What innovations are there at the leading international consumer-goods fairs Ambiente, Christmasworld and Creativeworld for 2024? Which brands will be there (again) and what are the highlights of the upcoming events? The two Vice Presidents of Consumer Goods Fairs, Julia Uherek and Philipp Ferger, reveal this live in front of the camera: in the online conversation, they consistently look ahead and give deep insights into the current status quo of the trade fair trio and upcoming highlights.

The signs point to growth – this is emphasised by Julia Uherek and Philipp Ferger, Vice Presidents Consumer Goods Fairs Messe Frankfurt. The consumer goods industry worldwide is facing a variety of challenges, but the global trade fair business is back in full swing, because exchange, orientation, approaches to solutions are more in demand than ever. "The mood on the international trade fair stage is good", says Philipp Ferger. This is also noticeable for the coming events in 2024: "We are growing both qualitatively and quantitatively: in terms of area, we are expanding by three new hall levels. And we are creating more space for our exhibitors' presentations, as we are condensing the space in the halls and additionally placing the supporting programme items in the foyers." For example, the HoReCa Academy is moving from Hall 11 to the foyer of the same hall to generate more exhibition space. The successful hall structure will be retained – but with optimisations that will further simplify the routing for the various target groups of buyers. The growth areas of Ambiente Dining and Working in particular will be expanded – also in the area of Global Sourcing: here the offers in the Table segment (10.2) and Office & Stationery (10.0) will grow. The volume business for Christmas and seasonal decorations will be moving to Hall 6.2. The optimised routes for Christmasworld and the additional proximity to the overlapping product ranges of Ambiente Giving (4.2) will create even more synergies and potential for new contacts.

"The registration level is excellent for all three fairs – we are already overbooked in terms of space" says Ferger. With a high density of Scandinavian exhibitors, the coming Ambiente will be the hub for Scandinavian design. Another focus will be on Japanese design, which visitors will be able to discover in great variety in all product areas at Ambiente. The big players are back at Ambiente Dining: brands such as Rosenthal, Royal Tableware, Seltmann-Weiden and Villeroy & Boch signed up for the coming event. Zwiesel Kristallglas will also have a stand and will present its consumer product line for the first time together with its own HoReCa brand. In Halls 8 and 9, Fackelmann, JJA, Schulte Ufer, Severin and TVS, among others, will be exhibiting again.

At Ambiente Living, Hall 3 will once again shine with major brands such as Blomus, Bloomingville, Broste Copenhagen, Georg Jensen, IB Laursen, Lambert, Present Time, Schlittler and Stelton. Also back: exhibitors Eva Solo, Jan Kurz, New Edition Home B.V., Scholtissek and – this time new – Teppiche Lalee OHG.

With the newly designed paper, office supplies and stationery cosmos, the future field Ambiente Working has recorded numerous registrations from internationally renowned companies: "The paper, office supplies and stationery sector will be back in full force in 2024 – with a much larger range of products and a multiplied brand presence. Ambiente Working is growing in all product segments and linking them in a new way with improved connections to Creativeworld and the Urban Gifts, Stationery & School product range at Ambiente Giving", says Ferger. Office suppliers for commercial office supplies and technology are now anchored in the Festhalle and Forum 0. There, together with the German Office Supplies Industry Association (PBS-Markenindustrie), the ‘Office Heroes’ area will feature companies such as Durable Hunke & Jochheim/Luctra, Jakob Maul, Novus-Dahle, Sigel and the returners Casio Europe, Edding International, and Tesa. The cosmos of its own includes the entire range of the three leading fairs for paper, office supplies and stationery. Strong brands such as Country Living, Hey-Sign, Koenig + Neurath and Vario Büroeinrichtung can be found at Office Design & Solutions on the east side of Hall 3.1 – together with the highlight special presentation Future of Work.

Remanexpo, the platform for remanufactured printer components, brings together European brands and distributors as well as exhibitors from ETIRA (European Toner and Inkjet Remanufacturers' Association) in the Congress Center and Forum 1. Stationery and school supplies are under one roof with gift articles at Urban Gifts, Stationery & School in Hall 4.2, where new brands and returnees such as António Augusto Correira, Caran d'Ache, Erich Krause, Factis, Hugo Boss, Kikkerland, Lund London, Main Paper, Maybach as well as Rössler and Troika are on show.

"Christmasworld shines with positive feedback from exhibitors and has been completely booked out for two months. This once again underlines the strong position of the leading fair for festive and seasonal decorations in the market", emphasises Ferger. In Hall 4.0, well-known companies such as Gnosjö Konstsmide, Michel Taillis Creation, Weihnachtsland and the large illuminators Blachère Illumination and Fotodiastasi will be represented. Wholesalers such as Christmas Inspirations, G. Wurm, Koopman International and TIMSTOR will once again be presenting themselves in Hall 4.1. For the first time, the Saxony Economic Development Corporation (Wirtschaftsförderung Sachsen) will be exhibiting at Christmasworld with a joint stand for the arts and crafts sector of the Erzgebirge. "At Creativeworld, we are delighted to have major suppliers who last exhibited in 2018 or 2019 and are now returning in a concentrated way. We have a strong presence of major international brands in 2024," says the vice president of consumer goods fairs. "The past Creativeworld was very well received by the industry. Word has spread – no one wants to miss the coming fair." Visitors can already look forward to these well-known exhibitors: In the graphic arts and artists' supplies segment, brands such as Golden, Kreul, Marabu, Royal Talens and Schmincke will be back on site. Other well-known brands are Carioca, Clairefontaine, Colart, Faber-Castell, Fabricano, Koh-i-noor and Pebeo. In the Handicrafts & Textile Design segment, Gründl Wolle and Rico Design will be there, and for Graffiti & Street Art, Molotow will return.

A colourful programme awaits visitors on all days of the fair. In addition, there will continue to be five academies with top speakers and valuable industry knowledge for each target group. "For 2024, we are planning a new structure for our supporting programme: We are introducing monothematic theme days to better pick up and serve the streams of visitors we know," explains Julia Uherek. For example, all award ceremonies will take place on Friday, Awards Day. In future, the Saturday of the fair will be Designer Day: five guest designers will create this day and deal with the topic of design from different perspectives. On Sunday, the focus will be on trade. Monday will be proclaimed Hotelier's Day in order to specifically address the needs of hoteliers, restaurateurs, chefs and F&B managers in the growing Hospitality section of Ambiente. "To this end, we are planning an exciting project: Jozef Youssef, the award-winning celebrity chef and creative force behind the design studio Kitchen Theory, will conduct a survey exclusively for Ambiente and share his results live with the industry on this day," reveals the vice president. The popular Creativeworld Academy workshops will remain a special trade fair experience: Here, the creative sector can meet again to test new products and trendy techniques directly on site. Another must-see is the top staging of Christmasworld. The designer duo 2Dezign creates an absolute wow effect with Decoration Unlimited: under the new motto "Mystic Vibes", experts Rudi Tuinman and Pascal Koeleman show how the POS can be staged to attract attention.

Ambiente 2024 will kick off with another highlight: "We can already reveal this much: The designer Elena Salmistraro from Milan is the 'Ambiente Designer 2024'. With 'The Lounge', she designs a special presentation in Galleria 1 that creates a thematic interface between interior design and HoReCa. We are delighted to be joining forces with her to kick off 2024," explains Uherek. This is the starting signal for an ongoing project: every year, Ambiente will now select an up-coming designer with an exclusively designed special presentation. Salmistraro on that: "I am very pleased to be taking part in Ambiente in Frankfurt for the first time and to be designing the exciting project 'The Lounge'. I have chosen a theme that offers an innovative perspective, not through a formally strict approach, but with a light-hearted look at contemporary design and a focus on the pursuit of happiness."

Long term, it is planned to build up a designer community with the numerous designers and young talents at Ambiente. "Ambiente will once again be the meeting place for the international designer scene. Here is the industry, here are the designers – we bring them together", says Uherek. At various events, the community can network with each other and meet future clients. As part of the Digital Academy, the third online event will provide initial insights into the topic of design: on 6 September, three top international female designers and architects will exchange views on the challenges, opportunities and successes of women in architecture and design in the panel discussion "Women Leaders in Design: A Conversation with ByDesign TV".

The meta topics of sustainability, new work and digitalisation run like a recurrent theme through the exhibition halls in 2024. Above all, the topic of sustainability is constantly being promoted: The "Ethical Style" programme of the three fairs identifies exhibitors with ecologically and socially produced products. Companies can apply until 24 November. An independent jury of international experts will review and curate the companies. The label on the stands and in the online exhibitor search specifically brings together supply and demand. "New is that we will present the jury's selection centred on two larger Ethical Style Spots on the grounds. The spots each bundle products from the three fairs and put them in the limelight – also as an impulse for a presentation of goods at the point of sale. “We want to raise awareness of the important, future-oriented topic of sustainability," explains the vice president. In addition, the topic of sustainability is present in various lectures and presentations in the supporting programme of all three events.

In order to promote and firmly anchor the topic of digitalisation at the trade fairs, important market players, manufacturers and retailers will once again present themselves in the Digital Retail by nmedia area. In Galleria 0, they will be available to answer retailers' questions and offer assistance, information and exciting opportunities for various digital services.

Ambiente, Christmasworld and Creativeworld will continue to be held simultaneously at the Frankfurt exhibition centre: