The Outbound Exhibition Industry Driven By Market Demand

Celion Su

On 27 June， the 8th Outbound Exhibitions Forum， sponsored by Overseas Exhibitions Magazine and as a highlight forum of the 8th Expo Project Fair for International Cooperation 2018， was successfully held in Hangzhou. The forum was also supported by China Russian Federation of Economy and Trade Fairs Industry. The forum was composed of welcome speeches， information release， keynote speeches and dialogue. Renown industry players gave in-depth discussion of the development opportunities and challenges of the present outbound exhibition industry. Participants from China and abroad attended the forum.

Information release： the exhibition industry has maintained positive growth， and the business of most companies has been rising steadily In the information release session， Chen Meng， Editor in Chief of EPFIC 2018 Organizer China International Conference and Exhibition Magazine， released the 2017 China Outbound Exhibition Industry Survey Report， and analyzed the macro trends of the exhibition industry and the basic situation of the business operation of Chinese outbound exhibition service suppliers. In 2017， the volume of Chinese outbound exhibition industry continued to climb， while the overall growth pace slowed down slightly.

During 2017， Chinese exhibitors went to 70 countries to participate in about 1549 exhibitions， increasing by 3.82% compared with the same period in 2016； the exhibition area was 849，800 square meters， up 1.77% from the same period， a total of 59，000 exhibitors， up 1.72% over the same period. Meanwhile， 36 companies held 123 exhibitions on their own. On the operational level， the business of exhibiting services has steadily increased. 84.62% of the exhibiting agencies said that turnover increased in 2017. 69.23% of them expect growth in 2018.

Keynote speeches： rich market opportunities at home and abroad In the keynote session， 1st Vice Chair- UFI， Asia Pacific and CEO of FAKT Exhibitions PVT Ltd M Saleem Khan Tanoli gave the speech entitled "The Potential in Pakistans Exhibition Industry". Tomasz Szypu？a， Chairman of Ptak Warsaw Expo， the largest venue in Central Europe， introduced local business opportunities. Zhang Xin， Deputy General Manager of Shanghai Hi-Expo International Logistics Co.， Ltd.， analyzed the new characteristics and new trends of the outbound logistics field.

According to M Saleem Khan Tanoli， under a stably developing economy， Pakistan convention and exhibition market has great potential for development. Every year， more than 100 exhibitions are held in Karachi， Lahore and Islamabad. It is expected that 500 exhibitions will be held in 2020. At the same time， there are about 150 meetings held annually in Pakistan， with knowledge driven meetings in huge demand.

Tomasz Szypu？a introduced the latest facilities and quality services of the venue were introduced to the audience， as well as the tremendous opportunities of eastern and middle Europe with a population of 100 million people.

He said that Ptak Warsaw Expo is the largest professional exhibition venue in Central Europe， with a full range of facilities， 500，000 square meters of outdoor area and 143，000 square meters of exhibition area， distributed in 6 pavilions and 15，000 parking spaces. In addition， the traffic facilities near the expo center is convenient. He pointed out that in 2017， President Andrzej Duda of Poland met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and signed a strategic cooperation agreement. Now is the best time to strengthen bilateral economic and trade cooperation. He encouraged Chinese enterprises to enter the local market with exhibitions as a bridge.

Zhang Xin said that from the experiences of serving outbound exhibitors in recent years， the new features of the logistics operation such as the increase of average freight volume， the increasing demand for customized service， the exhibitors are not familiar with the customs laws and regulations of the country of destination， the disposal of the exhibits after the exhibition is difficult. Therefore， his company launched corresponding services， including the establishment of overseas warehouse in Brazil and Russia， sample delivery， setting up new logistics channels， by improving the quality of service help exhibitors successfully participate in overseas exhibitions.

Panel discussion session： meet the deep business needs of exhibitors In the panel discussion session， under the moderation of Evan Li， Representative Greater China of Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau， Muyessara Tursun， Deputy General Manager ITE International Convention & Exhibition Service （Beijing） Co.，Ltd.， Bob Li， General Manager of Honor Expo Group， Chen Ying， General Manager of Zhejiang Times International Exhibition&Service Co.， Ltd， and Dennis Yu， Project Executive of Andina Fairs， Co.， Ltd.，gave in-depth discussion on how the exhibitors meet the deep business needs of the exhibitors， enhance the display image of the Chinese exhibitors， and how to establish a good and stable cooperation relationship between organizers and agents under the background of the continuously rising scale of the exhibitor industry in China.

Bob Li said that his companys exhibition business development is based on the industry， and that by recruiting for small exhibition projects first， exhibition agents can establish a good relationship with the organizers with excellent performance， and then establish a deeper cooperative relationship. In return， when the business performance is improved， the thinking of the agents concerning setting relationship of organizers and choosing projects will be clearer.

Chen Ying said that when choosing an overseas exhibition project to cooperate with， the agents must consider the policy guidance of the government and the market demand of the other area， and it would be the perfect case if the outbound exhibition projects are the combination of both factors. If not， the governments policy should also always be put in the first place for long-term success.

Regarding how to help the exhibitors to maximize their value at the exhibition site， Muyessara Tursun held the view that good booth image is a key point to attract the audience. In terms of paperwork， the exhibitors are desired to have an English version or in the local language of the target market， otherwise it is difficult to obtain the corresponding exhibition effect. On the other hand， as an organizer， ITE has also invested in a large amount of money in the past few years to improve the exhibitor experience and recruit more audience， and employed professionals to provide front end market information for the exhibition to improve the ROI of the exhibitors.

Yu Minqi shared that his company is now organizing its own is a dream for exhibition. His company is organizing its own shows in Columbia in Latin America， and he stated that the following elements are necessary for organizing a trade show in any country. The first is to have strong funds， because the exhibition needs 5 to 10 years of investment， especially for inviting enough trade buyers， and it is worth investing. The second is to have a localized team， to fully understand the Chinese culture and local culture， otherwise in the local will be difficult， a lot of work will not be executed in full extent. The third is to accumulate sufficient local associations， venues and government resources that can be put into the operation of the shows.

Future trends to grasp： Brand building and sustainable development

Following the panel， Zhejiang International Convention & Exhibition Industry Association Vice President Li Baoer， who has participated in the exhibition organizing work of hundreds of shows in China and abroad in several dozens of countries， also shared his views on the development of outbound exhibition industry. He stated that since the launching of the Reform and Opening up national policy， Chinas outbound exhibition industry has also been developing rapidly. Today， the exhibition industry has received the attention of the Central Government， and that the Chinese outbound exhibition industry has Chinese characteristics.

Concerning the "going out" of the Chinese exhibition industry， Li said that exhibition brand building and sustainable development are the key trends. Internationalization and specialization are the key factors to realize these ends. At the same time， exhibition companies should also see the changes in the exhibition mode such as the integration of B2B and B2C， as well as cater to young people with rich contents. Most importantly， win-win cooperation is an important factor for the sustainable development of the industry.

After the discussion， there was extensive business communication among the participants. The meeting ended in a warm and lively atmosphere.