The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) has been accused of being conservative in its selection of staged events, after it declined the request of the upcoming Asia Adult Expo for the second time.
Now in its fifth year, the fair uniting buyers and sellers of the adult product industry with an over-18 entry policy was not approved to be staged at the state-owned venue in 2011.
Event organiser Vertical Expo Services accused the venue of being afraid to host “adventurous” exhibitions, despite convention centre officials claiming the expo’s application would be considered this year.
This year’s fair will instead be staged with the first Intimate Lingerie Asia from 17-19 August at the same venue last year, the Cotai Strip Convention and Exhibition Centre at The Venetian Macao.
Wilson Tong, fairs director at Vertical Expo Services, said in the South China Morning Post: “The adult expo will launch its first edition in Taiwan this month and last year, its mainland version was established in Shenzhen. Adult expo events are now in China, Taiwan and Macau, and it is only Hong Kong that is missing.”
Tong believed the fair has been expanding, evident by a 30,000-strong attendance with many visitors from Hong Kong at the event in Macau last year.
He told SCMP a 50% growth in scale and international visitors is expected if the event is hosted in Hong Kong.
A spokesperson from the convention centre revealed exhibition peak seasons will see a “packed” venue with sometimes up to six events hosted each day.
“With the shortage of space and so many other factors to assess, the Asia Adult Expo is one among many that HKCEC is not able to accommodate at this moment,” she told the news source.