THE post-Covid-19 era has ushered in a roaring resurgence of events and gatherings, spurring intense demand for large-scale business conferences, exhibitions and trade shows, particularly within the South-East Asian region.
Yusno Yunos, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of events technology solutions company Evenesis, says that one need look no further than venues and event spaces today to see the overwhelming surge.
“The main convention centres in Malaysia have all their dates filled up, with most requiring booking two to three years in advance,” he says.
“In neighbouring countries like Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, and Vietnam, they’re already building more convention centres and hotels to keep up with the rising number of events.”
The global events industry is estimated to reach US$2.5 trillion by 2035, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 6.8% from 2024 to 2035, according to a report by Allied Market Research.
“If we can capture just 1% to 2% of that market, we would become one of the big players in the event technology sector,” Yusno says.
Today, such global ambitions are within Evenesis’ sights, having become a leading end-to-end event management solutions provider with a presence across Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia, as well as targets to enter the Middle East market in the coming years.
The company has come a long way from its start as a digital RSVP tool for weddings. Around 2009, the idea for Evenesis was sparked by Yusno’s struggles with manually sending out invitations for his own wedding.
With an extensive background and expertise in software development, he started working on the tech-enabled RSVP product prototype, receiving a grant from Malaysia Digital Economy Corp.
Not long after launching the tool in 2010, the business pivoted its focus, expanding its scope outside of tech solutions for weddings.
“The original product solved an existing problem in the market, but RSVP system tech is not a high priority for most wedding budgets,” Yusno explains.
“We moved towards expanding our solutions for corporate events, where clients were the likes of government agencies, banks, and companies with more spending capability.
“Eventually, we realised our event management software could also be used for business events and the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions sector.”
Currently, the scale of events Evenesis serves range from internal corporate events with 100 to 200 attendees to large trade shows that see upwards of 50,000 people.
Incorporating data insights technology, its end-to-end services help businesses and organisers ensure a smooth process across the pre, during, and post-event stages. For example, in the lead-up to an event, Evenesis’ software can leverage databases to streamline invitation, marketing, and budgeting tasks.
On the day of the event, the company’s hardware such as self check-in kiosks and QR code scanners enable efficient registration, while live data reports help organisers with logistics management and crowd control.
After the event, analytics and insights are provided to the business’ management to assist in refining and enhancing future events.
“These make up a comprehensive suite of solutions, and all the information is stored on the cloud, centralised, and easy to access for organisers,” Yusno says.
Despite its tech-based platform solution, the CEO says what sets the company apart from competition are its offerings that go above and beyond software capabilities.
“The most important aspect is the event experience we give to the end-user through our technology,” he says.
“Competitors from overseas are mainly selling a software-as-a-service product, without any managed service, on-ground support team, or customisation.
“However, the South-East Asian market is very different from the West, and they often expect everything to be taken care of.”
As a result, Evenesis’ service-orientated model and emphasis on an in-person support team gives it an edge, particularly in an industry such as events where disruptions and technical failures are not only common but often require immediate fixes.
Even as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly used in the events sector to enhance efficiencies, Yusno remains wary of incorporating new, flashy AI tech for the sake of buzz or novelty.
“Any AI-integrated solutions we provide clients shouldn’t be just to impress, but must add the right value to their event, giving a return on investment for all stakeholders, from organisers and sponsors to paying attendees, speakers and delegates.”
For this reason, a strategic focal point for Evenesis’ plans moving forward to further develop its “event intelligence” offering, which gives key analytical insights to help clients make better informed, data-backed decisions.
Beyond this, the company’s priority for the next three
to five years is to strengthen its position within South-East Asia before embarking on its plans to expand to the Middle East.
Currently, a key focus is on better understanding and fine-tuning its approach towards the Indonesian market.
“It’s a larger market compared to Malaysia in terms of volume, but the buying power is lower, so we have to refine our pricing strategy and execute it quickly,” he says.
After securing a strong foundation in its home region, the company then aims to enter Saudi Arabia, which boasts significant spending power and an influx of events and visitors as the nation advances its Saudi Vision 2030 initiative.
“We are confident we have the experience and capabilities to achieve this, and our team will be scaled according to this expansion.”
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