Author: Ron van der Ploeg
COLOGNE, Germany: Oliver Frese, newly appointed CEO of German trade show organiser Koelnmesse GmbH is adamant the spoga+gafa garden and outdoor living trade show will go ahead on its planned date of 6 -8 September 2020.
The announcement came on Wednesday 13 May, at the spoga+gafa trade fair webinar when Frese and the rest of the Koelnmesse management team including vice president trade fair management Catja Kaspary, and director, Stefan Lohrberg explained some of the Sustainable Gardens-themed highlights.
Frese says demand for space on the 250,000m2 show floor is strong with plans for 2,200 exhibitors from 60 countries that will present their new products and services for the 2021 season. He says, “Despite the Coronavirus pandemic, 95 per cent of the planned exhibition is already booked. We aim to open on the planned date.”
Frese thinks that the show’s healthy booking levels prove that despite the trying times, the industry has kept its optimistic spirit alive and that it is ready to return to the new normality. He says, “We feel it is essential to hold on to spoga+gafa as a vital platform of the green industry and will lay down and implement criteria and measures to make this possible.”
This year’s key theme ‘Sustainable Gardens’ will introduce opportunities across all segments of exhibitors at spoga+gafa trade fair. There will sustainable products for the needs of the green industry, and value-added ideas can be developed, for example, in the scope of the sustainable spoga+gafa project garden. Together the trade fair participants can ask questions such as how sustainable the garden has to be and whether the expectations of the market players are coherent with those of their customers.
Special lectures and product shows as well as theme-specific tours of the grounds of the grounds and surrounding areas to exhibitors that offer sustainable products are the focus of the planning. The key theme ‘Sustainable Gardens’ will be presented in similar in-depth manner in collaboration with exhibitors and experts.
The plant trend themes at the point of sale continue as the focus of the POS Green Solution Islands offer inspiration and clear examples of implementation for the campaign surfaces of garden centres and DIY stores. In the process, the theme islands always try to pick up on relevance for the end customer relating to the design of his own four walls or garden. As such, they provide a very direct buying impulse for the customer and above all real added value for the trade visitors of spoga+gafa. This year’s themes of the POS Green Solution Islands are: ‘Gardens Close to Nature – Outdoor living’, with a focus on ‘sustainability’, and ‘Living Close to Nature – Indoor Gardening’ – the garden in the home in times of increasing urbanisation.
All segments of the garden world will be presented in Halls 1 to 10, on the Central and North Boulevard, the Piazza, and the outdoor areas between Halls 6, 7 and 8 in the upcoming September event. The established four segments division of garden unique, garden living, garden creation & care and garden BBQ will remain unchanged.
While keeping an eye on the current situation, the organiser Koelnmesse is preparing for a successful spoga+gafa this autumn. Should this have to be postponed or cancelled due to the coronavirus, Koelnmesse will fully reimburse any payments made by exhibitors and visitors. Payments already made to Koelnmesse will be refunded to exhibitors, who do not wish to or who are not able to take part on a possible revised date. Despite all confidence, Koelnmesse will inform all trade fair participants about possible changes in good time.
The spoga+gafa 2020 is open to trade visitors on 6 and 7 September from 9am to 6pm and on 8 September from 9am to 5pm. For more information, visit www.spogagafa.com
