Record results from the two exhibitions that were held simultaneously in Istanbul, at the end of September. Five days of intense business, despite the pouring rain …
Fair wet, fair lucky, we might say parahrasing an old saying. And in fact at the opening of Wood Processing Machinery (wood technology) number 27 and Intermob (supplies and semi-finished products) number 17, there was some concern about the influence that the weather could have had. Fears soon proved wrong by a particularly intense flow of visitors from September 27 to October 1 animated the fairground of the Turkish capital, managed by Tuyap, giant company which organizes dozens of exhibitions in the country.
861 from thirty countries the companies present at the fair as exhibitors, direct or through the increasingly important channel of importers which, in fact, always manages the flow of technologies that come from abroad. A fact that is a real record. From what they told us it has gone from 250 to 350 stands in technologies and from a hundred to more than 160 in furniture, a development really strong.
And another record was established thanks to the 60,046 visitors (just over 50 thousand in 2013) arrived to Istanbul from 102 countries, the result of intense promotion activities of the organizers in many foreign markets, as underscored by the presence of 23 national delegations invited by Tuyap. But the vitality of this review, the will to grow further we saw it in many things. For example by having invited and hosted groups of operators by some 47 Turkish cities, with promotional efforts exceptional, even with a pavilion of the fair, the number 1, organized by the hospitality.
The exhibition has invested heavily on services, logistics, the pavilion structures and this year are operating two new halls, 13 and 14, for about 10 thousand square meters, bringing the total covered area at 120 thousand square meters. About square meters there is to add another record: this year were well occupied 57 thousand square meters just under the maximum net exhibition space available, around 60 thousand, 42 thousand compared to the previous edition. Another sign of the growth of the fairgrounds is the brand new, large, elegant hotel for almost 300 rooms built “at the fair”, which makes the logistics of the event very “convenient”.
But perhaps the strongest sign of the will of Tuyap to “go beyond” comes from the pact announced by leaders of the fair with Reed Exhibition, British giant of the world exhibition calendar, among the largest organizers of international events. Well, the Turkish group has signed a partnership for the joint development of a couple of areas, including “ours”: a participation that will involve all aspects of the fair, but that will undoubtedly have the best chance of success on the promotion, the involvement of new players. The collaboration between Tuyap and Reed could mark a further breakthrough in the already very positive experience of Wood Processing Machinery and Intermob, opening a season marked by strong activity in the world to potential new exhibitors but also to institutions, associations, business organizations, and then get to engage, in time to be determined, other fairs, other sectors …
So many people. Really great. A pleasure to be in a trade so crowded. Especially on Sunday, although the exhibitors cannot wait to arrive on Monday and Tuesday, traditionally the day when visitors arrive in Istanbul more qualified and more likely to enter into a deal. There is only a small problem, as some Italian exhibitor told us: people want to buy “made in Italy” technology at the price of other countries, an equation that is not easy to solve. The keystone could be the attempt to define an offer “ad hoc”, reconciling quality excellence at a “Turkish price”. We will see the developments in the coming years …
Of course, the growth rates are not more than in the recent past, but it is still a market of great interest. Also here you have to deal with national policies: from what they told us in Istanbul, the government stopped funding the strong building which in recent years have made it possible to change the profile of the country (but it seems there are hundreds of thousands of vacant apartments), through a series of economic measures to support businesses. How much influence on investment decisions, perhaps in import machinery?
