In the ten year's since ISPO first opened the doors to sports business connection in Asia, with the first trade show of its kind, the market has evolved at an exceptional pace. Matching this energy, rather than keeping pace, has meant that ISPO now stands at the forefront of sports initiatives in the Asia-Pacific region.
Klaus Dittrich, Chairman and CEO Messe München GmbH, said: ‘In terms of ISPO BEIJING, this week has proven that a successful B2B platform has to be as commercially aware and forward thinking as the modern consumer. Like Beijing itself, ISPO BEIJING has evolved and created an outstanding sporting legacy, one which perfectly reflects the fusion of eastern and western talents as well as classical tradition and ultra modern creativity.’
ISPO BEIJING opened its doors to more visitors than ever recorded before: close to 30.000 industry professionals came to Beijing, a growth of eight percent compared to last year. From day one at ISPO BEIJING 2014, it was clear that there was an increased presence, as more and more sports business professionals have become attuned to the power that ISPO can bring in terms of market awareness. Not only in buying terms, but for trend spotting and even staff training through keynote presentations at ISPO ACADEMY for example.
Also, this success is well highlighted by the increase in exhibitor attendance, with 637 brands in outdoor, action sports, ski and sport style from 22 countries taking part. This has included new attendance from premium brands such as Coleman, GoPro, Millet, Odlo, Peak Performance and Primaloft. This is a huge amount of progress for a show which originally opened in Shanghai with just 153 brands.
‘Without a doubt the main energy for the success of ISPO BEIJING has been the continuing market dynamics as well as the increasing professionalism of the Chinese sports market. ISPO BEIJING, together with Alpitec China, offers a 360° coverage of the whole sports business. And, therefore it is the ideal platform to get a wide range of information on all the latest product news from apparel and equipment to infrastructure at one time in one place.’ Klaus Dittrich explained further on.
With view to the Olympic backdrop of Beijing, this evolution has enabled both domestic and global brands to achieve equal recognition, particularly in the last three years. ISPO services have further enhanced this such as the department store tour, which guides key retail professionals through brand introductions and the retail tour which has enabled brands to experience the China high street initiatives.