Piscina & Wellness Barcelona is already preparing its next edition, which will be held from 27 to 30 November 2023. With the constitution of the Organising Committee, the Fira de Barcelona trade show is getting underway to bring together business, knowledge and networking at the highest level to boost the swimming pool, wellness and aquatic facilities industry.

Among its main objectives for 2023: to grow in size and representation of companies

Especially in the wellness, professional services and outdoor living segments; and also to increase the internationality of exhibitors and visitors; and to contribute to accelerating innovation and sustainability in the sector.

Support of ASOFAP and the leading companies

The organising committee of Piscina & Wellness Barcelona - led by Fluidra's executive president, Eloi Planes - is made up of 24 members, including businessmen and executives from leading international firms. This year, Matthieu Selva of Pentair and Francesc Redolad of ATH - BWT have joined this advisory body, which is responsible for guiding the general strategy of the event. In this way, the main companies in the pool and wellness sector are supporting and helping to shape the content of the Barcelona trade show. The list of companies represented is completed by Fluidra (Miguel Mesías and Martí Giralt), Hayward (Fernando Blasco), SCP (Salvador Mauri), Espa (Pere Giribets), Grupo QP (Victor Martínez and Joaquín Vallespín), Piscinas Condal (Alejandro Morillo), Action Park Waterscapes (Alfonso Ribarrocha) and Rosa Gres (Marcel-lí Sugrañes).

The Spanish Association ASOFAP, with which Piscina & Wellness Barcelona recently renewed its collaboration agreement until 2029, and which is represented by its president Pedro Arrebola, and the Instituto Tecnológico Hotelero, with Álvaro Carrillo, who helps to detect the demands of the hotel and tourism sector, also play an important role. Other members of the committee are executives from ICEX Spain Export and Investment (José Ignacio Pradas Poveda); from the Generalitat de Catalunya (Montserrat Vilalta); and from Fira de Barcelona, organiser of this biennial event.

President Eloi Planes welcomed the expansion of the committee's membership for the 2023 edition:

We have the voices of the major international players in the swimming pool sector.

Planes also underlined: "the commitment, involvement and the sum of knowledge that all the members bring with the aim of initiating a new stage of growth for the trade fair, taking advantage of the good expectations of a market that is very receptive to innovations and equipment for more sustainable, experiential and easy-to-maintain aquatic facilities".

At the same time, Piscina & Wellness Barcelona 2023 has also set up four working groups on public swimming pools, residential swimming pools, wellness and outdoor pools, made up of some thirty representatives from companies and organisations related to the supply and demand sectors. The mission of these groups is to identify market concerns in each area, find synergies and connections with new professional profiles of interest, and recommend supply sectors, themes and activities to be included in the fair in order to respond to the needs detected.

Good commercial start

Piscina & Wellness Barcelona faces its 2023 edition with good prospects, after the general satisfaction of its last event held in December 2021, which facilitated the reunion of the international sector in person in the midst of the pandemic, generated purchase orders, and showcased the latest developments in the sector from 208 exhibitors and more than 350 brands to 10,537 visitors.

Exhibitors' loyalty and confidence in the effectiveness of Piscina & Wellness Barcelona as a commercial and internationalisation platform is demonstrated by the first figures for 2023 presented at the first meeting of the organising committee: 6,000m² booked in a single four-month period.

The trade show's director, Ángel Celorrio, assures: "we are designing, hand in hand with the sector itself, a powerful edition that will surpass the pre-pandemic records with the aim of bringing together the largest and most representative commercial offer of the pool, spa and outdoor product value chain and thereby attracting the best national and international demand".

As a prelude to the 2023 edition, the trade show's organising committee and ASOFAP are working on the programme and content of the next Piscina & Wellness Forum, which will return to its in-person format and take place from 3 to 4 November 2022 at the Official College of Architects of Madrid (COAM). The aim of this educational and networking event, which is held every other year at the Barcelona trade fair, is to provide a new networking space to learn about trends, technologies and new pool and wellness applications, as well as to reflect on the regulatory framework, the economic context, professional qualifications and other current issues that have an impact on the activity of companies in the sector. This year the Forum is extending its commercial exhibition area so that companies can present their solutions.