On 31st October, aquanale - the International Trade Fair for Sauna, Pool, Ambience, came to an end after four days of overall positive results in Cologne. Held in conjunction with FSB - the International Trade Fair for Amenity Areas, Sports and Pool Facilities, aquanale was visited by approximately 24,000 visitors. .jpg) |
| Oliver P. KUHRT |
This year aquanale was the only international trade fair for swimming pools and wellness in Germany. A total of 39 per cent of suppliers and 31 per cent of visitors came from outside Germany to Cologne. The sector was also impressed with the results of the fair. "Ever since aquanale has existed it has been one of the best trade fairs of its kind," said Bert GRANDERATH, Vice President of the European Union of Swimming Pool and Spa Associations (EUSA) and Managing Director of grando GmbH. "We were especially impressed by the high number of visitors and in particular the extraordinarily high quality of the visitors."
High praise from exhibitors and visitors
The extensive product range once again turned the event into a visitor magnet. There was a noticeable increase in visitors from Eastern Europe, France, Austria and Switzerland. The large number of international visitors and excellent visitor turnout at the stands ensured very high spirits at aquanale. "The trade fair registered excellent visitor numbers, and we were able to hold very important discussions," said Herbert NONNENMACHER, Managing Director of Röger GmbH and Chairman of the BSB. "We observed a willingness to invest and great interest in the high-quality range of products. We were also impressed by the international character of aquanale. At our stand we welcomed visitors from nations and regions including the Benelux countries, Spain, Eastern Europe and Turkey." These statements are confirmed by the initial results of the visitor survey. Of the visitors surveyed, 91 per cent are involved in purchasing and procurement decisions.
One could also see many satisfied faces among suppliers of products from the spa and wellness sector. "For us the fair was very positive overall," said Helmut HILPERT, Managing Director of hilpert GmbH & Co. KG. "We made good, interesting contacts and welcomed customers to our stand who were eager to purchase." The newly created special topic area "SUN" also received a very positive response. "Our stand attracted high-quality, knowledgeable and specialist visitors, as well as very high numbers of international visitors," said Bernd SCHMID, Managing Director of Sun's Solarien. "This confirms that the sun theme is well-positioned in combination with swimming pools and saunas."
It wasn't just the exhibitors who said they were extremely satisfied with the trade fair; aquanale also impressed the visitors. The visitor survey revealed that 75 per cent of visitors said they were "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with their success in achieving their trade fair objectives. Thanks to this very positive response to the event, 88 per cent of the visitors surveyed said they would recommend a visit to aquanale to a valued business associate.
The new hall structure was well-received
This year, aquanale for the first time occupied two halls (10.1 and 10.2) located one over the other, which was widely welcomed. As topics such as swimming pool technology, water treatment and equipment were of interest to the visitors in attendance at aquanale and at FSB, which took place in parallel, the swimming pool segments of both trade fairs were connected by a water boulevard. This connecting axis between the adjacent halls of the public and private swimming pool sectors was heavily frequented by visitors, who explored the stands of around 350 exhibiting companies from the swimming pool and sauna segments of both international trade fairs.
aquanale in figures
aquanale 2009 was attended by 271 companies from 25 countries, which occupied a gross exhibition space of 36,000 m². The participants included 152 exhibitors and 13 additionally represented companies from Germany, as well as 92 exhibitors and 14 additionally represented companies from abroad. A total of 39 per cent of the exhibitors came from abroad. Including estimates for the last day of the fair, the two parallel trade fairs aquanale and FSB attracted approximately 24,000 trade visitors from 54 countries. The proportion of exhibitors from abroad was 31 per cent.*
* All figures have been calculated in accordance with the guidelines of the Society for Voluntary Control of Trade Fair and Exhibition Statistics (FKM).
aquanale 2011
The next aquanale - the International Trade Fair for Sauna, Pool, Ambience - will take place from Wednesday, 26th October to Saturday, 29th October 2011. It will be held in close proximity to, and at overlapping times with, the thematically related trade fair FSB - the International Trade Fair for Amenity Areas, Sports and Pool Facilities (26th to 28th October 2011).
