ProWine China 2019 Closes with Great Success
ProWine China 2019, the latest edition of the ProWein World series of international trade fairs for wine and spirits, has grown rapidly since its entry into China in 2013 and has grown into a true qualified platform for international exhibitors to establish important business contacts in the Chinese market.
ProWine China 2019 was successfully held on November 12th-14th, 2019 at Shanghai New International Expo Center. Wineries and distilleries from all over the world came to the fair and met with importers, distributors, key buyers, industry experts and domestic producers to explore new business opportunities.
Bastian Mingers, Global Head Wine & Spirits and Director ProWein of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH, said: “ProWine China 2019 saw significant growth in the number of local and international wine producers and suppliers, reflecting upon the country’s continued evolution to become one of the largest markets for wines and spirits globally. With overseas exhibitor participation at 80% hailing from 36 countries and regions, this reinforces the strategic position that the exhibition plays in fulfilling the needs and demands for such a dedicated platform in the Chinese market.”
Ian Roberts, Managing Director of Hospitality, Food and Beverage of Informa Markets, said: « In the 3 days of ProWine China, Shanghai has been the center of an exhibition of unimaginable dimensions. We had visitors came from all over China. Some even came from very distant provinces, such as Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang. »
The scale of the exhibition is unprecedented with more wine producers attending
ProWine China was held alongside the 23rd edition of Food & Hotel China (FHC 2019), which is China’s premier and most comprehensive food and hospitality trade event. Jointly organized by Messe Düsseldorf and Informa Markets, ProWine China 2019 welcomed 820 established wine producers and distributors from 37 (2018: 750 exhibitors) countries and regions with an 10% increase in net exhibition space. With its largest footprint ever at ProWine China, 121 companies from France participated in 2019. In addition to that, exhibitor groups from Italy, Spain, Australia, Germany, USA, Austria, Chile and other countries and regions, ProWine China also attracted international and regional participations including Chianti Classico, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Beaujolais, Catalunya, CRDO TORO as well as DOCa RIOJA. Meanwhile, companies such as Grands Chais de France (France) and COFCO Great Wall from China, Dalmacijavino from Croatia and Duca Di Salaparuta from Italy also participated this year.
“ProWine China invests a lot in bringing the right trade visitors to the fair. We feel this very clearly. The quality of the visitors is growing from year to year and again has reached an excellent level.” stated by Julien Layrisse, International Project Manager of AANA (Agence de l’Alimentation Nouvelle Aquitaine), France.
« We’re at ProWine China for the first time to promote Sake and Shochu from Japan. China is one of the most important markets for us. At ProWine China we not only make a lot of new contacts, but also meet existing customers. Especially our master classes are very well attended. We are very satisfied and are already planning our participation next year. » by Hitoshi Utsunomiya, Director of Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association, Japan.
The number of visitors has reached a new record and the proportion of visitors from other Chinese cities apart from Shanghai has further increased
The three-day event attracted 20,640 professional visitors, which is an increase of 9% from the last edition (2018: 18,936 visitors). Besides local visitors, more trade visitors from Beijing, Guangdong, Xinjiang, Hainan, Shandong, Liaoning and Inner Mongolia came to visit. It shows that ProWine China’s influence in the Chinese market is expanding.
Chang Wei, the founder of Lavie Cellar, said: “I visit ProWine China every year because ProWine China is a very professional exhibition for professional traders. Comparing to last year, there are more international pavilions and more kinds of wine.”
Vibrant co-located activities to continuously support the education of wine and spirits
For 7 years, ProWine China has always been committed to help educate the wine industry to jointly promote the development of the Chinese wine market. During ProWine China 2019, more than 40 professional master classes were held to help attendees to understand the history and tendency of wine and spirits.
The 7 renowned Masters of Wine & Master Sommeliers, Fongyee Walker MW, Edward Ragg MW, Debra Meiburg MW, Sarah Heller MW, Cassidy Dart MW, Robert Geddes MW as well as Lv Yang MS participated in various activities and events during ProWine China 2019. This once again confirms the fact that exhibitors value the importance of wine education!
Prof. Li Demei, associate professor of Beijing University of Agriculture, said: “After many years’ developments of Chinese wine market, a considerable number of consumers has begun to pay attention to wine quality. This is also an inevitable process of market development. It should be said that the wine market is gradually maturing. I find the visitors here are very professional, and most of them are with purchase demanding. This is my deepest impression this year.”
Lv Yang MS, the first Chinese MS, said: “This year’s master classes include such rich contents and many masters attended. The Chinese wine market will constantly improve with patience, time, as well as supports from ProWine China. »
Fu Zixuan, official lecturer of The Wine & Spirit Education Trust, said: “This year I took the opportunity to attend the Burgundy and German wine master classes. What has been beyond my expectations was the high level of the wines and the education. It shows that exhibitors are very confident in Chinese market. Meanwhile, there is more and more interaction and communication.”
The next edition of ProWine China will be held in 2020 from 10th to 12nd November alongside Food & Hotel China 2020 (FHC 2020). For more information, please visit www.prowinechina.com.
The next ProWein in Düsseldorf will take place from 15th to 17th March 2020. For more information about ProWein, please visit www.prowein.com.
The next edition of ProWine Asia will take place from 31st March to 3rd April 2020 in Singapore and 18th to 21st May 2021 in Hong Kong.
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