This year marks the inaugural PA Expo, co-located with the Venue Expo at Exhibition Centre Liverpool. We sat down with Harry Griffiths from UKFE, who is the Marketing Manager of the event, to find out what makes the exhibition a must for PAs.
For those of our readers who don’t know the event, tell us about PA Expo.
PA Expo is the only dedicated and free-to-attend exhibition for the working world of the PA, EA, VA and Office Manager in the North of England. We’ve had an absolutely amazing response to its inception, which can be seen within the glittering industry leaders we’ve confirmed as keynote speakers and also within the incredibly diverse range of exhibitors confirmed for the event.
This 8 and 9 November we’ll be descending upon the gargantuan Exhibition Centre Liverpool to bring the city its first taste of PA Expo.
What are the highlights of the expo?
Well, we’ve worked tirelessly to make sure this is the crowning jewel in the Liverpool exhibition scene. We’ve co-located with the highly established Venue Expo that’s now in its third year as a leading MICE exhibition and confirmed some absolutely incredible speakers including Adam Fidler, a speaker with more than 15 years experience working with some of the biggest names in business including Bank of America and Boots, as well as securing more than 150 exhibitors from LUSH to Land Rover!
For me personally, I’m looking forward to seeing Jon Morter’s seminar, as the creative mind behind getting Rage Against The Machine to Christmas Number One, single handedly beating X Factor goliath Simon Cowell. He’s worked with some of my favourite bands such as The Rolling Stones, Nirvana and The Sex Pistols, as well as running the campaign to save BBC Radio 6. This is so up my street and I can’t wait to hear the tales and secrets behind these campaigns.
How many PAs are you expecting to attend?
Well, I don’t think anybody can guarantee what numbers we get through the doors, especially on our first year. However, the response has been simply incredible. We’ve had thousands of registrations and with our incredibly strong line-up of features to boot, we’re convinced this show will be the first of many that really puts us on the map.
Why have there been no other events for PAs in the North Of England to date?
This has been a real conversation piece for all involved since we announced it and actually I have no idea! I think the main points are that London has a very strong presence within this market; however, we identified that as a weakness instead of a strength.
Liverpool has more than 10,000 PAs in its city alone; we found that it was difficult for many to get a day off work to travel to London for an exhibition that frankly focused solely on London trade and didn’t really seem to care about the rest of the country.
We think it’s about time the North got an exhibition focused around them and we have taken particular pride in making sure the spirit of the show is truly Northern (minus the gravy).
What would you say are the key themes of the PA Expo seminar sessions?
We’ve actually worked very hard on not having any particular theme to this year’s seminar schedule, mainly so we can provide our attendees with the widest range of topics imaginable. These include two amazing live panels from PA Life. Other themes include ‘Building and growing a VA business’ from Amanda Johnson, ‘The Role Of The 21st-Century PA: From Good To Outstanding’ delivered by Adam Fidler, and Gary Hymanson’s in-depth look at the ‘Future Of Business Travel – Five Must Know Trends For The Modern PA.’
Explain to anyone in one sentence why they should attend.
This massive, free-to-attend exhibition is truly one of a kind for Liverpool, with all the latest technologies, products and services available from UK-wide exhibitors showcasing the very best in the industry.
