Difficult situation on the market inevitably affected exhibitions, since exhibition business is tightly related with other business fields and gives a direct reflection of their trends, ups and downs. Nevertheless, the largest exhibition and congress centre in the Baltic States LITEXPO managed to finish the year without any losses and to organise all planned exhibitions. It must be confessed that some of them were much smaller, others changed their concepts, added new urgent themes.

 “Having assessed the results of the year we observe approximately 25% decline in the exhibition business. We have noticed that the number of exhibitors was less affected than the exhibition area, since the exhibitors willing to participate in the exhibitions saved at the expense of the exhibition stands and areas. Biggest pessimism could be felt coming from the business fields that suffered from the most severe recession, such as car, construction, furniture businesses. Business-oriented exhibitions also faced difficulties – industry and environmental protection exhibition BaltTechnika, urban development, investment projects and real estate exhibition City. Real Estate significantly decreased in their scale, while furniture production materials, technologies and components exhibitions BMTf, BMTtech organised by the colleagues were not held at all. Less affected by the recession was medical exhibition BaltMedica, while least affected exhibitions were the very first exhibitions of the year - Vilnius Book Fair, Self-Education. Studies. Career, Cinderella and the exhibitions held in the end of the year – Baby Land and Household”, said Director of the Lithuanian Exhibition Centre LITEXPO Aloyzas Tarvydas. 

Vilnius Book Fair celebrating its 10^th anniversary and held also as the Baltic Book Fair managed to sustain its all best traditions. Same as every year, exhibition stands of our main publishing houses, foreign collective and individual expositions, rich and extensive programme of as many as 200 cultural events awaited the visitors. The book fair could boast the big number of visitors – 55600. Neither exhibition of the last year received more visitors.

The same successful and the same big was the second exhibition of the year Self-Education. Studies Career. Beauty industry exhibition Cinderella managed to sustain its scale and popularity and as many as five championships for professionals were held at it. The same big, high quality and full of innovations was the Baby Land exhibition, with the Household exhibition highlighting the old craft traditions only slightly behind it. While the exhibitions Furniture and RESTA did not manage to maintain their previous volumes. Nevertheless, the construction and renovation exhibition RESTA has remained the leader of the Lithuanian and Baltic exhibitions – it holds the leading position by the number of exhibitors and exhibition area, but by the number of visitors it was left behind by Vilnius Book Fair.

Because of the immense decrease in the car market, it was decided not to organise the international exhibition BALTMOTORSHOW this year. Instead of it, LITEXPO organised a smaller, but high quality and conceptual car and leisure transport exhibition ALT, which presented the urgent environmental issue in a very resourceful way. The focus of the exhibition was an exposition of environmentally-friendly cars called Green Line, which introduced the greatest innovations in this field in Lithuania and enjoyed immense attention from the audience.

Though the economic recession affected the business-oriented exhibitions BaltTechnika, City. Real Estate, slightly less – BaltMedica, but these traditions were full of new ideas, relevant international events, opportunities for establishing business contacts.

 “Notwithstanding complicated situation on the market, this year’s results show that the exhibitions are still among the most dynamic and effective marketing tools providing unique opportunities of personal “face-to-face” contacts and interactive presentation of new products and services.    But exhibitions are more than just a sale-purchase venue, they also represent a source of information and communication promoting development of business relations, news dissemination, and at the same time new export and investment possibilities. Companies understand that very well, therefore many of them emphasised that they participated in the exhibitions because they consider them as an opportunity to invigorate their business activities slowed down by the recession and hoping to find new business relations and ideas”, stated the Head of LITEXPO.   

In 2009, 23 international exhibitions were held at the exhibition centre LITEXPO, in which 2300 companies, including 497 foreign companies, took part. The total exhibition area occupied was 130.093 sq.m. The exhibitions and events received 341.012 visitors. 456 various events: conferences, seminars, presentations, etc. were organised during the exhibitions. Last year, LITEXPO organised 2 Lithuanian expositions in foreign countries: international transport and logistics exhibition TransRussia 2009 (Moscow, Russia) on 21-24 of April, and international transport and logistics exhibition Transport. Logistics 2009 (Munich, Germany) on 12-15 of May.

The company plans to finish the year without any losses and with the incomes of LTL 10.7 million, expenses – LTL 10.6 million. In 2009, LITEXPO assigned LTL 8 million together with the support from the EU Structural Funds.

LITEXPO press centre

Phone (8 5) 2686821

E-mail: r.keliuotyte@litexpo.lt