AEFI ECONOMIC OBSERVATORY ON THE TRADE FAIR SECTOR
The 29th quarterly survey on trends in the trade fair sector conducted by the AEFI Economic Observatory for the April–June 2016 period indicates an overall situation of recovery compared to the corresponding period in 2015.
The survey, which involved 25 AEFI-member Italian trade fair districts – through the positive and negative balances defined on the basis of responses from members who took part in the analysis – highlights a positive trend for all the indicators considered: number of exhibitions, total exhibitors and visitors and space taken.
The number of exhibitions is starting to grow again (32% of the districts in the survey hosted more shows and 56% recorded a static situation, highlighting the resilience of the system). The balance of +20% is particularly significant, above all if compared with the -16% of the 1st quarter of 2016.
The graph, concerning the development of the balance in the various quarters, highlights an appreciable reduction in negative situations in favour of positive and static ones.
The number of exhibitors – growing for 36% of members who took part, decreasing for 24% and static for 40% – recorded a balance of +12%, reversing the trend of the previous quarter and of the same period last year when the balance was nil. Further confirmation of the sector’s dynamism.
Analysis of where visitors came from shows growth among Italians, with a balance of +12%.
Space taken is expanding too: 36% of respondents recorded an increase, and the balance of +12% indicates a markedly improved situation with respect both to the end of March and June 2015.
The greatest contribution to the increase in total space taken was made by Italian exhibitors, with a balance of +4%. There was no alteration in the areas occupied by EU exhibitors, while there was a slight downturn in non-EU visitors, recording a balance of -4%.
The data on visitor intake was particularly positive: increasing for 52% of respondents, unvarying for 32% and decreasing for 16%. The balance of +36%, net of the static component, confirms the positive dynamic, with a marked increase against the previous quarter (+25%), and overturns the negative situation in the same period last year.
The cross section of visitors highlights a sustained increase in Italians, with a balance of +40%, followed by Europeans (balance +4%). The results from outside the EU are stable, with a balance of nil. The more restrained growth rate for foreign visitors can also be attributed to the international geopolitical situation with issues concerning security, increasingly strict and leading to selection of the exhibitions to attend.
The outlook for the next quarter is marked by great optimism, for all indicators: the number of exhibitors, increasing for 44% of the districts that took part in the survey and a balance of +40%, visitors, foreseeing a balance of 44%, and space taken, for which a positive balance of 36% is envisaged.
The number of exhibitions is also increasing: the forecast for the July-September 2016 period indicate a balance of +28%.
The AEFI figures are authoritatively confirmed through comparison with the analysis performed by ISFCERT, the Certification Institute for Exhibition Industry Statistics, recognised by ACCREDIA for the trade fairs certified.
Comparison of trends in the last two editions of 28 professional international exhibitions held in the first quarter of 2016 that turned to the ISFCERT institute for certification of their exhibition statistics again highlights increased numbers of visitors, visits – understood as the number of unique daily entrances – exhibitors and total surface taken.
In detail: visitors increased by 3.19% in total, with Italians increasing by +2.46% and foreigners by +6.14%; overall, unique daily entrances increased by 6.60% (Italian +6.97%; foreign +9.00%). The figures also point to an overall increase in exhibitors of +3,50% (Italians +4,44%; foreign +2,05%). Finally, with regard to the surface taken, the professional exhibitions certified in the first quarter of 2016 recorded +5.48.
AEFI – the Italian Exhibition and Trade Fair Association – was set up in 1983 with a view to generating synergies between the most significant Italian exhibition districts. Specifically, AEFI would like to be seen as a privileged partner for operators and institutions alike, and its role is to support members through the development of activities and programmes in the sphere of training, marketing, promotion and research, as well as to provide services for trade fairs through the activities of its Committees: Exhibition Hub Technical Committee, Administrative-Legal Committee, Internationalisation Committee and Trade Fairs Network Committee.
On an international scale, AEFI represents Italian trade fairs in UFI – Union of International Fairs. Chaired by Ettore Riello, AEFI includes 35 member exhibition districts, which organise over 1,000 events a year over an overall exhibition area of 4.2 million square metres. Most international trade fairs, and 85% of all trade fairs, which take place each year in Italy, are held in AEFI-member exhibition districts.