The "who's who" of the international sector meets in Cologne

More than 21,000 trade visitors from 106 countries 940 suppliers from 41 countries Once again, many international exhibitors (80 per cent) and visitors (72 per cent)

Published: 20 September, 2011

Kind + Jugend 2011 in Cologne, which ended on Sunday, 18th September, set new records in terms of figures for exhibitors and visitors. For the first time, more than 21,000 trade visitors from 106 countries took advantage of this international business platform in Cologne to gain a comprehensive overview of the trends and new products from the global children's outfitting sector. The number of exhibiting companies was also higher than ever before: a total of 940 suppliers from 41 countries presented their product ranges (2010: 815 from 40 countries). "Thanks to growth of more than 15 percent, we've been able to write a new chapter in the success story of the world's largest trade fair for children's outfitting," said Gerald Böse, CEO of Koelnmesse GmbH, in his assessment of the fair. "A total of 72 per cent of the visitors came from abroad, and the corresponding figure for exhibitors was 80 per cent. These are not figures you see every day in the trade fair business. They impressively demonstrate the global leadership of Kind + Jugend," added Markus Oster, Vice President at Koelnmesse GmbH.

"We couldn't find a comparable number of exhibitors anywhere else. Cologne is the only place where you can get a comprehensive overview of the entire range of available products," said Wilhelm Weischer, General Manager of BabyOne Franchise- und Systemzentrale GmbH, during his visit to Kind + Jugend. "In addition, there's always a great atmosphere at the fair. On the one hand it's very personal, and on the other it's also very businesslike. That's what we love about Cologne," Weischer concluded. "Kind + Jugend is the trade fair for buying and selling children's outfitting products," said Robert Anslow, Managing Director of the Baby Product Association (BPA) from the UK. "It offers the trade and the industry opportunities that you won't find anywhere else in the world." The participation of Baby & Family from the ek/servicegroup, which is the largest German trade association, was a huge success from the very start.

The mood at Kind + Jugend was upbeat as a result of the high visitor turnout and the excellent attendance at the stands in all segments. Many exhibitors also expressed great satisfaction with the large number of visitors from outside Germany and the high level of visitor quality. This assessment was also confirmed by a visitor survey, which showed that 90 per cent of the respondents are involved with procurement decisions at their companies and 48 per cent of them are key decision-makers. A total of 87 per cent of the visitors said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their success in achieving their goals at the fair. There were significant increases in the number of visitors from Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Japan and Korea, as well as a number of other countries.

A sure sign of the significance of Kind + Jugend as an international meeting point for the sector was the renewed increase in the number of participants representing important international associations such as the Baby Product Association (BPA) from the UK, the Spanish Association for Childhood Products (ASEPRI) and Children’s Fashion Europe (CFE). In addition, the trade fair days in Cologne were used to publicize a new European industrial association, the European Nursery Products Confederation (ENPC) led by its founding president Jean Claude Jacomin.

In addition to the numerous new products for the world market and enhancements of existing product lines that celebrated their premieres at Kind + Jugend, visitors were particularly enthusiastic about the Kids Fashion Show. "The atmosphere was unequalled. I've never before seen fashion labels of such high quality participating together in a show," said the owner of a Düsseldorf children's boutique. For the first time ever, Armani Junior, HUGO BOSS, Junior Gaultier, Simonetta, Paul Smith Junior and Lacoste were brought together on the catwalk by Koelnmesse and the fashion and lifestyle magazine Luna. In the show, 30 child models displayed the six high-end fashion labels and their trends for the spring/summer 2012 season. Another highlight in the fair’s supporting programme was the presentation of the Kind + Jugend Innovation Awards for the best new products in the sector.

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