After a standstill of almost eight months since the beginning of November 2020, trade fairs are again taking place again in Germany.
The Saxony-Anhalt State Building Exhibition in Magdeburg was the first to start, in a compact form, 25-27 June 2021, as part of a pilot project.
Twelve of Germany’s federal states are permitting the restart of trade fairs and industry leaders have urged the other four to follow suit.
At the beginning of July larger trade fairs like IBO at Messe Friedrichshafen, Nordstil in Hamburg and the Interiors & Lifestyle trade fair TrendSet at Messe München (also a pilot) will follow. German trade fair association AUMA expects more events for trade visitors to follow at the country’s exhibition venues.
“Small and medium-sized companies, in particular, are in urgent need of impulses from trade fairs – through the presentation of innovations, through personal confidence-building communication and the opportunity to win new customers,” says Jörn Holtmeier, managing director of AUMA, explaining the importance of the new beginning. The presence of companies and the industry in the trade media and the direct exchange of experience within the industry are also important advantages of fairs, AUMA notes.
AUMA expects around ten physical events to be staged by its members, primarily regional trade fairs, before the end of August. And a total of 148 trade fairs listed by AUMA are currently planned from September to December 2021, 67 of which are of international or national importance.
Fair dates over the coming months can be seen here.
These events will all be held under conditions of sophisticated health protection procedures that have been tested in autumn 2020 and which are designed to offer the highest possible level of safety to all participants.
Trade fairs in Germany are now possible in 12 of the 16 federal states and Holtmeier adds: “It is good that many federal states have given a signal for the restart of trade fairs in the second half of the year. Now the others must follow suit as quickly as possible. It must not depend on the situation within Germany whether organisers, exhibitors and service providers can plan trade fairs again or not.”
© Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH / Jean-Luc Valentin
