NEC appoint Ian Taylor as venue sales director
Ian Taylor has been appointed as NEC Venue Sales Director, taking over from Stephen Richards from early October.
Ian joins The NEC from Marketing Birmingham where he is currently commercial director, leading the destination sales and marketing team responsible for promoting and growing the region’s visitor economy.
Prior to Marketing Birmingham, Ian was Commercial Director at Newcastle Gateshead Initiative and worked as Head of Conferences and Events at Emap.
Reporting directly to NEC managing director Kathryn James, he will be responsible for the delivery of the venue’s sales strategy, working alongside the sales team.
Commenting on the appointment, Ian Taylor said: “In recent years, Birmingham - and the NEC Group in particular - has increasingly been in the national and international spotlight, playing host to a huge range of major events such as party political conferences, sporting championships, international association conferences and high profile global exhibitions.
“The NEC Group is a vitally important driver of the wider regional economy, delivering an economic impact of over £2 billion per year and supporting some 29,000 FTE jobs in the region. Without doubt, this is a great time to be joining the business as it builds on its growing reputation and increasing profile as a global brand with an exciting future.”
NEC MD Kathryn James welcomed Taylor to the role: “We’re delighted to welcome Ian to the NEC as we move into a really exciting period for the business and for Greater Birmingham as a whole.
“He brings his destination sales and marketing experience to us at a time when our great venue proposition is about to be further enhanced by the opening of Resorts World Birmingham on our site in 2015, a game-changing attraction which will help transform us into a 24/7 destination for our organisers, exhibitor and visitors.”