Berlin, 5 January 2010 The Berlin Convention Office (BCO) has appointed Hume Whitehead Limited to handle its convention and incentive sales, marketing and PR activities in the UK. The agency will work closely with the Berlin Convention Office to reinforce the city’s profile as a leading C&I destination and to secure additional meetings, conference and incentive business from the UK to Berlin.

Hume Whitehead’s key task will be to source and develop new business opportunities from UK meeting and event planners, capitalising on Berlin’s existing strong relationships within the industry and the business solutions the city can provide. The agency will be highlighting Berlin’s leading position as an events destination – its exceptional range of venues, accommodation and transportation links playing host to over 50,000 events and 4 million participants in the first half of 2009. Hume Whitehead will support the sales and marketing initiatives of the Berlin Convention Office as well as private sector partners within the UK’s C&I industry.

Heike Mahmoud, Director of Conventions at the BCO comments: “We are delighted to announce the appointment of Hume Whitehead as our agency in the UK market. With UK meeting planners having recently voted Berlin into the top 3 for Best Conference Destination within 2009’s C&IT Hot List, it is clear that Berlin’s winning attributes appeal to decision makers in the UK and we look forward to working with Hume Whitehead to further strengthen Berlin’s position in this important market.”

As Director and co-founder of Hume Whitehead, Sue Whitehead, explains: “We are thrilled to have been chosen to support such a dynamic and exciting destination. Berlin’s combination of superb infrastructure and value-for-money, along with its rich and vibrant culture makes it an ideal choice for events organisers and we are very much looking forward to working with the Convention Bureau on new initiatives to grow the UK market.”

Leading the activities as the account manager for the BCO in the UK will be Becky Smith, who has a wealth of experience in this sector and sits on the UK board of Meeting Professionals International (MPI).

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For further information on Berlin please contact:

Sue Whitehead on 020 8334 8325 or

email suehumewhitehead [dot] co [dot] uk

Becky Smith on 020 8334 8323 or

email beckyhumewhitehead [dot] co [dot] uk

Marco Oelschlegel, Marketing Manager Conventions, on 0049 (0) 30 264748496 or

email marco [dot] oelschlegelb-c-o [dot] com