For twelve years, the Centro de Eventos Valle del Pacífico has been a local and regional benchmark for fairs, conventions, congresses, meetings, and all kinds of events in a constantly growing industry.
On November 6, 2007, a venue was inaugurated in the Valle del Cauca that has hosted more than 1,100 events, with nearly 3.2 million national and international attendees, thanks to an investment of nearly $80 billion pesos from private entities such as the Cali Chamber of Commerce, public entities like FONTUR, and the support of dozens of regional entrepreneurs.
This created a venue of 76,000 m², with up to 19 simultaneous rooms and an infrastructure with bioclimatic and modular design that allows hosting all kinds of events in a space surrounded by the nature of the Andean mountains and the Valle del Cauca climate.
In these 12 years, the Events Center has been the home of all kinds of events that have made history: from the UN World Summit for Biodiversity, the FTA Negotiation Round with South Korea, the OAS Ministers Meeting, and the Pacific Alliance Summit, to the National and Latin American Internal Medicine Congress, the Youth Weightlifting World Championship, the Fencing World Cup, the UNESCO Forum for Inclusion and Equity in Education, and numerous national and international fairs such as CaliExposhow, Expomotor, LAC FLAVORS 2019, and Bioexpo 2019.
These have been more than 1,100 events in a venue that seeks to promote the region and its economic, social, cultural, and environmental growth through the meetings tourism industry and strategic alliances with entities such as the Cali Valle Bureau, Procolombia, Cotelco, and others.
A Venue in Constant Transformation
With the aim of always being at the forefront of event operations, at CEVP we have developed a series of improvements and adaptations over these 12 years that continue to position us as the leading venue in southwestern Colombia and one of the most outstanding nationally and internationally, as evidenced by the award for Best Venue for Meetings and Conferences in South America given by BD Business Destinations Travel Awards magazine in 2013.
Among the infrastructure improvements is the construction of the Plazoleta de Expansión, an open-air, covered space with mountain views, perfect for social events such as cocktails and weddings.
Similarly, the construction of Patio Café stands out, an outdoor space of 330 m², designed to enjoy the Valle del Cauca climate while conducting business, sharing experiences, and making connections. Patio Café has its own furniture and ambiance, inspired by the colors, sensations, and experiences of the Colombian Pacific, making this space perfect for cocktails, social events, meetings, and gatherings of all kinds.
The improvements have also addressed the remodeling and updating of various complementary spaces in the venue, such as the VIP rooms, Rooms 1 and 2, and the completion of our own parking areas, resulting in a total of 900 available spaces for attendees, exhibitors, and organizers.
A New Operator
Since April 2018, the Centro de Eventos Valle del Pacífico has been operated by Grupo Heroica, an international entity with 10 years of experience in managing venues through an innovative model that has shown concrete results in revenue growth, maintaining the infrastructure of venues to keep them competitive over time, and customer satisfaction. Currently, Grupo Heroica operates three world-class venues: the Costa Rica Convention Center, the Cartagena de Indias Convention Center, and the Centro de Eventos Valle del Pacífico.
Since April 2018, with the start of operations by Grupo Heroica, we have held nearly 115 events, with an estimated 152,000 local, national, and international attendees, confirming the venue’s ability to offer high-quality services and specialized attention for all kinds of events through a team of 55 permanent staff members.
During 2019, at the Events Center, we experienced nearly 8 fairs, 6 congresses, 6 concerts, 30 corporate meetings and conventions, and 1 wedding, among other events.
We hosted congresses such as the 10th Congress on Access to Financial Services by Asobancaria, the VEPA Colombia 2019 National Veterinary Congress, the 9th Horizontal Property Congress, and the XVII Pacific Poultry Meeting by FENAVI, among others.
During a ceremony with 85 attendees, set against the Andean mountain landscape and the breeze from the Farallones, we celebrated the first wedding at our venue. It was a magical event, full of details and unforgettable memories.
In May, for the second consecutive year, we were the venue for the Fencing Grand Prix, a world-class event attended by 350 athletes from 42 countries.
More than 40,000 attendees accompanied us during the 8 fairs we hosted this year, developed by FENALCO, Cali Chamber of Commerce, Corbeta, Vivendo, Procolombia, and the Inter-American Development Bank.
In September, hundreds of national and international visitors experienced the Events Center during LAC Flavors, the most important food and beverage business roundtable in Latin America and the Caribbean. Additionally, we hosted the UNESCO International Forum for Inclusion and Equity in Education, where fundamental issues in this field were discussed over three days.
In October, we hosted the largest green business fair in the country: Bioexpo 2019, an event led by CVC with over 300 exhibitors and attended by 9,000 people.
2020: A Year of New Challenges
Next year, we will continue to be the home of events that make history with top-level activities and gatherings such as LACNIC 2020, the 6th Aggregate Producers Meeting by Asogravas, the 2nd version of Retail of the Future by Fenalco, Exponegocios 2020 by CCC, the Lalexpo 2020 International Congress, the Free Trade Zone Congress and the Agroindustrial Congress, both by ANDI.
Similarly, we will aim for a service offering that explores new avenues such as coworking and the organization of at least three proprietary events, led by our New Business area.
Finally, we want to continue positioning ourselves in 2020 as the epicenter of corporate meetings, board meetings, assemblies, and product launches for companies located in our region, strategic allies in the goal of boosting the economy of Valle del Cauca, Yumbo, and Cali.
2020 will be a year full of activities, moments, and experiences at the Centro de Eventos Valle del Pacífico, the home of events that make history.
