The 2023 FTE-APEX Asia Expo and co-located Onboard Hospitality Forum-Asia took place on November 8 and 9 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre in Singapore’s Marina Bay.
It is Asia’s largest free-to-attend passenger experience and business performance trade show targeted at the air transport industry and attracted 16 sponsors. The event is hosted by Future Travel Experience (FTE), the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) and Onboard Hospitality magazine.
Among the delegates attending the trade show were representatives of 93 airlines and airport operators, including Changi Airport Group, which operates Changi Airport Singapore.
At the end of the first day, attendees had an opportunity to network over complimentary drinks and snacks. Held in a lounge with access to a rooftop terrace with views of Singapore’s waterfront, the networking event also featured live music.
Onboard Hospitality Forum-Asia
Simultaneously, Onboard Hospitality magazine invited suppliers of onboard products and services to attend its co-located Forum event. A total of 15 companies had stands at the 2023 Onboard Hospitality Forum-Asia.
“We would like to thank participants for their support,” said Craig McQuinn, Associate Publisher of Onboard Hospitality magazine and Exhibition Director of Onboard Hospitality Forum-Asia.
“It was a pleasure to gather businesses with a broad spread of geographic bases and focuses under a single roof. Following last year’s successful event, the 2023 edition is only the second in-person Onboard Hospitality Forum-Asia since 2019. Compared with other continents, Asia has proven cautious about opening up following the Covid-19 pandemic and events such as this one provide a way for suppliers to conduct valuable face-to-face appointments with buyers and also to attend networking events,” he added.
21 conference sessions
Additionally, a total of 21 conference sessions were held across two stages and related to the theme of Preparing for tomorrow’s world. Events hosted on the Expo Stage could be accessed by all delegates while access to the Premium Conference Stage was restricted to holders of paid-for badges.
Stuart Forster, Editor of Onboard Hospitality, hosted three of the sessions. Duncan de Boer of Foodcase International, Steve Harvey representing Clinova and Jennifer Green from Procurall Solutions participated in a panel discussion relating to the future of inflight service and food and beverages at 35,000 feet on the Expo Stage. The latter returned to participate in a discussion featuring case studies relating to inflight innovation along with Simon Yaffe from Buzz Products and Jean Paul Hildebrandt from NOVELPAY.
On the Premium Conference Stage, Onboard Hospitality’s Editor moderated a panel discussion about creating unique and memorable customer journeys. Part of the Customer Experience and Service Summit, the speakers were Keiichi Ueda of All Nippon Airways, Syaifullah Sarip of Airport Dimensions and Steve Dickson of Skylight Aviation.
The 2024 FTE-APEX Asia Expo and Onboard Hospitality Forum-Asia will be held on November 19-20 at the same venue as in 2023.
