HKCEC was chosen as the venue for three very important and high-profile events recently related to the visit of the Vice-Premier of the State Council Mr Li Keqiang. This underlines the Centre’s status as both a Hong Kong landmark and as a venue that delivers highly professional standards of service.

Staff arrived at work as early as 5am on the morning of 17 August to ensure that everything was in order to receive Mr Li and his entourage, as well as the other VIP guests, including top government officials, among them the Chief Executive of the HKSAR, Mr Donald Tsang. Three events were involved: Forum on 12th Five-Year Plan and Mainland – Hong Kong Economic, Trade and Financial Cooperation, Signing Ceremony of Mainland-Hong Kong Economic & Trade Cooperation, and Launch Ceremony of RMB Sovereign Bonds in Hong Kong. In his keynote speech at the Forum, Mr Li unveiled a number of measures designed to create a win-win environment by bringing benefits to Hong Kong and boosting the country's future development. The proceedings ran very smoothly – a big credit to the staff and facilities of HKCEC.

Organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, the hugely popular Hong Kong Book Fair once again broke records, with some 950,000 people attending the week-long event, representing a three percent increase over 2010. In addition, the turnout for cultural activities doubled over the previous year, confirming the fact that the fair is much more than simply an event for the sale and purchase of books.

The Book Fair featured a record 526 exhibitors from 24 countries and regions, and nearly 300 cultural events. Of the visitors, 15,000 were tourists – 15 percent more than 2010 and largely from the Chinese mainland, Macau and Taiwan.

Given the huge size of this show, and the fact that many of the visitors were young people from different background, HML’s F&B team prepared special food items to suit the various tastes of exhibitors and visitors. There were a total of 278 items available at the food concession stands during the Book Fair, including organic and vegetarian choices and local specialities.

With so many visitors, HML put a major focus on crowd management, with more than 300 security guards deployed per event day. We are pleased that everything ran very smoothly. Ensuring the cleanliness of the Centre was also important, and more than 200 housekeeping staff, including permanent and casual labour, worked every day and night to ensure that our high standards were maintained.

We also paid great attention to the green issue, and implemented a vigorous recycling programme. During the fair, we collected 21,360kg of paper for recycling, 860kg of plastic bottles and 158kg of aluminium cans. We also collected 21,320kg of pallets, which was a new initiative this year.

Next year’s Book Fair will take place from 18-24 July 2012.

The 13th Ani-Com & Games (ACGHK) drew around 696,000 fans. This popular summer event has grown by over 200 percent since its first edition, while its influence and status have also increased. It has a reputation as a trend leader and is well supported by the creative and digital entertainment industries in the region. It featured animation, comics, games, toys, limited-edition collectibles from Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland, Japan, Korea and Taiwan, as well as from Europe and North America.

As well as acting as a platform for business opportunities for industry players, the four-day show was packed with activities for visitors. At X-Zone Young @ Mart, young entrepreneurs were able to sell their own designs and DIY products. There were competitions for bands, street dancers, comic artists and figure designers. But perhaps the most high-profile activity was the ACG Cosplay Contest, which attracted not only hundreds of participants but extensive media coverage.

This was another very busy show, with lots of youngsters attending. The HKCEC management team made special arrangements tailor-made for ACGHK to ensure everything ran smoothly. Particular attention was paid to the organisation of in-hall queues for limited-edition figures, comics and other items. We also offered more than 100 food items, including local snacks that are popular with young people, and a selection of 60 drinks.

Kylie Minogue is one of the world’s most successful pop stars – and fans in Hong Kong were in for a real treat when Kylie brought her Aphrodite Live concert to H5BC at HKCEC on July 1.

The pop princess drew an eclectic audience of all ages and nationalities. The tour is based on Kylie’s 2010 album, Aphrodite, but also featured many of her hit singles such as “I Should Be So Lucky”, prompting many to sing along with the Aussie diva. And as with any Kylie performance, concert-goers were not only thrilled with the songs, but also by the trademark lavish presentation and the fabulous costumes worn by Kylie and her dancers. There was no shortage of dazzle – and the crowd lapped it all up.

HKCEC rose to the occasion and proved once again that its city-centre location and ability to stage a spectacle such as this make it an extremely popular concert venue.