The Düsseldorf trade fair year will start in May and June with six leading international trade fairs: BEAUTY, TOP HAIR, ProWein, EuroCIS, wire and Tube will run without the Covid rules of the past two years, according to the current status. The same applies to the six forthcoming partner and guest events to be held at Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre by late June. Messe Düsseldorf will voluntarily adhere to basic hygiene and infection protection measures to give all parties involved a sense of safety.  

After a break of just under six months life will return to Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre – with a tightly packed trade fair agenda. The Düsseldorf trade fair year kicks off in April with 14 trade fairs as well as numerous partner and guest events staged there through to late 2022. Following the guest event 

BioWest, the organic trade fair for specialist retailers on 10 April, May will see a trade fair marathon commence, starting with the international trade fair duo BEAUTY (6 – 8 May) and TOP HAIR (7 – 8 May). These will be followed by the leading global trade fair for wines and spirits, ProWein (15 – 17 May), the leading retail technology trade fair EuroCIS (31 May – 2 June) as well as the international trade fairs for wire, cable and tubes, wire & Tube (20 – 24 June). 

The participating companies at wire and Tube will benefit from the synergies and the complementary ranges exhibited at the concurrently held METAV, the international exhibition for metalworking technologies, organised by VDW (German Machine Tool Builders’ Association; German: “Verein Deutscher Werkzeugmaschinenfabriken”) from 21 to 24 June. METAV and BioWest are two of six partner and guest events also to be held at Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre through to late June. Add to this the international trade fair for wedding, bridal and event fashion, INTERBRIDE (22 – 24 May), the funeral trade fair BEFA Forum (26 – 28 May), the networking event for fleet management, “Flotte! Der Branchentreff” (1 – 2 June) and the congress trade fair PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION (22 – 23 June).

Welcoming the start of the trade fair year in the state capital, Hendrik Wüst, Prime Minister of the state North Rhine-Westphalia, said: “Messe Düsseldorf has been a showcase for North Rhine-Westphalia’s economic excellence and innovative power for years. Now it can finally give proof of its outstanding reputation as an organiser of leading international trade fairs again. I am sure Messe Düsseldorf will also bring its full strengths to bear and even further expand in future – in particular for the benefit of our state capital and our state. This is my wish for the city and all those benefiting from its success.”

A smooth trade fair kick-off is ensured by the legal framework that largely corresponds to pre-pandemic conditions. As it stands now, the trade fairs can take place without the Covid restrictions applied over the past two pandemic years. This means the access restrictions (vaccinated, recovered, tested), for example, social distancing rules as well as strict specifications for stand construction no longer apply. Such measures can, however, be applied again if the state of North Rhine-Westphalia detects a localised threat of increasing infection. 

Dr. Stephan Keller, Lord Mayor of the state capital Düsseldorf and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Messe Düsseldorf, stresses how important it is for all parties concerned to return to the accustomed trade fair operations: “The pandemic years have flagged up both the advantages and the limits of digital communication to us. The business community was shown once again how valuable personal networking, chance encounters and physical brand and product experiences are. However, in order to bring people together free of limitations, the circumstances must be right. Only in this way can trade fairs unleash their full power and reach – for the participating industries and for the companies in and around Düsseldorf that benefit from these events.”

To continue providing all participants with a sense of safety, Messe Düsseldorf will voluntarily adhere to hygiene and infection protection measures. The company continues to recommend wearing medical masks on its site and keeping a distance of 1.5 meters from other people. In addition, it provides disinfectant dispensers and cleans frequently used contact surfaces several times a day. Distance markings in waiting areas ensure that crowds of people are kept apart, for example in front of information desks and checkouts. Doors, provided they are not fire doors, are opened so that they can be passed through without being touched. Transparent partitions at service and information counters also remain in place.

Wolfram N. Diener, President & CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, stresses that easygoing trade fair activities should be in focus: “After a long pandemic period, the spotlight is now on new beginnings. We again create presentation and networking platforms in the proven form to enable successful business. Our additional hygiene measures offer a high degree of protection for this and ensure a sense of safety. Our high-performance air filters and ventilation systems, the spacious premises and generously dimensioned halls additionally reduce the infection risk to a minimum.”

Measuring 613,000 sqm, Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre with 18 halls, up to 25,000 sqm big and 26 metres high, offer sufficient space for everyone. “The surface area is many times bigger than at a concert hall or football stadium, for example,” says Diener. A fully automatic system with 60,000 measuring monitors as well as high-performance particle filters, so-called HEPA air filters, makes for optimum air quality; per hour 10 million cubic metres of fresh outside air are introduced into the exhibition halls.  

Another aspect for successful trade fairs: the German Government no longer categorises any countries as Covid high-risk regions which means that quarantine and registration obligations no longer apply either. So all participants in trade fairs are no longer subject to Covid-related entry restrictions for Germany. Entry to Germany is subject to a negative test result, proof of vaccination or recovery. Important to note in this context is that the vaccine used here needs to be one recognised in Germany. Citizens from countries requiring a visa who travel to Germany to attend or exhibit at a trade fair continue to require a business visa and here proof of trade fair participation must be provided. 

Erhard Wienkamp, Managing Director Operative Trade Fair Business at Messe Düsseldorf, underscores the positive response to the coming trade fairs: “Exhibitors can hardly wait to finally meet their international customers and partners again. Our trade fairs enjoy enormous approval ratings – also against the backdrop of relaxed Covid provisions. Thanks to the eased entry conditions we are also expecting a high visitor attendance.” 

Internationality is the hallmark of Messe Düsseldorf’s No. 1 events: with 73% international exhibiting companies attending last year the events already reached the pre-Covid levels posted in 2019. At 33% the internationality of visitors again approached the pre-pandemic level of 37%. Erhard Wienkamp adds: “This positive growth and the well-filled trade fair calendar make us very confident for the 2022 trade fair year.”

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