International trade fair for swimming pools, saunas and spas attracted more international guests: a record with 460 exhibitors at Messe Stuttgart.
At the international trade fair interbad, which took place from 13 to 16 October at Messe Stuttgart, 15,683 visitors were presented with the latest trends and ideas for the swimming pool, sauna and spa industries. interbad has successfully established itself on this market, boasting a record number of exhibitors (460 companies; 2008: 442) and following up on the success of the previous event two years before. Interbad 2008 took place for the first time at the new Stuttgart Trade Fair Centre and even then saw a significant increase in popularity with 16,561 visitors pouring through its gates.
Satisfied exhibitors and a high quality of visitor impressively confirmed the importance of interbad as an European trade fair, organised by the German Association for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry (DGfdB) and Messe Stuttgart. “We saw an increase in the number of international visitors represented in comparison to the 2008 event and the exhibitors were impressed by the high quality discussions held at the stands and during the congress“, says Ulrich Kromer, Managing Director at Messe Stuttgart. ”That is the main reason behind the great atmosphere here and, at the same time, a nice compliment which serves to confirm the success of this concept.“ Dr. Christian Ochsenbauer, Managing Director of the German Association for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry (DGfdB), explains: “Over 1,000 participants registered for the Interbad congresses and we were once again able to meet the high level of the previous event. For the first time, DGfdB organised the specialist conference "Private Swimming Pools" which attracted plenty of interest. This subject is set to play an increasingly important role in the future.“ The DGfdB Congress for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry, as well as the Spa Market Conference from the Spa Business publishing house, are important elements of Interbad and facilitate an exchange of information at the highest level.
More international visitors and decision-makers at Interbad 2010
The catchment area of Interbad has expanded, as proven by the representative visitor survey carried out. 41 percent (2008: 40 percent) of visitors travelled more than 300 kilometres to come to the international trade fair and find out more about public and private swimming pools, saunas and spas. Guests from 76 countries registered for the event; approximately every fourth visitor came from outside Germany. Around 25 percent of visitors came from Eastern Europe, taking advantage of the optimal transport connections boasted by Europe's most modern trade fair grounds.
The high quality of visitors was confirmed by the enthusiastic exhibitors who were able to make new contacts and maintain existing ones, as well as initiate new business. 91 percent of visitors (2008: 91 percent) are involved in the purchasing and procurement decisions in their organisation, 73 percent (2008: 70 percent) play a crucial or decisive role. 80 percent of (co-)decision-makers admitted to having concrete plans for investment; 36 percent of which are working with a project volume of more than 50,000 Euro.
Successful symbiosis: Trade fair, congress and accompanying event programme
The accompanying programme of events taking place at interbad provided visitors with plenty of opportunities to advance professionally, as well as share experience and expertise with others, and is an important reason for the success of interbad. More than 1,000 participants attended the seminars and presentations at the 62nd Congress for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry of the DGfdB and the Spa Market Conference of the Spa Business publishing house. A new feature of the swimming pool congress was the specialist conference looking at "Private Swimming Pools" which was very well received. Further specialist conferences such as "Public Swimming Pools", "Physical Therapy", "Sauna" and "Swimming Pool Personnel" also presented current developments from the various areas of the industry. The Spa Market Conference (SMC) has established itself as the largest event of its kind in Europe and addresses decision-makers in the hotel industry, fitness clubs and wellness facilities. The top themes at SMC 2010 were signature treatments and private label cosmetics.
Important features of the Interbad 2010 accompanying event programme were the special area "Bathing in Light" and the presentation of the first Public Value Award. The "Public Value Award for the Public Swimming Pool" was initiated and awarded by DGfdB. It went to the indoor swimming pool at Helene-Weigel-Platz in the Berlin district of Marzahn, to the indoor swimming pool OTeBad in Bremen and to the leisure pool Fildorado in Filderstadt near Stuttgart. The award recognised the value these public swimming pools made to society and how a public swimming pool can contribute to the welfare of a community. At the special area "Bathing in Light", the European Waterpark Association and the interior designer Nik Schweiger showed visitors how light can be used as a design element to create a relaxing atmosphere.
At the international trade fair interbad, which took place from 13 to 16 October at Messe Stuttgart, 15,683 visitors were presented with the latest trends and ideas for the swimming pool, sauna and spa industries. interbad has successfully established itself on this market, boasting a record number of exhibitors (460 companies; 2008: 442) and following up on the success of the previous event two years before. Interbad 2008 took place for the first time at the new Stuttgart Trade Fair Centre and even then saw a significant increase in popularity with 16,561 visitors pouring through its gates. Satisfied exhibitors and a high quality of visitor impressively confirmed the importance of interbad as an European trade fair, organised by the German Association for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry (DGfdB) and Messe Stuttgart. “We saw an increase in the number of international visitors represented in comparison to the 2008 event and the exhibitors were impressed by the high quality discussions held at the stands and during the congress“, says Ulrich Kromer, Managing Director at Messe Stuttgart. ”That is the main reason behind the great atmosphere here and, at the same time, a nice compliment which serves to confirm the success of this concept.“ Dr. Christian Ochsenbauer, Managing Director of the German Association for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry (DGfdB), explains: “Over 1,000 participants registered for the Interbad congresses and we were once again able to meet the high level of the previous event. For the first time, DGfdB organised the specialist conference "Private Swimming Pools" which attracted plenty of interest. This subject is set to play an increasingly important role in the future.“ The DGfdB Congress for the Recreational and Medicinal Bath Industry, as well as the Spa Market Conference from the Spa Business publishing house, are important elements of Interbad and facilitate an exchange of information at the highest level.
More international visitors and decision-makers at Interbad 2010
The high quality of visitors was confirmed by the enthusiastic exhibitors who were able to make new contacts and maintain existing ones, as well as initiate new business. 91 percent of visitors (2008: 91 percent) are involved in the purchasing and procurement decisions in their organisation, 73 percent (2008: 70 percent) play a crucial or decisive role. 80 percent of (co-)decision-makers admitted to having concrete plans for investment; 36 percent of which are working with a project volume of more than 50,000 Euro.
Successful symbiosis: Trade fair, congress and accompanying event programme
The next interbad event, with its accompanying congress programme, will be taking place from 10 to 13 October 2012 at Messe Stuttgart.
