Messe Nuremberg is one of the largest exhibition companies in the world. Its portfolio covers 120 national and international exhibitions and congresses and around 40 sponsored pavilions at the Nuremberg location and worldwide.
Each year 30,000 exhibitors and up to 1.4 million visitors participate in events run by the company, its partners and guests. Through subsidiaries the company is present in China, North America, Brazil, Italy and India.
Here, CEOs Dr Roland Fleck and Peter Ottmann talk to EW about their strategy and plans for international growth.
How did you get into the industry?
Ottmann: I joined Messe Nuremberg 20 years ago, in 1994, and I see no reason to leave! I am fascinated by trade shows, the way they reflect markets and support business relations around the globe. I started out as press officer and took over the newly created communications division in 2000. Five years later our former CEO Bernd Diederichs asked me to become a member of the managing board. I have always enjoyed working on a strategic level – whether in terms of marketing and communications or company development.
Dr Fleck: I have been associated with Messe Nuremberg for many years as well but not always as part of the company. After 10 years of experience in the corporate finance business of a German banking institution, I was elected deputy mayor of the city of Nuremberg for economic affairs in 1996. Since then I have been a member of the supervisory boards of several companies including Messe Nuremberg. In this position I was able to contribute to the strategic development of the company. In 2011, I teamed up with Peter Ottmann as joint CEOs to develop Messe Nuremberg and take it to the next stage.
What is Messe Nuremberg’s mission/focus for the next 24mths?
Dr Fleck: We currently have a strong exhibition portfolio and a large number of loyal exhibitors, but we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. We regularly check and rethink how we can move forward and shape the trade fair industry with new concepts to meet the requirements of different industries. One of our targets is the enlargement of traditional shows like IWA Outdoor Classics, Interzoo or GaLaBau. Another target is to step up our efforts to extend our network around the globe in different business and technological sectors.
Ottmann: The latest statistics from the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA) tell us Messe Nuremberg currently comes 13th in the world in terms of turnover. Our aim is to establish the company permanently among the world’s top 15 exhibition companies and create a turnover of 300 million Euros (US$414m) by 2020. Our strategy is based on the development of new events that we host ourselves, or which are hosted with our partners. The purchase of existing events nationally and internationally is equally important for our growth strategy, accompanied by a continuous expansion and upgrade of our exhibition and congress centres.
Dr Fleck: It’s not just in terms of turnover that we want to be among the best. One of our goals is to occupy a top position among the world-leading exhibition companies in terms of energy efficiency. This is why we have been intensely working on an energy management system over the past months.
What role does international business including trade shows play outside Nuremberg?
Ottmann: Our strategy is to double today’s revenue of our international business by 2020, so that it will constitute 20 per cent of our overall turnover. In 2013, we made good progress towards this goal: The number of exhibitors rose by eight per cent, the net space by 10 per cent and the number of visitors by 18 per cent against 2011, which is the more comparable year in terms of the trade shows rota. We are especially proud of our youngest subsidiary in India, which soon celebrates its first birthday with a portfolio of five successful trade fairs.
Dr Fleck: We plan to invest 50 million Euros in new exhibitions over the next 10 years. How are we going to do this? We ensure that our trade shows reflect a high level of expertise for the region in which they are held. We tailor them to specific trade audiences and the needs of the relevant industry sector.
Our aim is to be a leader in certain clusters or target markets where Messe Nuremberg has a core competence. These international event clusters include the Biofach family, the Global Fair Alliance (an alliance of the world’s leading window exhibitions), the Coatings Network, the pet supplies trade fairs, the Powder & Bulk Network and the network of trade fairs in the refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump segment. Our subsidiary in Brazil is a good example of a perfect match of trade fairs. The portfolio covers almost 10 exhibitions and congresses in important market segments such as FCE Pharma and FCE Cosmetique for the fast growing pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry.
Ottmann: Asia as well offers high-potential markets with very positive forecasts and tremendous growth rates. We have recognised this potential and founded a subsidiary in China in 2006. Meanwhile the Messe Nuremberg Group has expanded its business activities in Asia and is represented with a prospering event portfolio in China and India. The Asian continent in general and especially the Indian subcontinent will help us to move forward with our international strategy.
Have you established any recent partnerships, such as with Francal Feiras, in any new regions?
Dr Fleck: Along with the foundation of our subsidiary in India, we started a new international cooperation regarding the trade fair PaintIndia. The show covers all aspects of the coatings industry, connecting manufacturers and distributors of raw materials with their customers. We and our long-term partners of the German publishing house Vincentz Network acquired shares of PaintIndia from the Indian publishing house Colour Publications. With the newly founded joint venture Exponova Exhibitions and Conferences (India), we strengthened our partnership and invested in the growing Indian market. Since the colour and coatings industry in India is growing twice as fast as the GDP, we see great potential in the upcoming years.
What new developments are taking place at the venue?
Dr Fleck: We have inaugurated our new exhibition hall 3A, which increases our total display area by 9,000sqm to more than 170,000sqm. It’s an impressive construction by the renowned architectural office of London-based Zaha Hadid Architects. They certainly managed to create a hall with a wow effect – it has glazed facades down to ground level on two sides. There aren’t very many exhibition halls that are lit by daylight! The hall has already attracted eight shows in its first year 2014. The premiere was held by Spielwarenmesse in January, the largest trade fair at our venue and the leading international toy fair.
While large-scale global events are where the bulk of profit is being made, in which other events/business divisions are you looking to expand?
Ottmann: Our key strategy is to develop events for specialists created by specialists. We do this by combining professional expertise with tailor-made exhibition concepts. This means, for example, that we ‘export’ successful concepts from one country to another, adapting it to the local conditions, the exhibitors’ needs and the market situation.
Dr Fleck: To give you an example: In 2014, Messe Nuremberg Brasil will launch a new event called It-sa Brasil, a conference for IT security. Its idea – and name – is taken from the very successful IT-security trade fair It-sa in Nuremberg, and we adapted it to the requirements in Brazil.
Ottmann: Of course being a trade show company means so much more than letting empty space. We aim to provide all-round service for our exhibitors and visitors. Our ‘carefree package’ for trade show participation has grown a lot over the past years and will grow further. It comprises anything from only hotel booking and technical equipment to marketing support and even the construction of exhibition stands. Our subsidiary Holtmann Messe + Event offers fantastic solutions – the range includes anything from cost-effective system stands to high-end customized exhibition stands for worldwide events. They built, for example, the German pavilion for the World Expo 2012 in South Korea, or the Code_n pavilion that filled an entire hall at Hannover Messe.
Dr Fleck: Guest shows and congresses are another important factor of our business. Fifty six congresses took place in 2013, some with accompanying trade shows. In 2013, many events were held in Nuremberg for the first time, such as Developer Week or the 2013 International Congress on Visceral Medicine. We receive a lot of positive feedback and there are plenty of event organizers who return time and again.
Speaking of congress business, how important are such events for your company and Nuremberg all in all?
Ottmann: Very. The three convention centres in total registered 287 active days in 2013 – this is an outstanding figure for an odd year, which is usually the weaker year. Together with our guest events, Nuremberg Convention Center accounts for nearly a third of our annual turnover and therefore it is an important pillar of our business. Our idea of Nuremberg as a congress destination is to offer a perfect venue including service, convenient access and a leisure atmosphere for a supporting programme to business events. We co-operate with the Nuremberg Convention and Tourist Office. Together we are very successful in positioning the city as an attractive place to hold business events nationally and internationally.
What are your wishes for the 40th anniversary of Messe Nuremberg?
Dr Fleck: We already know that 2014 will be an outstanding year. Not just because we expect a very successful financial year. We will also be celebrating the company’s 40th anniversary, which makes us still one of the youngest trade fair companies among the big ones in Germany. Nevertheless, my wish is that we stick to our principles and that we continue to steer our company to a successful future with a healthy, growing national and international portfolio.
Ottmann: It’s not just Messe Nuremberg that celebrates a jubilee this year, two strong international shows do so, too: Spielwarenmesse, a guest event in Nuremberg since the word go, turns 65 and Biofach turns 25. The history of these exhibitions is an excellent example of how we owe a fair share of our success to powerful partners and strong and valued customers. This is the most important gift for Messe Nuremberg my birthday wish – to continue our good cooperation and mutual trust with all our partners.
This was first published in issue 2/4 of EW. Any comments? Email Annie Byrne
