There Is A Big Catch-Up Effect, With High Incoming Orders

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There Is A Big Catch-Up Effect, With High Incoming Orders

Were you satisfied with the safety and health arrangements made by the organizers? And implementation of the protocols? During the preparation and also during the exhibition, the safety requirements of the local authorities were implemented at all times. According to our understanding, this worked very well. Has business and travel confidence improved due to ITMA Asia + CITME? Yes the business climate is now very good again. We hear that from very many of our textile machinery manufacturers. After the pandemic, there is now a big catch-up effect with high incoming orders. How big an effect ITMA Asia + CITME will have on this trend remains to be seen. It is still too early to make an assessment. Regarding travel, it is still the case that almost exclusively Chinese visitors were at the exhibition. The travel restrictions, also to China, are still very strict. Do you think physical trade shows are back now? We see that both exhibitors and visitors are looking forward to trade shows again. Of course, we have learned to communicate via virtual tools in the last one and a half years. But the added value of a trade show - from the many personal interactions, to running machines, to the whole atmosphere - cannot be underestimated. In this sense, I am optimistic that trade shows will once again take an important place in the interaction between customers and suppliers. However, it can also be mentioned here that many Swiss exhibitors set up virtual solutions on their booth, so that visitors who could not come to the fairground connected virtually. Here I am convinced that it will become a long-term trend to link these two worlds and offer the best of both. How did your association members fare at the show in terms of visitorship (countrywise), enquiries and deals? The answer is, of course, in line with the current situation. There were fewer visitors than in the last edition of 2018, but that was to be expected. Some exhibitors told us that they were positively surprised by the quality and quantity of visitors. Good discussions were held with the Chinese customers. And they are placing orders for their operations abroad in addition to investments in their own country. Anything else that you would like to share. The next ITMA Asia + CITME will take place from 20 - 24 November 2022. We strongly expect that exhibitors and visitors from outside China will then also be able to participate in the trade show again.