HANNOVER MESSE, a German trade show that focuses on industrial innovation, technology, and trends, will debut a U.S. version of its popular event in Chicago in 2018. In Germany, the show attracts 5,000 exhibitors and 200,000 attendees to Hannover, many of them coming from outside Germany. Organizers say more than half of the exhibitors and approximately 70,000 of its visitors came from elsewhere, drawn to Hannover by what officials say is a strong foundation at the show for displaying the latest trends and most advanced technologies.
“There is no other trade show brand like it anywhere in the world,” according to Jochen Köckler, Deutsche Messe managing board chairman. “We now want to leverage the power of the HANNOVER MESSE brand to speed up growth in our foreign markets. Therefore, we are premiering HANNOVER MESSE USA co-located with IMTS September 2018 in Chicago.”
Internationalizing its German-grown trade show brands is a strategy Deutsche Messe has long been pursuing, and the company stages around 60 events outside Germany every year. The bulk of these are industrial trade shows, dealing with specific sectors such as industrial robotics, factory automation, energy technology, and industrial supply.
Deutsche Messe has had a presence in the U.S. market for many years and has been running trade shows in Chicago since 2012. Starting in September 2018, it will now cluster these Chicago-based shows under the brand name “HANNOVER MESSE USA”. “As a brand, HANNOVER MESSE has been steadily adding to its acclaim in the U.S. market, in part thanks to the country’s Partner Country showcase in 2016 – a momentous event attended by President Barack Obama,” said Kockler. “By launching HANNOVER MESSE on U.S. soil, we hope to attract even more exhibitors and visitors to Chicago while also generating positive spin-off effects for HANNOVER MESSE at its home base in HannoverGermany.
Officials say the premiere of HANNOVER MESSE USA will be much smaller than the Germany event – it is expected to attract approximately 550 exhibitors and more than 100,000 visitors and will occupy about 130,000 square feet of display space at McCormick Place. That size difference is due to the operational philosophy of the company, Köckler explained. “Our trade shows outside Germany are aimed exclusively at local and regional visitors,” he said. “Our trade shows in Hannover, Germany, on the other hand, will continue to be pitched as the global flagships of their respective target industries, and will thus remain focused on an international clientele.”
