Vinexpo Hong Kong attracts 17,200 visitors

The organisers of last month’s Vinexpo Hong Kong have hailed the event a success, with the trade show attracting 17,200 visitors – a 2.5% increase.

Running from 24-26 May, the latest edition of the event featured 1,300 exhibitors from 33 countries, representing both the wine and spirit sectors.

Managed by Vinexpo, the One to Wine meeting service saw more than 1,300 appointments take place on-stand, while industry experts led 75 Vinexpo Academy events organised to take place alongside the exhibition.

The increased visitor numbers also reflected greater diversity, with delegates now representing 51 countries, up from 25 in 2014.

Mainland China accounted for the largest number of buyers – a signal of recovery in the market, remarks Vinexpo – with numbers up 7.9% on 2014.

Despite a drop in visitors from Hong Kong (due to the imposition of a ‘trade-only’ rule), delegate numbers from Taiwan increased 3%, and Japan grew 1%.

Another notable development was the 21% increase in Australian visitors, and 23% growth in Vietnamese delegates.

“We met very interested importers, very serious and professional,” commented Nicolas Perinetti, export manager of Casarena Winery, based in Argentina.

Euan McKay, import manager of Fine Wine Merchant, added: “Vinexpo Hong Kong is a fabulous exhibition, very well organised. My expectations were well surpassed. Both the One to Wine meetings and the unexpected encounters have provided new business opportunities.”

Upcoming Vinexpo events include Vinexpo Tokyo (15-16 November 2016) and Vinexpo Bordeaux (18-21 June 2017).