Texworld and Apparel Sourcing sees slight decrease in attendance

By

Matthieu Guinebault

Translated by
Jennifer Braun

Published
Sep 29, 2018

The latest edition of the Paris trade show organised by Messe Frankfurt, held at Le Bourget, September 17 to the 20, attracted 15 075 visitors. A decline of 2.6% compared to the record September 2017 edition, which organisers explained was due to, in particular, weather and visa problems, as well as an unfavourable exchange rate for some buyers.

For this edition, marked by the new arrival of Leatherworld, 80% of visitors came from abroad. The main countries represented were France (+ 11%) and the United Kingdom, followed by Spain and Italy (+ 5%), who was this time ahead of Turkey among the top 5 nations. Messe Frankfurt also noted the enthusiasm of the Russian (+ 7%) and Swiss (+ 16%) delegations, as well as Eastern Europe and Scandinavia. 
 
Among the Asian countries, which accounts for a large part of the offer of the various shows, India had the highest growth in terms of visitors (+ 17%), ahead of South Korea (+ 15%) and Lebanon (+14%), while organisers saw mixed results for China, Hong Kong, Pakistan and Indonesia. On the other side of the Atlantic, while the United States had a stable presence, notable growth was recorded in Canada (+ 7%), Argentina (+ 8%) and Colombia (+ 5%).

Meanwhile, the still important presence from Brazil was down by 24%. Africa for its part was represented by a strong Tunisian presence (+ 11%) and Mauritian (+ 8%). In the antipodes, Australia increased its presence by 2%.

"For our visitors, two facts marked me,” summarised Mickael Scherpe, president of Messe Frankfurt France.

“There are no major mainland regions that dominate, but there are successes distinguished by nationality, and despite the tense situation of the clothing industry, visitors were present to do business at our trade show. I’m happy to see a constant and significant French increase."
 
The next Apparel Sourcing Paris organised by Messe Frankfurt will be held February 11 to the 14. Meanwhile, before then, the German organiser will hold its Intertextile trade show from September 27 to 29 in Shanghai, in parallel with the Chinese clothing event Chic.