

This is a really exciting event to be working on and the team is working tirelessly to make it a great success.

We look forward to seeing you all at the show!

Ashley, Alex, Michaella, Gina, Louisa & Juma

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a Not so leisurely …

With not enough to do already this year, the hospitality team clawed

another b2b profile from DWTC (in only late February) for Pool & Spas on the proviso that a show would happen in September, this year!

And so was borne, The Leisure Show, a business event highlighting projects, investment, development, entertainment, equipment and products in this and other parts of the sector including fitness & sports, resorts, parks and attractions.

Co location this year with The Hotel Show celebrates the obvious synergy between the two events on the outdoor, landscaping and resort side and the shows will be fully open on crossover points between halls 2 and 3.

A most welcome recent development has been the agreed strategic partnership with DTCM (Dubai Tourism Commerce Marketing) for The Leisure Show and teaming up on the knowledge side with TRI Consulting. A recent article quotes significant plans for future development across hospitality and leisure industries:-

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, approved the roadmap to treble the annual contribution made by tourism to the emirate’s economy to Dh300 billion while recording a two-fold increase in tourist arrivals, compared to the tourist traffic of 10 million in 2012.

The strategy behind Dubai Tourism Vision 2020 is to further leverage a sector which has been a central pillar in the city’s economic growth, success and diversification,” said Helal Saeed Almarri, Director-General of the DTCM.

He said the strategy is based upon two central tenets. “The first is to widen our range of tourism offerings across events, attractions, infrastructure, services and packages and to enhance the overall visitor experience from arrival to departure. The second tenet is to adapt our marketing approach in order to showcase Dubai to a wider audience and grow the conversion rate of awareness to bookings.

To widen the range of tourism offerings, Dubai will have three key areas of focus — as the world’s leading family destination, as an event destination, and as a business destination.

“We see no distinction between the business traveler and the leisure visitor. Today’s conference delegate is tomorrow’s holidaymaker and there are a number of steps we can take to encourage the business travelers to extend their stay or return for leisure trips with friends and family,” said Almarri.”

*Source:Khaleej TimesAll of this is very good news for The Leisure Show and The Hotel Show - so much live content and hundreds of projects just in Dubai, let alone across the MENA region. This together with the bid for EXPO 2020 (DTCM) will make for great PR opportunities for the shows.

The Leisure Shows Tarek Ali, project manager and Maen Abilmona, sales manager are leaving no stone unturned with a highly pressured sales approach convincing exhibitors on an off year for events in the pools sector that they need to spend money this year and in rallying the agents around the world to contribute. A recent meeting of agents has seen a great response and the metres being offered are mounting up.

All in all it’s a big job to be done in a very small amount of time, but if anyone can do it, it is The Leisure Show Team - unashamedly selling till the last…..

PREVIEW

Tarek AliProject ManagerThe Leisure Show

Maen AbilmonaSales ManagerThe Leisure Show

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a) Processing Visa Applications: the most stressful, yet humorous process we ever go through here at MICE and I am sure DMG would agree. We get applicants from all over the world since international presence is key in all of our exhibitions.

b) One applicant in particular during the INDEX KSA 2012 stood out from the crowd. His name was Akbar Zib, which I am sure my fellow arabs reading this will understand what I am talking about here. (Dear Arab friends, kindly translate this to our fellow

internationals). Now, Mr. Zib’s visa application was processed as usual, but was declined (of course), because I am sure the Saudi government believed that they had enough of those here.”

MICE

Elie Rizk CEO of M.I.C.E Arabia Group

Nader Ammar Project Manager of The Saudi Hotel Show

Sara Al Ghabar Project Manager ofMEDEXPO Saudi

Yosef Al ZanbagiHR Manager of M.I.C.E Arabia Group

Ahmed Daraghmeh Marketing and PR Manager of M.I.C.E Arabia Group.

Rizwan Ahmed Finance Manager of M.I.C.E Arabia forExhibitions and Conferences

Richard Walter Project Manager of INDEX KSA Exhibition

Rafic Malek General Manager of M.I.C.E Arabia Exhibitions and Conferences

Elliott Rizk Business Development Manager of M.I.C.E Arabia Group. Project Manager of Big5 Saudi

Being involved with dmg events for the past 3 years now, our relationship has surely continued to evolve to become a highly beneficial one for both parties. We are more than pleased to be their partners here in Saudi Arabia hoping to further our relationship with them in the long run. It was surely MICE meeting dmg events.

Elie Rizk CEO of M.I.C.E Arabia Group

With several events under the belt with dmg events what have been the funny stories with clients or staff from dmg, situations at MICE

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THE ALMOST CHAMPIONS

February 20th saw the return of the Insportz Cricket League and once again

dmg::events entered a team in this indoor league – although, if truth be told, more in hope than expectation.

After all, in three previous tournaments we had failed to make it out of the four team group stages, registering only the single victory.

However, two conversations in the space of eight hours changed things dramatically and helped propel dmg::events to the final of the D Division trophy.

Conversation One:Ajeeb: “I hear you have a cricket team. I’d like to play”Me: “Are you any good?”Ajeeb: “I play in the A Division”Me: “You’re in”.

Conversation Two:This went pretty much the same as conversation one, except with Omar Qadeer, a new face in finance, who revealed he had previously played at a high level in England.

So, with our two new guys and good well established players like Juma Ghulam, Muhammed Kazi, Raj Salgaonkar, Jordan Stephen and others – we were ready to rock.

Six games, six thumping victories and one highly amusing ‘split trousers’ incident later we had not only won the group stage, but arrived in the D Division final with a real chance of lifting the Trophy for Division Champions. Unfortunately, on the night we came up just short against a team with some excellent bowlers. Nevertheless we got to take home a runners-up trophy, which sits in pride of place in the reception area, and two of our players won individual honours, Mangesh Naik winning Man of the Match for the final and Ajeeb Jamal winning the Divisional Best

Batsman Award.Finally, we ended the tournament with the knowledge that next time out, we would be competing in the C Division.

Bring it on!

dmg::cricket – February Tournament Squad:

SPORTS & SOCIALWelcome………We were sorry to say farewell to Robyn who has done a fantastic job in heading up the Sports & Social Committee… and now, please welcome the duo, Alex Sworder & Chris Seymour to the mix.

2012 Annual Christmas PartyOn the 17th Jan, the DMG Staff got blinged up for the annual DMG Christmas Party……..Well, I must say, as newcomers to DMG, we were blown away at our first DMG Christmas Party…A massive round of applause to all those involved; the venue, the food, the theme, the quiz and the hilarious comedian who flew over from the UK just for us – well the company not Alex and Chris! Needless to say, there were some brilliant / embarrassing photos taken of us all; which shall appear, like the end of the film “The Hangover”. Congratulations to those who won the raffle prizes, the president awards and of course the fancy dress!

St Paddy’s Day – DMG Style!On the 13th March (obviously!), DMGers got together to celebrate St Patrick’s Day in standard form. With prizes to be won and donations to charity, it proved to be another great event/day. With staff dressing themselves in their finest greens, the day started off with a Raffle and cakes being sold throughout the day. After the Scavenger Hunt was completed, with teams showing

their skills in Potato Art and Traditional Irish drawing, those who were inclined headed over to McGettigans for more Irish Festivities including Pin the Clover on the Leprechaun, Golf Putting, Face Painting along with a Live Band, Quiz, Food and Drinks. I am sure that all of you who were there will agree that it was another fantastic DMG extravaganza.

To top it off, you all managed to raise a total of AED2,230.00 for the non-profit animal sanctuary Posh Paws Dubai.

DMG Cricket:A massive congratulations to the DMG cricket team for winning the cup. A momentous effort amongst some very good competition.

Upcoming Events- You should have seen the flyer and hopefully booked your seat for the muchos grande…….

Nacho Libre Night – 20th June – Cactus Cantina @ Chelsea Plaza Hotel

Hola Senoritas y Senores!!Pull out your Sombreros’ and dust of your Poncho’s and ready yourselves for an authentic Mexican Fiesta! There will of course be prizes for the best dressed plus

JOINERS• Jean Philippe Cosse, Event Director -

ADIPEC : 11th December 2012 JP comes to us having worked on GITEX

at Dubai World Trade Centre for 4 years and prior to that he was with Reed Travel Exhibitions in the UK.

• Mansoor Alam Islam, Credit Controller : 2nd January 2013

Prior to working with us, Mansoor was employed with Majid Al Futtaim Finance selling their range of credit cards.

• Steven Pradia, Assistant Editor - Construct Arabia : 2nd January 2013

Steven brings to dmg rich experience in reporting, editing and journalism. Prior to joining us he was a free lance writer and editor with Tharawat Magazine & Forbes Middle East.

• Rebecca Morris, Marketing Manager – The Hotel Show (Dubai & Saudi Arabia) : 6th January 2013

Rebecca is ex-Reed UK and has over 6 years international on and offline marketing experience. Prior to dmg she was involved in executing year round marketing for World Travel Market, which is the world’s leading B2B travel exhibition.

• Ghassan Othman, Sales Manager – AbilitiesME : 8th January 2013

Ghassan was previously employed with Strategic Marketing and Exhibitions where he managed events like Annual Investment Meeting and International Property Show.

• Diane Peart-Jackson, Financial Controller : 13th January 2013

Diane has previously worked with the likes of Ernst & Young and IIR Middle East for many years before joining us.

• Lisa Marie Cardoza, Marketing Coordinator – Big 5 : 20th January 2013

Lisa was employed with us in a temp capacity on The Big 5 team last year & has now joined the team again as a permanent resource. Prior to dmg she was working with Voitin Walker Davis.

• Louisa Walton, Marketing Manager – Life & Style : 27th January 2013

Louisa comes to dmg with vibrant experience gathered from her previous company in UK where she was the key account manager for various IT companies including Huawei, Quantum, QLogic, Brocade and HCL.

• Patrice Murphy, Accounts Assistant – Payables : 27th January 2013

Patrice previously worked with BE Aerospace in the UK in an Accounts Payable role and relocated to the UAE early this year.

• Claire Pallen, Conference Director – ADIPEC : 3rd February 2013

Claire joins dmg with over 12 years of experience in the global Oil and Gas events sector. Prior to joining us she was with Clarion Events Middle East.

• Aurobind Edrich, Sponsorship & Sales Manager – C&T : 4th February 2013

Aurobind previously worked with IQPC where he was mainly involved with selling sponsorship to Oil & Gas vendors and prior to that he worked for Artaaj in Dubai.

• Tarek Ali, Project Manager – Leisure Show : 10th February 2013

Tarek is ex-Reed Middle East and brings to us more than 9 years of experience in B2B and B2C exhibitions in UAE and Qatar.

• Juliete Cariaso, Marketing Coordinator – AbilitiesME : 20th February 2013

Juliete brings to dmg a rich experience of organizing and coordinating large trade shows which she gathered while she worked for Strategic Marketing & Exhibitions.

• Divya Lance, HR Coordinator : 24th February 2013

Divya has previously worked with amazon.com in India as an HR Specialist prior to which she was working for an Engineering firm in Abu Dhabi.

• Nisha Naik, Database Executive : 10th March 2013

Nisha was employed with us in a temp capacity in the Database team last year & has now joined the team again as a permanent resource.

• Josephine Dias, Database Manager : 17th March 2013

Prior to working with us Josephine was with IIR Exhibitions in their Database team for almost a decade.

• Maan Abilmona, Sales Manager – Leisure Show : 17th March 2013

Maan was earlier employed with International Fairs & Promotions in Lebanon, which organizes B2B and B2C exhibitions and conferences in 7 Mid-Eastern countries.

• Sujanthi Perera, Database Executive : 20th March 2013

Sujanthi previously worked for a Graphics company in Sri Lanka. She is also a certified Graphic Designer.

• Joseff Williams, Marketing Manager – Big 5 : 8th April 2013

Joseff joins us from IQPC, Dubai where he was responsible in creating and managing marketing campaigns for large scale events within IQPC’s Energy portfolio.

• Alexander Franzetti, Marketing Manager - MedExpo & AbilitiesME : 10th April 2013

Alex comes to us with more than 11 years of rich experience in the advertising and marketing industries. Prior to joining us he was with Epoc Messe Frankfurt & worked as Marketing Manager on Intersec, Materials Handling, ISH Kitchen & Bath, Light ME and Automechanika.

• Hina Latif, Online Editorial Assistant : 14th April 2013

Hina is a fresh graduate from Middlesex University, Dubai. She was an intern with Masala and Kohl Magazines, and a Media Researcher and Editor for Media&I.

• Gina Watson, Project Manager – Life & Style : 21st April 2013

Prior to joining dmg, Gina was with

the dmg lowdown 24

Motivate Publishing where she worked on Emirates Woman and all its supplement. She comes with valuable experience in marketing, sales, media and digital industries.

• Baptista Martins, IT Support Analyst : 25th April 2013

Baptista was with Atlantis The Palm before joining us. He has almost 6 years of experience in network & system administration in India, East Africa and the UAE.

• Dominic Njuguna, Digital Sales Executive : 28th April 2013

Dominic’s last role was with OSN Gulf DTH. He has more than 8 years of experience in sales in diverse industries.

• David Bentley, Sales Director : 29th April 2013

• Julian Walker, Editor – Pipeline : 1st May 2013 Julian comes to us from Alain Charles

Publishing where he worked as an Associate Editor and prior to that he was a freelance Analyst with Euromonitor International.

• Angelique Botes, Marketing Manager : 5th May 2013

Prior to working with us, Angelique was employed with Emirates Airlines as an Event Promotion Manager. She also worked at IIR on Cityscape & CityBuild as Marketing Manager.

• Susanne Wollaert, Conference Assistant : 15th May 2013

Susanne previously worked with Kenes International in Switzerland as Account Manager where her role was overall management and administration of key accounts.

• Eleanor Bull, Event Manager – Oil Barron & Charity Ball : 26th May 2013

Eleanor joins dmg with a rich experience of 9 years in the events industry. She earlier worked with the British Council as Sponsorship and Event Manager, MENA.

• Steffie Coelho, Database Executive: 26th May 2013

Steffie previously worked with LMnO Solutions in Goa, India prior to joining us.

• Lynish Menezes, Sales Executive – Hotel Show, Dubai : 9th June 2013

Lynish was employed with Channels Exhibitions where he worked on 4 shows across Dubai and India. Prior to Channels, Lynish has several years of experience working for organizers such as ITE & Montgomery in India.

• Ryann Ruidera, Sales Executive – Hotel Show, Dubai : 9th June 2013

Prior to joining dmg Ryann worked with Lifecare International as Sales & Relationship Manager where he was managing a portfolio of 50 SME groups.

• Nick Ornstein, Business Development Director

Nick joins with a great deal of experience gained with spells working for ITE Exhibitions, UBM and Pennwell in roles that have spanned publishing and large scale exhibitions and all elements within. Nick has previously worked across the Middle East as well as operated in the oil & gas markets.

LEAVERS• Naved Jawed Syed – IT Support Analyst10th January 2013: Naved left us at the

beginning of the year to support a friend’s business.

• Timothy Wilson – Event Manager, Hotel Saudi 14th February 2013: Tim was with us for nearly 2 years; he joined dmg to work on The Office Exhibition & moved to the Hotel Saudi team in June last year. He has now relocated to New Zealand.

• Tawina Fernandes – Online Editorial Assistant, Construct Arabia

28th February 2013: Tawina worked with us for nearly 2 years. She left us to pursue her career ambitions elsewhere.

• Annabel Clough – Marketing Manager, FM Expo

14th March 2013: Annabel will be remembered for her workshop on demystifying Emirati culture; she left us due to family commitments.

• Sabah Mustafa – Marketing Manager, MEC/ PMV 19th March 2013: Sabah worked with us for 3 years; she initially joined The Hotel team after which she moved to MEC/ PMV. Sabah left us due to family commitments.

• Priyani Jayawickrama – Database Manager 21st March 2013:

Priyani was with us for nearly 2 years and was instrumental in setting up our Database department. Priyani has now relocated to her home country of Sri Lanka with her family.

• Robyn Sokol - Event Manager, OBCB 9th April 2013: Robyn was employed with Reflex/

dmg for nearly 6 years; she was a key resource on the OBCB. Robyn decided to

return to her home country of Australia to be with her family.

• Chris Ayers – Project Manager, Life & Style 23rd April 2013: Chris will be fondly remembered for his fun personality; he left us to pursue a non-events role.

• Ahmad Alghawanmeh – Sponsorship Sales Executive (C&T): 1st May, 2013

Ahmad has decided to take up a sales opportunity in the music business, which he has a passion for.

• David Bishop – Sales & Sponsorship Manager (ADIPEC): 23rd May 2013

David leaves us to pursue career opportunities elsewhere in the UAE; we wish him the best.

• Rejitha Nair – Database Executive: 23rd May 2013

Rejitha was a well-liked member of the Database team who had to leave us due to family commitments.

PROMOTIONS• Roger Cardoso – Marketing Coordinator,

The Hotel Show: 3rd March 2013 Roger is a familiar face at dmg having

started his career with us in the Database department in 2011. He received a well deserved promotion earlier this year when he moved to the Hotel team as an additional marketing resource.

• Jaafar Shubber – Event Manager, FM Expo: 17th March 2013

Jaafar joined dmg in 2011 to work on the launch of INDEX Saudi & in March this year made the move to the Construction portfolio to work on FM Expo.

• Sunny Khurana – Senior Credit Controller: 1st May 2013

Sunny has been with dmg for over 3 years now & was recently promoted to Senior Credit Controller.

• John Suzara – Event Manager, Hotel Saudi: 12th May 2013

John joined dmg in 2011 to work on the launch of MedExpo. After 2 successful deliveries of the show in Jeddah, he has now moved to work on Hotel Saudi.

• Tasmine Othman – Sales Manager, Hospitality 360: 12th May 2013

Tasmine has worked on Hotel Dubai since joining dmg in 2011. She has now accepted the challenge of working on our first Singapore launch.

the dmg lowdown25

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What people don’t know about me was...

... I had BLUE hair and large Goatee for a year at Uni!

• I am a bit of a mix: South African, English, Australian, Irish, Scottish & a bit Trinidadian!

• Broke my finger while.. Break dancing!!• Snogged Abi Titmuss & Holly Branson,

oh & had a wee in Chris Tarrant’s pool!• I gate crashed the ex Liberal Democrat

Leader – Paddy Ashdown’s leaving party with a yellow business card I had on me at the time….managed to shake his hand while he was being interviewed on television! (Mind you, I was rather tipsy!)

• Worked as My Whippy in an ice cream van outside the Natural History Museum.

• Cycled a total of 165 miles for charity raising 1,500 GBP.

- Alex Sworder -

... What not so many people know about me is that I am a

CouchSurfer. - Marcela Soukupova -

... I was raised in a farming family and worked in agriculture across

both the UK and Australia before a career in events. I’m a handy guy to know on matters related to farming, so if you’re worried about your sheep, potatoes, wheat, or dairy cows.....you know who to ask....LOL

- Simon Mellor -

... I am just an ordinary girl with extraordinary attitude (tongue in

cheek) J…a passionate photography enthusiast, a wanderlust, a Zumba and fitness lover, an extreme adventurerand most of all a huge fan of Robert Kiyosaki!

- Jing Son -

... What you didn’t know about me was…..I auditioned for the

X-Factor!

- Louisa Walton -

... I have an obsession with frozen joghurt, pugs and do not like our

Bavarian national drink (beer).

- Susanne Wollaert -

... that I was once a burgeoning child star of the stage whose

passion for fame was extinguished once I realized that 13 years old is too old to play Tiny Tim

- Steven Pradia -

... I have worked for DMG since 2002 (on and off) and Bernard

Walsh employed me.

- Nicola Hudson -

... I ran 56km, from one side of Capetown in South Africa to the

other, at the end of March this year during the Two Oceans Ultramarathon – it took me 6.5 hours

- Glenn Freeman -

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... even my Dad is Italian and my surname is, I cannot speak Italian,

unfortunately.

- Alexander Franzetti -

... What you didn’t know about me was I don’t like seeing a plate or any

lunch with leftover food, but I would kindly accept to finish it for you or bring it home.

- Alma Macalalad -... This is not funny or not sure if it even counts but….. what people

don’t know about me is that Keziah is my real name (legal name) and Marie is only a pet name.

- Marie Heynsbergh -

... i am a qualified preparatory teacher

- Noela Rebello -that I’m allergic to sand!

- Maen Abilmona -

... I also have no explanation for this (so don’t ask!) but it just

popped up in my head: “I’m the dandy highwayman who you’re too scared to mention I spend my cash on looking flash and grabbing your attention.” It’s the opening line from Stand and Deliver by Adam and the Ants and endless other covers of the song…

- Emran Hussain -

... This perhaps may be a contribution that I shall live to regret but as it was all in aid of a good cause so I am happy to share it.

What people don’t know about me is that I once wore a dress… a wedding dress to be precise. Along with six of my other colleagues, who worked on The National Wedding Shows, and over 150 individuals, all female apart from me. We wore wedding dresses to, at and from work to raise awareness for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Although it was a hugely embarrassing experience I personally raised over $1,000 for the cause - http://www.justgiving.com/AshRoberts Image attached for everyone’s amusement.!

- Ashley Roberts -

... Can I say that I bake and decorate cakes? And bring you a

photo of the flowerpot cake I baked?

- Angelique Botes -

... What a wonderful idea. My response is styled on the 1970’s

Pepsi advert which no one will remember except a few old gits like me.

I am a ……......scuba diving jeep driving wine glugging teddy hugging pilates planking reggae skanking free falling punk rock bawling yoga posing sofa dozing dodgy dancing ever smiling DMG ACCOUNTANT !

- Diane Peart-Jackson -

... What you didn’t know about me was that I have a tiny ecological

footprint and am very proud of it J

- Hina Latif -

... so the thing nobody knows about me is I can’t tell my left and right!

A bit embarrassing really! - Gina Watson -

WINNER500dhs of ParisGallery voucher

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