When businesspeople need to shake things up, there's one place they know they can go for an experience that will turn their thinking inside-out: C2, an elite business conference that takes place annually in Montréal, Canada, and Melbourne, Australia.
Designed by creative agency Sid Lee in partnership with Cirque du Soleil, C2 invites innovators from a variety of fields and sectors to engage with participants in a multimedia stage environment designed to yield what organizers call "collective 'ah-ha' moments." The program includes exercises engineered to push participants out of their comfort zones -- both physically and mentally -- in ways that stimulate new thinking. Attendees might walk through an indoor snowstorm under pink umbrellas, for example, or be suspended from structures like acrobats.
"In a collaborative context specifically designed to provoke collisions and spark new ideas, C2 gets leaders to challenge their biases, shift their perspectives, and explore completely new ways of doing business," explains organizer C2 International.
Its unique approach attracts more than 6,000 executives to C2 Montréal every year. Now, the meetings industry is poised to benefit from the same inventive energy thanks to the IMEX Group, which today announced a new partnership with C2 International through which both parties will seek to infuse the meetings and events sector with innovation and creativity.
IMEX and C2 have signed a three-year agreement, marking the first time that C2 has partnered with an outside event. Over the course of their partnership, C2 has agreed to collaborate with IMEX to design C2-style programming for both IMEX in Frankfurt and IMEX America.
"We're really excited about the steps C2 International is taking to share fresh perspectives on running events. Both of our organizations share a firm belief in the power of face-to-face events and recognize the need for cutting-edge innovation in order for events to become even more powerful and relevant in the future," said IMEX Group CEO Carina Bauer. "At IMEX, our mission is to unite and advance the meetings industry, helping every single audience within it to increase their skills and knowledge and to push for innovation that generates fresh value. Our partnership with C2 International certainly helps us to fulfill this. With everything we do, our goal is to offer new and creative experiences and education for all our show participants in Frankfurt and America, and we look forward to working with the groundbreaking team at C2 International to deliver this."
Added Martin Enault, president and CEO of C2 International's Asia Pacific operation. "We're thrilled to be partnering with IMEX, who has certainly earned its place as an industry leader in the global meetings sector. It's a fantastic opportunity for C2 International to share our expertise in creating transformative and immersive events in the cities of Frankfurt and Las Vegas around IMEX shows. IMEX and C2 share a similar vision; we are both dedicated to innovating in the event space and believe wholeheartedly that success stems from creating powerful connections between people."
The next IMEX in Frankfurt takes place May 15-17 in Frankfurt Germany, while the next IMEX America takes place Oct. 16-18 in Las Vegas.