RIMINI, Italy – Two of Europe’s largest trade show organizers, the Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), based in Rimini, Italy, and Deutsche Messe, based in Hannover, Germany, signed a memorandum of understanding that foresees IEG’s 50% acquisition of Deutsche Messe’s North American companies.
“With this new and wide-ranging agreement, Deutsche Messe and IEG will add new elements of substantial sharing, making way for a stable and total collaboration that will bring together organizations and expertise and enhance the value of the activities carried out in the countries,” Corrado Peraboni, CEO of IEG, said.
Deutsche Messe, which has more than 100 trade shows around the world, organizes eight shows in Mexico, two of which — Mexico Active & Sports for the fitness sector and Ecomondo Mexico for the green technologies sector – are already in partnership with IEG. The two companies had also signed an initial business agreement in March 2021 to organize a series of events in Mexico.
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“The complementary nature of the portfolios of the two companies is the best prerequisite for the agreement to turn out to be a win-win,” Peraboni, who was also President of UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, in 2018, said. “IEG in particular will add the trade show branch to its activity in the U.S., which so far has focused on exhibition set-ups through the specialized company, FB International.”
The remaining six Mexican trade shows in Deutsche Messe’s portfolio includes MEM Industrial, a show which focuses on technology, processing and accessories in the furniture industry, and is scheduled to take place in Mexico City in March 2023. In addition, Agrotech Mexico, the leading agroindustrial trade show in Mexico and Latin America and World Seafood Industry focus respectively on technological innovation in the agricultural and aquaculture sectors, and next year will take place simultaneously in April in Guadalajara.
Solar Power Mexico, a leading trade show a leader in the field of solar energy, took place July 12-14 in Leon, alongside Ecomondo Mexico, the green technology expo. Festival del Adulto Mayor focuses on wellness for people over 50, and is slated for Leon this Aug. 4-6, while Industrial Transformation Mexico will take place Oct. 5-7, 2022 in Leon.
“We are very much looking forward to intensifying our cooperation with IEG as a competent, growth-oriented partner that manages a trade fair portfolio that ideally complements Deutsche Messe AG’s events in the Americas,” Dr. Jochen Köckler, Chairman of the Board of Management of Deutsche Messe AG, said. “Building on our very fruitful and positive initial experiences of working together in Mexico, we are now taking the next logical step and are aiming to further scale our success story”.
In Toronto, Deutsche Messe presides over the renewable energy sector with the ETC Electricity Transformation Canada show, to be held Oct. 26-28, 2022. The company has also taken Hannover Messe, a trade event focusing on industrial transformation, to the U.S. for the upcoming Hannover Messe USA, to be held this Sept. 12-17 in Chicago.
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In addition to the planned acquisition of Deutsche Messe, IEG has been active in partnership deals worldwide.
“IEG proceeds on an increasingly global scale, in order to serve and cover the industries it represents at its events,” Peraboni said. “Visitor flow has changed, so expos have to move: It is a phenomenon we call event continentalization. This year alone, in February, with Informa, we launched JGT Dubai in the gold and jewelry sector, which added an important step to our leadership in the Gulf. Just a short time ago, we held Ecomondo Mexico in Léon, in partnership with Deutsche Messe, to position the Italian green economy and renewable energy chains on the North American market.”
Peraboni also said in spring 2023, IEG in partnership with Koelnmesse, will take SIGEP, The Dolce World Expo, to Shenzhen, China.
Reach Corrado Peraboni at info@iegexpo.it
