Mumbai, June 11: Global Exhibitions Day was observed on June 6 with fun and fanfare galore in Mumbai as exhibitors and organisers from various sectors of industry came together to celebrate decades of fellowship and happiness in highlighting their events to the world.
Bhupinder Singh, Honorary Secretary, Indian Exhibition Industry Association (IEIA), told mediapersons here that this event highlighted celebrating this industry’s contribution to innumerable industries, and also its multiplier effects on the country’s economy by upto ten times at around Rs 25,000 crores, while also generating employment.
Replying to questions about recognition of the exhibitions as a sector of industry, Singh said the IEIA had been urging the Ministry of Commerce for such identification to be given in view of its challenging and evolving environment that provided every kind of service under the sun in around 800 exhibitions per year. “India has a story to tell and our job is to amplify this story and motivate the industry. The IEIA is the nodal body for organizing these events and currently, the industry economy is driven by this with 50% domination from Tier II cities.”
“ Exhibitions mean business is the message we are driving worldwide and in which global organisers are welcomed. Exhibitions are the nucleus around which industry thrives and are an ongoing process highlighting greater health and safety. There are two levels of exhibitions included; Level One being sized at Rs 4000 crores; and Level Two sized at Rs 25,000 crores,” he said adding that where traffic movement choke-ups during exhibitions was concerned, once the metro was completed, the flow of exhibition traffic would normalize and increase towards 2019-end.
Max Fernandes (Member, IEIA and Director, Operations, UBM India Pvt. Ltd), said that while the exhibitions industry had its own typical nascent issues like other industries too, the Government’s help was badly needed in changing the type of treatment meted out to it.
“We need atleast a three-window scheme – if no single window is available – in meeting our needs since this industry is evolving and lucrative while ensuring diverse job generation,” he said while pointing out “We organized the 2nd largest Renewable Energy Show involving participation of 25 countries and are also constantly thinking ‘out-of-the-box’ to improve ROI. We have been witnessing 9-10% growth over past five years. However our biggest challenges are: growth and space availability of exhibition venues even as we see more improvement in exhibitions over the years.”
Satyendra Mehta, Group Director, of the Exhibitions Management Board, said this Global Exhibitions Day event — titled “A Thriving Industry got you towards a Brighter Future” — highlighted exhibitions as a form of live media that provided a platform for ‘face-to-face’ interaction and networking between buyers and sellers while also being a ‘Global Meeting Place.’
“Around 31,000 major trade fairs are held annually worldwide with US$ 55 billion turnover annually and in which Europe emerges the leader. India, with estimated growth of 74% annually, is the third largest exhibition market in Asia – after China and Japan,” he said, adding “The Indian scenario witnessed a Rs 65,000 crores annual turnover while impacting travel and tourism, infrastructure development and upgradation, employment, business growth in both revenue and size. The exhibitions industry has a two-fold economic impact including: Direct Impact being Rs 40 billion; and Indirect impact at Rs 214 billion.”
Highlighting exhibitions as a career, he said “This is a high energy and tempo career that promotes ‘face-to-face’ skills while embracing digital innovations and providing opportunities for real-time learning about other industries and businesses. It also improved networking and public relation skills while elevating decision-making capabilities. The sky is the limit for your growth and you are the master of your destiny.”
Earlier, the celebrations began with a parade of balloons and followed by dance performances, band music and cake cutting before the crowd took to dancing, dinner and dessert.