Market demand continues for well-targeted trade shows and conferences – Pauwels

Dubai, UAE, December 22, 2016:  Messe Frankfurt Middle East has rounded off another prosperous year in 2016, reporting robust growth across its event portfolio as it expanded into new markets and industry sectors.  

The Dubai-based trade fair organiser’s nine exhibitions combined featured 6,000 exhibitors from 60 countries in 2016, six per cent more than 2015, and representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10 per cent over the last five years.  They also collectively attracted 124,000 visitors from 135 countries, a 13 per cent jump on 2015, and 11 per cent more in compound annual growth since 2012.

Messe Frankfurt Middle East’s shows covered 113,000sqm in nett exhibition space in 2016, also six per cent more than 2015, while the CAGR over the last five years also stood at 13 per cent.  

Sales revenue in the company as a whole grew eight per cent year-on-year, as it added 19 staff over the year to cater to growing demand, bringing the full-time employee count total to 142.

“The continued growth and success of our event portfolio across all segments is because they present highly-effective platforms for trade development and networking across the Middle East,” said Ahmed Pauwels, CEO of Messe Frankfurt Middle East. 

“There’s strong demand for well-targeted, industry-specific exhibitions and conferences, as the regional market becomes more sophisticated. We as a company are still growing, and expanding into new markets and industry sectors.  We’re actively fine-tuning our existing portfolio while at the same time looking at new opportunities in other industry sectors.”

Messe Frankfurt Middle East’s shows in 2016 included Intersec, Paperworld, Leatherworld, Beautyworld, Hardware+Tools, Light Middle East, and Automechanika Dubai, which all too place at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.  

Among the several milestones this year was the debut of Automechanika Jeddah in January, which marked the company’s first foray into the Kingdom.  Catering specifically to the needs of the Saudi Arabian automotive aftermarket, Automechanika Jeddah featured 184 exhibitors, and attracted 5,009 trade visitors from across the country. 

The launch of Prolight + Sound Middle East in October in Dubai also proved to be a masterstroke, with the strong visitor turnout and positive exhibitor feedback indicating the trade show has a solid foundation to build upon in the coming years. 

The region’s dedicated exhibition for the entertainment, event, media and creation industries featured 37 exhibitors from 11 countries representing more than 120 brands, and drew in 1,607 visitors from 50 countries.

Meanwhile, Messe Frankfurt Middle East’s conference division continues to pave the way with world-class events, organising 14 conferences, including six stand-alone and eight show-aligned in 2016.  

These included three new conferences: Telematics Middle East in Dubai; the Infrastructure Security Conference Middle East in Bahrain; and the Supply Chain and Logistics Forum in Saudi Arabia.  Total attendance for conferences in 2016 stood at 1,560, which included delegates, speakers and sponsors.

The stellar year for Messe Frankfurt Middle East comes as parent company Messe Frankfurt Group reported at a press conference in Germany that it will once again end the financial year 2016 with strong sales and a profitable result compared with the rest of the sector. 

For the second time in a row, Messe Frankfurt Group sales are set to exceed the €640 million mark and will be comparable with the previous year’s level.  

On presenting the Group’s preliminary key figures for 2016, Wolfgang Marzin, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Messe Frankfurt, emphasised: “Messe Frankfurt is the world’s highest-grossing organiser with its own exhibition grounds.”  The company will reach yet another excellent result – probably in the region of €60 million – which is a marked improvement on the previous year. 

This year’s EBITDA will also be better than last year’s figure and set a new record. Marzin: “This means that we have established an excellent basis and can continue to invest in the infrastructure at our Frankfurt base, in our brands and in digital processes.”