Brand USA Newsletter - March 2018

Annual Italian Tradeshow Showcases U.S.-bound Tourism

Brand USA representatives will participate in the 21st annual Showcase USA-Italy, March 4-5 in Venice. The event, at the Hilton Molino Stucky Venice, highlights U.S. travel destinations and services. 

It is a joint venture of the Visit USA Association Italy, a group of U.S.-tourism organizations that promote travel to the United States, and the U.S. Commercial Service in Italy, a trade-promotion arm of the U.S International Trade Administration. 

In January, Brand USA named Hills Balfour as the new representation firm for the overall European market. To sharpen its Italian focus, Hills Balfour is partnering with Milan-based Interface Tourism Italy, a marketing, public relations, and representation agency that operates exclusively in travel and tourism.

Throughout 2018, the Brand USA Italy team will continue to cultivate the outbound Italian travel market. The team will:

  • Participate at TTG Incontri, Italy’s leading, business-to-business travel and tourism exposition, Oct. 10-12 in Rimini. This 55th annual tradeshow typically draws about 2,500 exhibitors with 150 destinations represented.
  • Organize trade FAM trips for product managers from Italy to the USA.
  • Host travel-agent training sessions throughout Italy.
  • Create cooperative opportunities for trade marketing.

In 2016, according to the National Travel and Tourism Office, 983,000 Italians visited the United States, 5 percent less than the previous year. Yet, since 2009, the number of Italian visitors has expanded by 30 percent.