AUMA Research Finds Optimism for '06 Fairs
Staff -- Tradeshow Week, 2/6/2006
The Assn. of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA) released preliminary statistics that indicate international trade fairs in Germany are growing again. The 142 events held during 2005 attracted about 2.5 percent more exhibitors after a 2004 decline of 0.7 percent.
AUMA Managing Director Peter Neven said the organization at the beginning of last year did not expect that much improvement. "The revival was achieved on a broad basis — almost three-quarters of the trade fairs reported an increase in their numbers of exhibitors," he said.
Neven said AUMA expects further recovery from the 163 international trade fairs scheduled in Germany this year. About 173,000 exhibitors are projected, up 2 percent from 2005, occupying more than 6.5 million net square meters (70 million net square feet), 1 percent above last year. The number of attendees should hold steady at more than 9.5 million.
"Companies know that trade fairs mean real dialogue between people, not by letter or e-mail. This gives us grounds for optimism regarding the development of our industry in the next years," Neven said.
In addition, AUMA research indicates that one-third of German exhibitors want to increase their trade fair budgets, and more overseas exhibitions are being organized by German companies. The number of foreign exhibitors, primarily from Asia, increased more than 4 percent.
For many years, the number of domestic German exhibitors declined by 5 percent annually. But the situation is improving, according to AUMA Chairman Thomas H. Hagen. The amount of exhibit space in 2005 increased slightly for the first time in several years, attributable to a slight acceleration in the German economy.
The mood is cautiously optimistic about the next two years, according to the latest AUMA MesseTrend, a survey of 500 German exhibitors. AUMA said that for many companies, individual marketing measures are now a top priority, especially in the search for new customers and partners.
