Earlier this month, ProWein director Peter Schmitz was in London to talk about the alcohol industry’s stalwart trade show.
Global Drinks Intel: Pitch away!
Peter Schmitz, ProWein director: So, ProWein is the biggest and most international trade fair for the wine and spirits industry. Next year is the 30th anniversary of the show – we began in 1994 with around 300 exhibitors in one hall. Today, we’re talking about 5,700 exhibitors in 13 halls with around 71,000 square metres.
You can see the entire wine and spirits world in just three days, so if you’re visiting, make sure you prepare well!
GDI: How satisfied are you that the post-pandemic ‘revenge celebration’ mood will continue from this year’s event into next year’s?
PS: We have to talk about the visitors – ProWein is at its maximum for exhibitors. Before Covid, we had around 65,000 visitors. This year, we had around 50,000. My view is that this trend is the same in every industry.
GDI: The area given over to spirits producers and brand owners has always been much smaller than for the wine industry.
PS: You’re right – spirits has played a second role in the past, but it’s increasing. On the other side, the wine industry is decreasing. We’ve changed the layout for 2024 and given one hall over completely to spirits. There will be around 300 exhibitors filling 4,800 square metres. We’ll also have a smaller hall for spirits that showcases mixology and the bar scene.
GDI: Do you work on attracting international spirits brands to ProWein?
PS: I’m not sure that ProWein is the right platform for these big brands. They usually run events that are more focused on themselves.
GDI: Has the economic climate impacted your relationships with past exhibitors?
PS: This is a challenge. With younger people not consuming as much wine, the market is decreasing. We have to focus on the quality of the visitors and get the key players worldwide to come to Dusseldorf. For us, the main factor is the quality of the visitors more than the quantity.
For a long time, the tagline for the show was about another great year. There are so many problems in the industry that we’re not convinced that next year will be a great year for producers. It’s become very important for our exhibitors to look for new business opportunities, such as no- & low-alcohol, organic wine and fungus-resistant grape varieties.
GDI: One of the first questions asked by producers in tough times is whether they should exhibit at trade shows.
PS: For sure, especially from smaller wineries under the umbrellas of national organisations. They have to think about whether it makes sense to spend money to participate in trade fairs at all – not just ProWein. The markets for these smaller companies are usually only around 100km away.
On the other side, they’re trying to make the best of their show presence.
GDI: What advice would you give to first-time exhibitors for a successful event?
PS: It’s all in the preparation in the run-up to the show. You have to do your own marketing before the show and don’t wait on the show organisers or your trade association.
And don’t just wait for visitors – use our matchmaking tool. It’s a bit like Tinder for the exhibitor and the visitor that focuses on your needs!
GDI: You’ve organised industry trade shows for around 30 years but only recently started with ProWein. What’s your impression of our industry?
PS: It’s quite an emotional industry. Even though ProWein is our biggest exhibition in terms of exhibitor numbers, it still feels like a small family. I’m just back from one of our other ProWein events in Shanghai, where I met the same people that I meet in Dusseldorf, Mumbai, Tokyo.
