The new events venue at Bluewater in Kent is being rebranded to Glow, Bluewater in time for its official opening in November.
 
According to venue director Rebecca Cardozo, the new branding is the result of extensive market and brand research and is designed to evoke an emotional relationship with organisers and exhibitors. The venue employed a creative agency and liaised with founding exhibition partner Clarion to come up with a suitable name for the new space.
 
“People may be surprised at the name as many venues don’t have a separate name, but Bluewater was created as a brand, not a building or shopping centre and people have an emotional relationship with it as a result,” Cardozo said. “We have a unique event offering, so we wanted the same treatment externally and internally. We also wanted something that was synonymous with entertainment, events and excitement and that added something to the events running in our venues, which we think Glow will do.”
 
The official launch of Glow’s entrance plaza and restaurant space takes place on 10 November and will be followed by the broadcast of BBC’s Children in Need appeal in the plaza on 18 November. The first exhibition to be held in the new venue is Spirit of Christmas, which opens on 30 November.
 
Cardozo said Glow had already secured 69 per cent of target sales to date, but admitted the hard work cementing its place in the events venue pool begins now. One of Bluewater’s objectives has been to work with organisers to determine the right types of events for the new space by analysing the Bluewater catchment area and demographic.
 
“People are embracing the space for more experiential activities, which is what our research suggested people want to come to our events venue for,” Cardozo added.
 
Alongside the Spirit of Christmas, Clarion will launch its first wedding show at Glow from 9 to 12 February 2012 Wedding Week is aimed at all types of brides and will include dresses, décor, photography, favours and floral displays.
 
BBC Haymarket and VOS Media have also signed up to debut new consumer shows at Glow in 2012. Cardozo hinted it was in the final stages of confirming a new organiser to produce a home and gadget show and was hoping to attract other types of live events such as Brand Events’ Top Gear Live.
 
“We have had to pick events of the same standard as our Bluewater retail offer,” she claimed. “We think Glow as a brand fits well with that and eventually, we hope the brand will add value to the shows that are held here.”
 
Glow is a 5,200sqm venue in the heart of the Bluewater retail mall and has taken 18 months to build. The space cost owners Lend Lease £60m.

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