MESSE DÜSSELDORF RECORDS HIGH PROFITS

Economic strength as a basis for new business in Germany and abroad

Digitalization, modernization and sustainability key agenda topics

 

Messe Düsseldorf is the only one of the major German trade fair companies that navigated through the pandemic without the financial support of its shareholders. Now it can recover from the pandemic-related losses of previous years. For 2022, Messe Düsseldorf Group has posted an after-tax profit of €60.5 million. Necessary investments that were postponed due to the pandemic are now possible again: Messe Düsseldorf is pushing ahead with its new business in Germany and abroad, digital transformation, and site modernization. Sustainability also ranks high on its agenda.

 

   Messe Düsseldorf can look back on a successful trade fair year with 63 events worldwide – including 14 trade fairs and eleven guest events in Düsseldorf alone. This is demonstrated by the final business figures for 2022: At €310.9 million, Messe Düsseldorf Group has posted a strong increase in revenue compared to the previous year (€108.7 million). The same applies to after-tax profits of €60.5 million (previous year: €-22.4 million). The revenue of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH amounts to €294.9 million (previous year: €96.1 million) and its after-tax profit amounts to  €71.6 million (previous year: €-22.3 million). Non-operating special effects amounting to around 20 million euros had a positive impact on the GmbH profit.

 

   Dr. Stephan Keller, Mayor of the state capital Düsseldorf and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Messe Düsseldorf, is delighted with the results: “Messe Düsseldorf heralded a strong comeback in 2022. Such high profits achieved in a year when the first months were still hit by pandemic-induced restrictions, testify to the success of MD’s business model, the strength of Düsseldorf’s No. 1 trade fairs, the impact of its corporate strategy and Düsseldorf’s appeal as a trade fair location. The economic engine Messe Düsseldorf is running again, bringing prosperity to Düsseldorf and the region.”

 

“The financial results speak for themselves”

   Wolfram N. Diener, President & CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, sees Messe Düsseldorf on the right track: “The financial results speak for themselves: We have taken the necessary measures during the pandemic. In combination with our traditionally solid financial grounding we were the only major German trade company to navigate through the pandemic without financial support.”

 

   The number of events of Messe Düsseldorf Group will continue to rise in 2023 – with 17 trade fairs and nine guest events in Düsseldorf and 43 events abroad. Erhard Wienkamp, Managing Director Operational Trade Fair Business, welcomes this development: “The relevance of trade fairs continues unabated. China is also back – even stronger than before the beginning of the pandemic.” China will host eleven trade fairs in 2023; last year there were two events.  As recently as April, the CIOSH trade show for occupational safety and health in Shanghai and the CHINAPLAS trade show for plastics in Shenzhen were held on a larger scale than before the pandemic. CIOSH, for example, attracted 47,616 visitors - 32.6% more than in 2021 and 90.4% more than in 2019.

 

Necessary investments

   The forecast for the current fiscal year anticipates an even higher turnover for Messe Düsseldorf GmbH at €356.6 million. However, after-tax profits of €37.9 million will be lower than in 2022 due to lower non-recurring impacts and the ongoing inflationary trends. Bernhard J. Stempfle, Managing Director Finances & Infrastructure, explains: “The current fiscal year will also bring positive figures. After the high-loss pandemic years, we will finally be able to invest in the future of the company: meaning digital transformation to make Messe Düsseldorf agile internally and create attractive offers externally with a view to strengthening the pole position of Düsseldorf’s world-leading trade fairs as community platforms. Add to this the further modernization of our fairgrounds whose size, infrastructure and technical facilities are a guarantee of success for the Düsseldorf trade fair location.”

 

   In 2023, Messe Düsseldorf intends to invest just under €24.3 million into these projects. This is significantly more than in the previous year (€18.4 million). In the following years, this figure will increase significantly and amount to around €40 million annually up to 2027. A large part of this will be spent on the modernization of Hall 9,  which will cost €140 million. Another project is the construction of a modern Food Court. 

 

Strong new business

   Messe Düsseldorf is forging ahead with its new business development. For the trade fair years 2022/23 alone, the Messe Düsseldorf Group posts 16 new events in Düsseldorf and worldwide. In March 2023 for example, Düsseldorf welcomed the world’s largest trade fair organizer informa at its fairgrounds for the first time and organized TISSUE WORLD, the leading trade fair for paper, hygiene and non-woven products. Held concurrently was Germany’s leading trade fair for fleet management, “Flotte! Der Branchentreff”, which Messe Düsseldorf is now tying to the  Düsseldorf location long term as part of a strategic partnership. It thereby extends its portfolio to include another mobility-related trade fair.

 

   The new international events this year include XPONENTIAL in Denver, Colorado (U.S.) in May as well as “Wine & Gourmet Japan – powered by ProWein”, to be held as  ProWine Tokyo starting in 2024. “We are exploring new future themes and attractive markets with high growth potential,” comments Wolfram N. Diener. “This is why with XPONENTIAL, the biggest trade fair acquisition in our history, we entered the promising industry for uncrewed systems and robotics. In 2025 we will bring a satellite event called XPONENTIAL Europe to Düsseldorf – and also expand into other markets beyond. In geographic terms, Messe Düsseldorf focuses on Asia, North Africa as well as North and South America. Add to this increased activities in Turkey.”

 

Sustainable agenda

   Ecological sustainability represents another future topic to which Messe Düsseldorf is dedicated. To promote this topic in the trade fair industry, it presented a completely sustainably designed trade fair stand at EuroShop in February 2023 as well as a customer guide for a sustainable trade fair presence. Since October 2022, Messe Düsseldorf has also been a climate partner of the city of Düsseldorf and is among the first signatories of the Düsseldorf Climate Pact. Wolfram N. Diener emphasizes: “With all our measures – from new business development to digital transformation, from fairground optimization to ecological sustainability – we set Messe Düsseldorf up for the future: for our customers from throughout the world as well as for the trade fair locations Düsseldorf and North Rhine-Westphalia.”

 

   For information on visiting or exhibiting at any of the Messe Düsseldorf trade fairs, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America; Telephone: (312) 781-5180; E-mail: info@mdna.com; Visit www.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/mdnachicago

 

 

Messe Düsseldorf Group

Messe Düsseldorf is among the most successful trade fair companies worldwide. It hosts around 40 trade fairs including 20 global No. 1 trade fairs at its 613,000 square meters exhibition center in Düsseldorf, Germany. In the 18 halls, the international market leaders and top decision-makers of various sectors get together every year in order to present and discover innovations, to exchange and network. The sectors of expertise of Messe Düsseldorf include: “Machinery, Plants and Equipment” (drupa, K, interpack, glasstec, wire and Tube); “Retail, Trades and Services” (EuroShop, EuroCIS, ProWein); “Health and Medical Technology” (MEDICA, COMPAMED, REHACARE); “Lifestyle and Beauty” (BEAUTY, TOP HAIR) as well as “Leisure” (boot, CARAVAN SALON). In addition, numerous conventions, corporate events, conferences and meetings are hosted by its subsidiary Düsseldorf Congress. Abroad, Messe Düsseldorf organizes 65 events and participations. The global network of the group of companies encompasses 76 foreign representatives for 139 countries – including six international subsidiaries.