[Click eStock] "Messeisang, Growing 40% Annually... Benefiting from Government MICE Promotion"

On the 27th, KB Securities analyzed that Messe Isang is experiencing an annual growth rate of 30-40% as the government and local governments are promoting the MICE industry.

Messe Isang is one of the top exhibition organizers in Korea, operating its own exhibition hall, Suwon Messe, and hosting nearly 100 exhibitions annually across more than 20 business sectors including architecture/interior, pets, leisure, design/art, IT/metaverse/chemicals, and medical fields. In September this year, it also held the largest domestic international ground weapons exhibition, the Korea International Defense Industry Exhibition (KADEX2024), officially sponsored by the Ministry of National Defense and the Army Headquarters.

Kim Hyun-gyeom, a researcher at KB Securities, stated in the report on the same day, “Messe Isang’s sales have grown 30-40% annually from 2020 to 2023,” adding, “The first quarter performance this year showed sales of 11.9 billion KRW and operating profit of 3.2 billion KRW, increasing by 20.6% and 19.4% respectively compared to the same period last year. Despite the first quarter being the slowest season, the results were favorable, raising expectations for future performance.”

Additionally, researcher Kim said, “This year can be considered the practical first year of overseas expansion,” and analyzed, “Messe Isang, together with KinDex, secured a 20-year operation right for the India IICC, and the first exhibition, the 2024 Korea Industrial Exhibition (KoINDEX), will be held at the India New Delhi IICC, indicating high growth and expansion potential both domestically and internationally.”

He also explained, “On the 24th, Messe Isang was selected as the preferred negotiation candidate in the public bidding for the entrusted operation agency of Cheongju OSCO,” adding, “Cheongju OSCO is the first exhibition and convention center in Chungbuk, with a total construction cost of 231.8 billion KRW. It consists of one basement floor and two above-ground floors, with a total floor area of 39,725㎡, including 10,031㎡ of exhibition facilities, a large conference hall with 2,065 seats capable of hosting international meetings, and nine conference rooms with a total of 2,293 seats. It is scheduled to open in September 2025 and currently shows a construction progress rate of 57%.”

Furthermore, he noted, “Cheongju OSCO is located near Osong KTX Station and adjacent to Cheongju Airport, providing convenient transportation. It is backed by the Osong Life Science Complex and Sejong Special City, creating favorable conditions for the development of the MICE industry,” and added, “The contract period is three years from the start of entrustment, with a total entrustment cost of 10.869 billion KRW, which is 21.4% of recent sales.”

He continued, “As of July last year, the exhibition and conference facility area was 410,000㎡, and it is expected to increase by about 54% to 630,000㎡ by 2026,” concluding, “With Messe Isang’s selection as the preferred negotiation candidate for Cheongju OSCO, there will likely be many opportunities to acquire operation rights for exhibition and convention centers newly constructed by various local governments in the future.”