1. Home
2. Blog
3. The 12 Most Visited Trade Fairs in the World Right Now

The 12 Most Visited Trade Fairs in the World Right Now

In our line of work, we’ve assisted companies in travelling all around the world to trade fairs that are small and regional to fairly known brands in their relevant industry. Every business trip is its own circus, but the most excited and most challenged we have always been is when arranging for hotel stays during the biggest trade fairs in the world. We’re not dispensing empty praise either.

We’re talking about the record-holders in the world in size and relevance. It’s these events we wish to highlight as a way to convince you to give them a chance as a marketing tool to help your brand grow and cross into new regions. Through our years in this industry, we’ve noticed a few threads that connect all these and explain their relevance.

One such thread is innovation as a priority –

In Munich, Germany, bauma has beaten all its previous records and the 2019 edition has crowned itself as the biggest and best not just for its organizers, but for the world construction industry. Part of the reason why its audience has risen to 620,000 professionals is the high priority innovation has received. In 2019, over 20 world premieres took place on the bauma stage, cementing this fair as the first source for anything new and noteworthy to happen in the entire sector. The very same parallel can be drawn to Agritechnica (the only name that matters in the agricultural industry) as the technical program is set to run through live forestry practice using the next generation of saws and machinery in a controlled environment.

We can’t speak about innovation without also touching upon Hannover Messe, which oversees innovation across automation technologies and robotics. Coincidentally, these two are the biggest components of the current Industry 4.0 era responsible for evolving manufacturing efficiency. The trade fair is most famous for its Next Big Things segment, which is highly coveted spot for every exhibitor. The innovation bug has also spread to MEDICA, the undisputed leader among medical exhibitions in the world. This is best reflected through the “MEDICA DISRUPT” initiative that put the spotlight on new medical startup companies. Combine this with events like the MEDICA App COMPETITION and you have a firm vision of the future of healthcare and medicine.

Beyond innovation what certainly contributes to the recognition of certain fairs over others it the high level specialization –

There are events like K MESSE (plastics and rubber), CPhI Worldwide (pharmaceutical supply chain) and FRUIT LOGISTICA (fresh produce business) have all positioned themselves in quite specialized fields and function as a go-between supply and demand for these industries. The most telling examples has to be CPhI Worldwide since its show-floor layout closely matches the six stages in the pharma supply chain going through APIs, machinery and packaging. It’s this close service of each relevant supply chain is what has gained each of the three trade fairs their shares of longevity and recognitions in their sector.

Sometimes it’s not so much about catering to professionals and buyers or pioneering technologies, but catering to the end consumer in one way or another –

ITB Berlin, for instance, walks the right rope between catering to the end consumer and corporate visitors within the broader travel industry. Travel right now is one of the most sought-after, prized commodities in life partially due to the shift from materialistic possessions to collecting memories and living through experiences. At ITB Berlin, visitors have numerous venues to explore from the standard adventure and wellness tourism to business travel, medical tourism, LGBT tourism and youth travel.

Another example in this category is the long-standing Paris Air Show, which provides a wealthy platform for exhibitors and corporate buyers, but also embraces the natural sense of adventure and fun that’s part of aviation. It’s standard for the air show to reserve the first two days of each edition for trade visitors and then open the grounds for the general public, which comes to appreciate the latest innovations in aircraft, but also witness the breathtaking aeroacrobatics.

In the end, any kind of excitement and stimulation works up a fierce appetite and we’ve discovered that foods, drinks, snacks and gourmet cuisine are universally beloved –

It’s easy to discover the appeal for trade fairs for the culinary world. You get to conduct business and also partake in many tastings throughout every hour of every day, if you could. But what are distinguishing features that have won over exhibitors and decision makers so unequivocally? In the case of SIAL in Paris, it has to do with the skyrocketing rate of innovation in food production with 2,355 newly registered products and 801 food innovations selected by a jury of professionals to compete for awards. In the case of Anuga in Cologne, it’s the event program that has carved out a whole section of programming devoted to culinary demonstrations and culminating in the much celebrated Chef of the Year competition.

This leaves Gulfood in Dubai – the smallest of the three culinary events, but certainly not the least relevant. What has contributed to this fair’s success is the prioritization of B2B sales. The event is a major procurement platform that bridges the East with the West and does not ignore any possible food groups and territories. In short, business is always good for exhibitors and trends show that there is still more room for the event to expand in numbers.

It’s true that there are certain costs associated with exhibiting at such high-profile events, but also there’s a high reward. If there is one unifying trait shared by all twelve trade fairs laid out here, it is that exhibitors with a solid plan stand to make a great return on investment. GETA ltd is here to assist in lowering the financial threshold to exhibit so that you have a truly outstanding time at any of these events. We’re quite experienced with all twelve brands and the cities that host them.