Our Brands

It was 1976, the visionaries behind the NEC might have made a fashion faux pas with their flared suits and big hair, but they got their vision for the NEC of the future spot on.

Since the official opening of the NEC, the venue has built upon its early successes and now welcomes more than two million people every year.

With 20 interconnecting halls, at the heart of the UK’s transport network, the NEC continues to be a conference and exhibition venue of today, and of the future. We stage around 140 trade and consumer events each year, ranging from world-famous public shows such as Crufts and Clothes Show Live, to huge international trade exhibitions like IFSEC and Spring Fair, Birmingham.

The NEC is much more than space for hire, our people can provide a multitude of services to make your event a success – event management, catering, security, marketing, ticketing, IT, utility and technical services… well, like we said, a multitude.

If top rate facilities, first class service and a location at the heart of a bustling and cosmopolitan city tick all of your event boxes, then you might just find yourself at the ICC.

Perfectly placed at the beating heart of the UK in the vibrant city of Birmingham, the ICC is one of Europe’s premier conference and meeting venues.

From small meetings for just a few people, to international conferences of several thousand delegates, the ICC boasts 10 meeting rooms and 10 conference halls, including its flagship Hall 1 auditorium.

The venue hosts around 400 events every year and accommodates about 300,000 delegates. We’re very proud of its award-winning prowess, not to mention its people and green credentials (the ICC holds leading standards and accreditations for both quality (ISO 9001) and environmental (ISO 14001) management systems).

New life was breathed into the LG Arena thanks to a multi-million pound renovation, and with it has come fresh thinking, a focus on the future and some of the biggest and best acts on the live event scene today – it’s a must stop destination on the European touring circuit.

And what’s not to love? The flexible capacity means acts can tailor the space as required, and the more intimate seating configuration suits the 920,000 visitors who come through our doors every year. And when we’re getting the thumbs up from global megastars like Rihanna, well, we must be doing something right.

We stage around 110 events every year, from the likes of the R&B goddess, through to world-famous sporting events such as the Horse of the Year show, plus the rib-tickling comedy musings of Peter Kay and Bill Bailey.

Since becoming the LG Arena in 2008, following a sponsorship rights deal with world-leading LG Electronics, we have transformed the former NEC Arena. If you’ve not visited us since our makeover, come and see for yourself what all the fuss is about and whether, like Rihanna, you give it the thumbs up.

Variety really is the spice of life at the NIA. Sport, comedy, business conferences, exhibitions, live music, ballet – even Disney characters dancing on ice to entertain the little ones, we can certainly do diverse.

Located just along one of Birmingham’s famed canals (more than Venice you know!) in a prime position the NIA is consistently in use between 210 and 240 days per year, attracting between 750,000 to 1m visitors per year.

In fact we’ve hosted an astonishing 30 different types of sport (including indoor rowing), and has accommodated more World Championship sports events than any other arena in Europe.

The multi-purpose venue is extremely flexible and boasts the only lateral moving rigging mother grid in the UK, allowing the capacity to stretch from 4,523 for more intimate academy events up to 14,410 when accommodating all arena seats and floor space.

Diversity is a great thing, especially when it’s coupled with consistently top rate service and the kind of quality experience that keeps our visitors and customers coming back again and again.

Amadeus is dishing up a winning formula as one of the UK’s fastest growing venue and event caterers: we serve 1.8 million covers every year; we operate at venues such as the NEC, the ICC, the LG Arena, the NIA, Coventry Transport Museum, Kenilworth Castle, Hagley Hall and the National Sea Life Centre; we serve at major events, such as the Scottish Open Golf and the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show. Oh, and we were awarded the contract for Olympic Park North at London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games.

We do all of this with an impressive background of more than 35 years of experience catering for the NEC Group’s 900 annual diverse events and four million visitors. With over 800 staff, including 75 chefs, the Amadeus team has clocked up more than 600 awards for quality during this time.

We have a passion for food and service and we guarantee to bring more to the table.

The live event experience for a customer usually starts with us; as one of the UK’s leading national ticketing agents, we sell more than two million tickets a year.

Previously operating as the NEC Group Box Office, The Ticket Factory evolved into a national ticketing agent in October 2007 to offer more flexibility to both clients and customers and to better respond to today’s increasing demand for tickets for live events.

We have since sold millions of tickets for a range of comedy events, concerts, sporting events, exhibitions, theatre performances, visitor attractions and much more. We were also honoured to be chosen as the box office agent for Haymarket exhibitions and the Royal Horticultural Society flower shows in 2010, and we secured a contract to operate Bookings Direct as the national ticket agent for 3A entertainment artists, such as Kylie, Eric Clapton, WWE and the X Factor.

Operating as a member of the Society of Ticket Agents & Retailers (STAR), The Ticket Factory provides a customer call centre operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and receives more than 430,000 unique website visits each month.

NEC Group International is a venue-management company with a pedigree of excellence.

You will certainly be familiar with the enviable list of multi-use facilities that NEC Group International is associated with: LG Arena; NEC; NIA; ICC; Convention Centre Dublin in Ireland; and the Grand Lyon Arena in France.

You might also know that these brands have an excellent track record of delivering world-class events: from hosting live music by global idols such as Rihanna; to showcasing the best exhibitions in the business world; to presenting family favourites, such as Crufts, the world’s biggest dog show; hosting talks by influential politicians; and drawing the crowds to high-calibre sporting events.

At NEC Group International, we work to put our venues at the heart of their home cities, to ensure that they become visitor destinations, and to build a legacy around them for generations to come. And we bring every site to life with the expertise and experience of more than 35 years in the live events business.

Taking the live event experience to the next level is what amplify does best. The hospitality brand presents exciting opportunities to enjoy your favourite shows and performers – just bigger... better... amplified.

Formerly known as Entertainment Zone, amplify has more than 20 years of experience in delivering winning hospitality packages for both corporate and individual clients, not only at the NEC Group’s venues, but off-site at fantastic events including Sports Personality of the Year 2010 and MPH featuring Top Gear Live, plus shows at the Royal Albert Hall.

There are three levels of hospitality on offer with amplify: Freestyle, Club and Air. From drinks packages and exclusive access to bars and priority parking, to award-winning cuisine brought to the table by premium event caterers Amadeus, there’s something for everyone who wishes to enjoy the live experience in a different and exciting way. And with innovative spaces in which to amplify your event experience, such as the Showcubes at the NIA and our Showdeck at the LG Arena, we guarantee to bring live to life on a totally new level.

Resorts World at the NEC is the next important stage in our journey to delivering ‘Destination NEC’, to broaden and deepen the appeal of our site that already attracts around 3 million visitors a year.

Resorts World at the NEC will overlook the stunning Pendigo Lake and sit between the LG Arena and the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Visitors will be able to enjoy a hotel, spa, casino, banqueting and conference centre, multi screen cinema, outlet centre, food and beverage outlets and car parking. The leisure, entertainment and retail complex will be spread over 55,000sq metres and seven floors.

We expect Resorts World at the NEC to open its doors in late 2013-early 2014, subject to planning approval. The complex will act as a major driver of the Destination NEC strategy and, when fully operational, will create more than 1,100 full-time equivalent jobs and result in a significant contribution to the local economy. The environmentally sustainable complex has been planned by the NEC Group and Genting Casinos, which is investing £120million in the project.