Every venue helps – Tesco reveal NEC as new location for wine fair

Tesco will bring its annual Wine Fair to Birmingham’s NEC from September 21-22, 2013, adding the Midlands venue to a portfolio of events based in London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Bristol.

The consumer exhibition, which was previously based in Brighton, targets predominantly Tesco customers. The move to Birmingham is testament to the NEC’s accessibility and the fact that 20 Tesco outlets are located within 20 miles of the venue.

“This is great news for the NEC,” says Chris Hartley, the NEC’s business development director. “We’ve got real consumer show pedigree; in fact, our retention rate for consumer shows in 2012/13 was 96 per cent which is mainly due to our location in the heart of the country. When you consider that 75 per cent of the UK’s population is within a three-hour drive of our venue and 40 per cent within two hours, it’s no surprise that we host the largest number of national consumer shows.”

“In addition, as part of our offering, we did some research to support Tesco’s decision to relocate. We found out that 4.5million ‘wine lovers’ live within a two-hour drive of the NEC, which highlights the significant potential for growth for this event.”

Tesco Wine Fairs allow visitors to taste and compare over 250 wines from over 14 different countries. Wine experts are on hand and specialist workshops take place throughout each event, while Wine Walks ensure visitors have the opportunity to ask questions as experts lead small groups through the variety of wine stands.

Adds Chris Mitchell from Tesco Wine Fair: “Our mission is to take the excitement and energy behind the Tesco wine range to as many potential customers as possible. We’ve added the NEC to our series of events since it allows us to do just that, reaching a key socio-geographic group of wine-loving and wine-curious consumers cost-effectively using, a professional venue with excellent facilities and links.”