Stability at a high level – that’s how DüsseldorfCongress Veranstaltungsgesellschaft mbH sums it up after closing off its sixteenth year of operation. Last year, the subsidiary of the City of Düsseldorf and the Düsseldorf Fairgrounds provided venues for 2,410 events, hosting 1.8 million visitors. Its total revenues from venue rentals, services and copyrights totaled 23.19 million euros and its annual operating result was 190,350 euros.
These successes enabled the event company to continue the pattern of stable economic results it has boasted for the past five years. DüsseldorfCongress‘s total annual revenues have remained over 20 million euros since 2006. In 2009, the company’s total revenues actually spiked to 31 million euros. “However, that outstanding result is attributable to two extraordinary events that positively affected the business figures on a one-time basis – the New Apostolic Church’s European Youth Day and Bayer Leverkusen’s second round matches, which were held in Düsseldorf while the BayArena was being renovated,“ explains Hilmar Guckert, management spokesperson of DüsseldorfCongress.
Even though the event company was not able to match the 2009 revenue record last year, Guckert is totally satisfied with the 2010 results. “Looking at the big picture over the past five years, we can look back on solid business development with numerous new record marks – and that despite the economic and financial crisis.“
2010 highlights – looking forward to 2011
One factor in DüsseldorfCongress’s current financial results especially worth mentioning is the high performance of PHILIPSHALLE. This venue topped the 2 million euro benchmark for the first time in 2010. With 253,489 visitors, PHILIPSHALLE was also able to achieve its highest total visitor count in five years. The 2011 calendar for the event arena in Düsseldorf is chock full, setting the stage for further strong results this year. A few of the 2011 highlights include a Lenny Kravitz concert, the dance show “Lord of the Dance,” and the SME trade fair “Business to Dialog.”
ISS DOME was also able to strengthen its position as one of the important multifunktional venues in Düsseldorf last year. In addition to the DEG METRO STARS home matches, Eric Clapton, David Garrett, Mario Barth, the musical “Mamma Mia!” and the television music event “THE DOME 56” were on ISS DOME’s program in 2010. Another step toward an even more solid economic position was signed and sealed last October, when ISS Facility Services GmbH extended its contract to have the ISS DOME carry its name until 2016. This year, visitors can look forward to visiting the multi-functional arena to see Tarkan, Die Fantastischen Vier, and “Apassionata”. Additional event highlights are currently being finalized.
Last year, the ESPRIT arena was able to score especially big by hosting important sporting events. In addition to a boxing match featuring heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, the German-Japan Bowl and the 23rd Race of Champions were also held at the arena in 2010. In February, the cult band Depeche Mode also held a concert in the ESPRIT arena. But this year the multifunctional arena can boast an even bigger highlight. On May 14, 2011, the 56th Eurovision Song Contest, the world’s biggest television entertainment show, will be broadcast live from the ESPRIT arena to 46 countries. A total of around 100,000 viewers are expected to watch the four events live in the arena, and another 120 million are expected to tune in on television. This represents a historical challenge for Hilmar Guckert and his team. “We are very pleased that we were able to win this huge media event for Düsseldorf. The Eurovision Song Contest is an important event with an enormous reach, which will once again underscore the state capital city’s identity as an event and entertainment metropolis.“
Whereas the ESPRIT arena, ISS DOME and PHILIPSHALLE helped foster the city of Düsseldorf’s outstanding reputation in the entertainment sector, the CCD Congress Center Düsseldorf continued to lead the field as the central venue for congresses, drawing the 12th congress of the German Midwives Association with 800 participants, BDFL’s international trainer congress with 2,800 attendees, and the 62nd annual meeting of the German Urology Society with 6,500 participants, among others, to North Rhine-Westphalia’s capital in 2010. In the spring of 2011, CCD Congress Center Düsseldorf already welcomed the largest European trade show of the event industry – the European Meetings and Events Conference (EMEC) – as well as the largest sporting industry congress – the Sports Business Summit (SpoBiS) to its facility. Other confirmed upcoming events include the trade congress BioEurope in October, 2011 (1,500 participants), the annual meeting of the German Society for Pediatrics and Youth Medicine in September, 2013 (3,000 attendees) and the German Anesthesia Congress in May, 2015 (4,500 participants).
New venue: BURG-WÄCHTER CASTELLO
On a whole, DüsseldorfCongress expects a further boost in revenues and attendance figures in 2011, in part because the event company added a further venue to its portfolio a few days ago. On March 1, 2011, DüsseldorfCongress took over operations of BURG-WÄCHTER CASTELLO in Düsseldorf-Reisholz. From management spokesperson Hilmar Guckert’s perspective, the multifunctional facility’s maximum capacity of 4,810 makes it the ideal addition to the company’s arena offering to date. “We are looking forward to the new challenge and have set ourselves the goal of expanding our event business continually in this location as well. In the upcoming months, we will integrate BURG-WÄCHTER CASTELLO into our existing marketing activities and position the venue successfully in the events market.“
Including BURG-WÄCHTER CASTELLO, DüsseldorfCongress now unites ten venues under one roof, making the company a key factor in marketing Düsseldorf’s business attractiveness, and contributing significantly to North Rhine-Westphalia’s capital city’s economic strength.
