Despite challenging conditions, Interzoo organizer WZF (Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft Zoologischer Fachbetriebe GmbH) successfully held the world’s biggest pet industry trade fair in Nuremberg in May 2022. 27,861 trade visitors from 129 countries came to learn about the latest pet food and pet care products, pet accessories, and pet services. The 1,328 exhibitors came from 59 countries. The next Interzoo will be held in Nuremberg from Tuesday, May 7th to Friday, May 10th 2024. The fair is traditionally held in May every two years.
The trade fair attracted 22,807 trade visitors from Europe.Most of the international visitors came from Italy (1,653 admittances), followed by Spain (1,174), the Netherlands (1,089), and Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1,060). 966 trade visitors came from France, and 958 came from Poland. Germany was represented with 7,698 attendees.
1,571 visitors came from southeast-central Asia and 1,218 from the Near East and Middle East. 1,014 trade visitors came from South America and Central America and 505 from North America. Africa was represented with 491 attendees and Australia and Oceania with 255.
“It was plain to see that the international pet industry made the most of the long-awaited industry platform Interzoo to present its latest products and services to the trade community and establish new sales partnerships. The positive atmosphere and the still extremely high percentage of international visitors (72.5 percent) confirmed Interzoo’s status as the world’s leading trade fair”, said Norbert Holthenrich, President of Interzoo’s honorary sponsor, the German Pet Trade & Industry Association.
Gordon Bonnet, Managing Director of Interzoo organizer WZF (Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft Zoologischer Fachbetriebe GmbH), was also pleased with the results: “Our expectations were far exceeded, as were those of the exhibitors and visitors. Some countries were unable to attend due to the coronavirus pandemic or the war in Ukraine. In our mind, the fact that so many industry players made a firm commitment to attend is a strong vote of confidence in Interzoo and its organizer WZF”, Bonnet said.
According to the press release issued by WZF, more than 90 percent of survey respondents planned to return to the next Interzoo.The results of the survey of exhibitors also showed that out of nine out of ten exhibitors, Interzoo is important or extremely important for their overall marketing and sales activities. 95 percent were satisfied or very satisfied with the overall success of the event (2018: 88 percent). More than 94 percent of exhibitors achieved their specific trade fair objectives (2018: 87 percent).
In addition, 96 percent of exhibitors were pleased with the quality of trade visitors at their stands. And 97 percent of exhibitors reached the most important target groups for their products or services. 96 percent made completely new business contacts, and nine out of ten exhibitors believe that the trade fair will result in new business.
The high percentage of visitors who are decision-makers is an important feature of Interzoo: 93 percent of the trade fair’s visitors participate in their companies’ procurement decisions. Compared with the previous years, more trade visitors from larger companies with more employees visited Interzoo 2022. And the percentage of online sellers (15.2 percent) was also much higher (2018: 8.8 percent). The biggest trade visitor groups were independent entrepreneurs (38 percent), managing directors (14 percent), division managers and branch managers (15 percent), department managers (16 percent), and other specialised employees.
A big stage for innovations and start-ups
Many innovations and special product highlights were on display at the exhibitors’ stands and in the Product Showcase. In fact, 88 percent of trade visitors had special praise for the many innovations and trailblazing trends presented at Interzoo.
An especially large number of young companies participated in this year’s Interzoo: More than 50 start-ups drew attention at the Sponsored Pavilion and the international Start-up Area in Hall 11. The “Fresh Ideas Stage” offered for the first time at Interzoo 2022 gave an added boost to many market entrants: “On this stage, about 20 entrepreneurs pitched their ideas to a large audience or showcased their innovations in the Fresh Ideas Contest, with the goal of acquiring sales partners or their first customers.
Large numbers of visitors also attended the accompanying programme of presentations to learn more about market opportunities and trends. On May 23rd, one day before the start of the trade fair, 250 trade visitors from 30 countries attended Petfood Forum Europe, organized by WATT Global Media in collaboration with Interzoo. On the following days, more than 120 industry players participated in the Interzoo Sustainability Session and more than 60 people picked up marketing tips in the Petfluencer Session. And the five Country Sessions attracted many retailers and manufacturers interested in international markets and new opportunities.
The right mix of real and digital
“After the recent period with no in-person trade fairs due to the pandemic, face-to-face conversations between industry players were of paramount interest at Interzoo 2022. The same goes for the conversations held at the trade fair stands, the discussions in the trade forums, and the networking opportunities at the Interzoo Party in the Park”, Dr. Arzt said, adding, “With the new Interzoo app and the digital offering from Interzoo Academy, we supported in-person trade fair participation as much as possible and made organizational allowances to ensure the best possible fair experience. Most of the presentations are available online in the Interzoo app or Interzoo Academy. And the contacts that people made here can now be easily followed up using digital media.”
