The country is squandering its potential for business tourism through its key areas of economic activity, according to an analysis by the Mexican Council of the Meetings Industry (Comir).
The country faces a window of opportunity to establish itself as a reliable, warm, professional, and strategic alternative for attracting meetings, according to the document presented at the Council Leadership Meeting.
It highlights that Mexico leads the global ranking in requests for proposals, or RFPs, for group events, registering an index of 194 points, surpassing countries such as the United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, and the United States.
“However, when looking at the group hotel occupancy index, Mexico does not appear among the top eight. India and the Netherlands stand out, however, as they not only attract interest but also convert it into actual hotel nights,” the analysis notes.
Comir President Michel Wohlmuth said that this gap between intent and conversion should be viewed as an area of opportunity.
He commented that Mexico is already on the radar of decision-makers. Now, the need is to close deals better, transform interest into confirmed events, and strengthen coordination between destination promotion, venues, hotels, and suppliers.
“The demand exists, as does the trust. What follows is turning it into results. And that is precisely why, at Comir, we promoted the creation of the Mexican Congress and Convention Bureau,” said Michel Wohlmuth.
This initiative takes on greater relevance today: coordinating efforts, professionalizing the value chain, and positioning Mexico as a destination that not only sparks interest but also transforms it into concrete, memorable, and high-impact economic experiences, the executive noted.
The pandemic is behind us.
The president of Comir indicated that Mexico officially has 330,000 events classified as meetings.
In 2024, the figures for 2019, before the pandemic, have already been surpassed, and they are being processed to estimate how many events will be held in 2025, Wohlmuth explained.
The meetings industry’s share rose to 1.6% of the Gross Domestic Product, placing it among the top 15 activities that contribute the most to Mexico’s economy.
“In 2024, we will exceed 330,000 events, but we don’t have the exact calculation yet. We are seeing events in virtually all economic sectors, but we see the technology industry with a large number of meetings, the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries with significant growth, as well as the automotive sector, which has naturally been important.”
Tariff Uncertainty
“Among the risks, we are observing that the geopolitical stance of the United States government is generating cancellations of events at some hotels. These are very specific cases. We don’t have the data yet, but we do see that this geopolitical issue is generating negative repercussions in several sectors, including meeting tourism,” he added.
Comir is working to promote Mexico’s activities. For example, they are seeking to interest Canada in holding more events here, instead of in the United States, as a measure to take advantage of the current situation.
They are also working with the Union of Tourism Secretaries of Mexico and the Ministry of Tourism (Sectur) to seek to harness the sector’s potential.
Last month, the National Tourism Business Council (CNET) called for more federal public resources to be used to promote the country, and Sectur head Josefina Rodríguez Zamora responded that everything will be analyzed.
Comir hopes to further promote the sector at the National Congress of the Meetings Industry (CNIR), which will take place in the city of Puebla from September 24 to 27.
Source: eluniversal
