What are your early impressions of the gaming industry?

In my 20-year career I’ve worked in some fascinating sectors, notably travel and tourism, and I have to say that gaming looks to be right up there in terms of innovation and excitement. Gaming is one of the earliest adopters of new technology and includes some really notable and inspirational entrepreneurs. It’s a great shame that I joined during the pandemic and, as a consequence, have not been able to get out and meet the industry face to face, but it strikes me as being a resilient, creative and super-smart sector that’s full of energy and optimism. I’m looking forward to working alongside what is a dynamic, ambitious and really professional team, one that’s been responsible for building some extremely powerful brands.

What will you be contributing to Clarion Gaming from your position?

My career has been spent driving creative marketing and partnership strategies as well as launching and building brands. Clarion Gaming’s track record demonstrates that it has always put customers front and centre-stage and I will ensure that continues. The success of all of the brands in the Clarion Gaming portfolio is due in no small part to the support received from our stakeholders and I will always seek to work in collaboration with our customers to deliver business-centric solutions and opportunities.

How are plans developing for iGB Live! and iGB Affiliate Amsterdam, the shows that will mark the return of in-person events?

It’s a great honour for the Clarion team to be organising what will be the first established in-person event for the industry since ICE London was held in February 2020. I’m delighted to confirm that Amsterdam will be the largest igaming show in Europe for 2021, and as such we all feel a responsibility to ensure that it’s a truly memorable event. We are introducing some important new features, including the iGB Slots Pavillion, iGB Esports Streamers and MATCH!/VIP Programme. The Slots Pavilion is a central marketplace featuring operators, games studios, aggregators, platforms and affiliates. Alongside the Slots Pavilion, delegates will also have access to the iGB Esports Streamers activation, which will showcase the critical role streamers play in the affiliate and core esports betting sector. The MATCH!/VIP Programme is an initiative that’s been developed to connect the right buyers with the right sellers/suppliers in a live environment, in order to facilitate productive business networking. It feels as if the entire industry is focused on Amsterdam, including land-based operators who, as a result of their Covid experiences, will be there to meet with the main players in the igaming space in order to explore opportunities to diversify their offering. These are exciting times and as you can imagine, there’s a great sense of anticipation.

Can you tell us about the thinking behind ICE Connect and ICE 365 and how they fit into the portfolio?

Stuart Hunter has gone on record confirming that one of his core objectives on being appointed managing director of Clarion Gaming was to accelerate its development into a customer-first, omnichannel service provider, and both ICE Connect and ICE 365 are part of that strategy. ICE Connect is an invitation-only Executive Summit digital programme that uses algorithms to scientifically match qualified, senior level decision-makers who have both buying power and immediate requirements with industry-leading solution providers. As a result, both delegates and solution providers spend 100% of their time in meaningful and productive meetings. Our strategy moving forward is to develop the ICE Connect model and align it with our commitment to live events, enabling us to adopt an agile, year-round response to the commercial needs of the industry.