Established in 1978 in Hong Kong, the Adsale Group is an international trade media group in the Asia-Pacific region. Members of the Group include Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd - the pioneer and leading international trade fair organizer in China, Adsale Publishing Limited – publisher of international trade journals and Adsale Online – a multimedia providing virtual exhibitions, e-publications and e-marketing services. Adsale’s branch offices are located at Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Singapore with a total staffing close to 200. Moreover, Adsale has an agency network covering near 30 countries and regions. Adsale’s business covers a wide range of industries, including textile and garment, plastics and rubber, energy and power, telecommunications, printing and packaging, beverage and brewery technology, woodworking and furniture, auto parts and automobile, shoes and shoe technology, lighting, etc. One of its flagship events, CHINAPLAS, is now the world’s No 3 and Asia’s No 1 plastics and rubber trade show. In 2009, Adsale’s exhibitions drew near 6000 exhibitors and over 440,000 trade visitors. With well-established show history and proven track records in its international contents, professional services and quality management, seven exhibitions organized by Adsale or in cooperation with other organizers have been certified as an “UFI Approved Event”, whereas Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd has become a member of UFI from Aug, 2006, thereby, illustrating quality management and commitment to the delivery of premier exhibitions and services to customers. Mr Stanley Chu is the founder and Chairman of the Adsale Group. Mr Chu received an MBA degree at Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1984 after his bachelor degree in Science from University of Hong Kong in 1973. For years, Mr Chu has been dedicated to promoting the exhibition industry. He is currently the First Vice Chairman of International Exhibition Association (UFI) Asia Pacific Chapter, Honorary Life President of Hong Kong Exhibition and Convention Industry Association (HKECIA), Vice Chairman of the Exhibition and Convention Committee of the Guangzhou International Chamber of Commerce, Advisor to the Jiangsu Provincial Government and Nanjing city on exhibition issues, Member of Steering Committee on MICE of HKSAR, Member of Tourism Strategy Group of HKSAR, Advisor of China Expo Forum for International Cooperation
Mr Chu, it is interesting to know you have been a school teacher prior to starting Adsale in 1978 with your four friends. Can you share with us about the incentive that attracted you to this career transition, and helped get success?
Adsale was set up to link with China’s economic boom. When we started in 1978, there were just five young people working in Wan Chai with a 30sqm office. We had no connections, no money – so what could we do? We then see a chance as China had started opening its doors, it was such a big market and people were so scared of it during the Cultural Revolution, so we thought, as a small company, we would do some trade promotion.
The company began selling advertising, representing Financial Times and Wall Street Journal to Chinese advertisers. Advertising sales is a great business for a start-up as you don’t need any capital! By the end of its first year, Adsale had already begun producing a trade magazine, TECHNOVA, helping people promote their technology and products to China. And in 1980 it began developing small trade shows. The whole business picked up very fast, because on the technology and equipment side, people need to see the products in operation, so we have grasped the huge opportunity under China’s reform and opening policy.
So, how do you summarize your Group’s current status as the Trade fair and Event Organizer Company, in particular in textile arena?
Riding on China's three decades of reform and opening-up, Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd, 30-year-old exhibition giant, has taken the lead in bridging China and the world. We are proud that Adsale was the first Hong Kong exhibition company to organize exhibitions in China and to explore the mainland market. Adsale boasts many number one and pioneering efforts in the industry, making its top position hard to surpass.
Adsale owns a series of Textile Events, namely ShanghaiTex, Yiwu H&G and QingdaoTex, to showcase the latest textile machinery and technology, to contribute to the growth and development of China’s textile industry.
ShanghaiTex, a biennial event inaugurated in 1984, is the most historical and professional exhibition of its kind in China with its unique national brand. It provides a distinguished trading and business platform for industry players to source the full range of textile machinery & technology, including spinning, weaving, knitting, hosiery, printing, dying & finishing, non-woven, techtextile, etc. ShanghaiTex reached 100,000sqm exhibition area in 2009.
Yiwu H&G is a specialized exhibition in hosiery, seamless-underwear, knitting and braiding machinery, parts and accessories. It's the first UFI approved event in China of its kind and it's proud to be awarded again as one of the Top Ten Zhejiang Province Exhibitions in 2009. The show is annually held and will come to its 11th edition in this year.
QingdaoTex is rooted in Shandong Province with influences spanning over Northern China. It was founded in 2000 and is an ideal platform for sourcing innovative textile machinery & technology. The show was divided into five theme zones, including Knitting Machinery Zone, Dye & Finishing Machinery Zone, Spinning Machinery Zone, Weaving Machinery & Label Making Machinery Zone, and Printing Machinery Zone.
Are textile and related sectors doing well? What is your assessment on faring of Tradefair industry in tandem with current movements in textile industry?
Textile industry has suffered in the previous year due to global financial crisis, but with the support of China government in past year and the hints of worldwide economic recovery recently, we observe the industry is picking up gradually. According to the figures of China Customs, export of textile products and apparel reached USD70.21 billion in Jan-May 2010, increased by 19.3% comparing with the same period of last year. Among that, the export amount of textile products and apparel reached USD28.56 billion & USD41.65 billion respectively, representing a 29.7% & 13.1% growth respectively than the same period of last year.
Customers join the exhibition for its benefit and the business potential that could be captured at the show. Therefore, we endeavor to attract more buyers via extensive promotions in order to build an effective business platform for the customers. Clients are paying for the value gained! Of course, during economic downturn, we have worked and will work together with the exhibitors to provide more value-added services to them and make their participation more cost effective.
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
