Epoc Messe Frankfurt on track for another record year

DUBAI-Leading trade fair and conference organiser Epoc Messe Frankfurt is on course for another standout year, riding on the record-breaking double digit growth of its events over the first six months of 2014.

The company’s exhibitions for the first half of the year, including Intersec, Paperworld and Playworld Middle East, Beautyworld Middle East, Automechanika Dubai and Hardware+Tools Middle East featured a combined 4,763 exhibitors – an average 18.5% growth year-on-year. The six events also together attracted 91,709 trade visitors from across the world, an average growth of 13.5% year-on-year.

With sales revenue growing at a Combined Annual Growth Rate of 17% over the last five years, the continued success of Epoc Messe Frankfurt’s shows underlines its growing stature as the premier organiser of trade and business events serving the wider Middle East.

This comes as parent company Messe Frankfurt GmbH announced at a press conference in Frankfurt this month that it set a new sales record of 544.8 million euro in 2013.

Epoc Messe Frankfurt, the Dubai-based subsidiary, along with other subsidiaries in the EMEA region, including those in Italy, France, Russia and Turkey, contributed 49.9 million euro of that figure.

“We are extremely pleased with the response our events have received in the Middle East from both our exhibiting partners and the wider trade community,” said Ahmed Pauwels, CEO of Epoc Messe Frankfurt. “We will continue to work on bringing the best of the Messe Frankfurt brands to the region as we continue to evaluate and refine our existing events portfolio to cater to the needs of the market.”

Messe Frankfurt organised a total of 113 trade fairs and exhibitions worldwide, in addition to 256 congresses and other events. These were attended by some 79,600 exhibitors and 4.3 million visitors.

A total of 36 trade fairs and exhibitions took place at the company’s Frankfurt base – including 16 events organised by the Messe Frankfurt Group itself – which played host to some 19,320 exhibitors and 744,000 visitors in all.

According to Messe Frankfurt President and CEO, Wolfgang Marzin, the group’s outlook and proven corporate policy is centred on being sustainable in its actions and investments without compromising profitability. The group will continue to strengthen and expand its global product portfolio by enhancing existing events as well as through cooperations and acquisitions.

Messe Frankfurt‘s range of analogue and digital services is also set to be expanded. The company has achieved healthy growth with traditional trade fair services such as catering, stand construction and personnel placement. Marzin sees digital business more and more as a new field for future growth.

Upcoming events and conferences in the Epoc Messe Frankfurt portfolio for 2014 include Light Middle East and the Light Insight Arabia Conference from 3-5 November; the Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery Conference from 16-18 October; the Worker Health Protection Conference from 20-23 October; and the inaugural GCC Car Modifications Conference from 24-25 November.