Rai con's debut at the Scottish Events Campus

By Emma Murnin

The SEC was the new location for this years Rai con (Credit: Rai con website)

Rai con is an anime convention that has been running in Scotland since 2016 brought to us from the same organisers as ACME comic con. The convention is known to have been held in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, however this May the well-loved event made its debut at the Scottish Events Campus (SEC).

Rai con hosted many fun activities throughout the day from workshops and demos to the classic artist alley for all merchandise needs. However, how does the community feel about the switch up of location?

In a public survey many agreed that the SEC was a great move for the event primarily due to space issues that arose from the concert hall. One person stated, ‘it's bigger! it allowed way more space for people to walk around stalls, as well as areas to rest.’ Another attendee agreed that the SEC was effective as ‘the ratio of people to space has been improved greatly’ compared to the previous venue.

Others also commented that the SEC was an effective location for an event like this throughout the ongoing high temperatures and that the atmosphere had improved with further excitement throughout the larger space. Some even suggested ‘perhaps making it a 2 day con due to venue change’ and suggested the idea of ‘making other conventions held by ACME to be 3 days to differentiate Rai con.’

Rai con landed on one of the hottest days of the year (Credit: Rai con website)

Despite the positive outcomes from relocating, 60% of voters agreed that they did not actually favour the decision to change location to the SEC. This could be prompted by the fact attendees had more prominent concerns on rai con before location such as desiring more interactive events, more affordable food or bringing back fan favourite activities such as the iconic Rai con quiz.

Despite this, the relocation of the convention was sure to have delivered a successful event for the fans and ensures regular attendees to look forward to an enhanced experience with Rai con and its future at this venue.