Poland
Exhibition eagle in full flight
With Poland now officially a ‘developed’ country according to the Russell Index, Ramy Salameh
examines its growing exhibition stake in the Central European fairground
he view from the 30th
floor observation deck of
the ‘Palace of Science &
Culture’, in the heart of
Warsaw, offers a sweeping panorama
and a great sense of the confidence in
Poland’s capital right now. Dramatic
Manhattan-style skyscrapers cluster in
the direction of the airport, with many
more planned.
In 2017 passenger arrivals to Polish
airports were up by 17% over 2016.
This confidence has translated into
performance, with Poland promoted
to the group of developed countries in
the FTSE Russell Index in 2018.
According to the International
Congress and Convention Association
(ICCA) the number of events held in
Warsaw increased 144% between 2007
and 2017. Added to which new major
exhibition and congress facilities have
emerged in recent years.
The Palace of Science & Culture was
constructed in 1955, as a gift from the
Soviet people. It is a listed monument
and complex which houses four
theatres, a multiplex cinema, three
museums, four universities, a dance
school and a Congress Hall, soon to be
re-opened after renovations. There
is 10,000sqm of exhibition space and
the capacity for conferences for up to
4,000 participants. The Palace will host
the next edition of DentExpo in 2020.
Another super structure, sitting just
across the Vistula River in the Praga
district, is the crown-shaped national
‘PGE Narodowy’ stadium, fondly
referred to as the red and white ‘Nest’.
Opened on the eve of Euro 2012 as
the centre-piece venue of the football
championships, this multifunctional
arena can host global events with a
state-of-the art conference centre and
22,000sqm of exhibition space.
PGE Narodowy’s event CV includes
the hosting of a windsurfing regatta,
followed by a car racing show within
days of each other. The Rolling Stones
have performed there, whilst the 2013
UN Climate Change Conference and
2016 NATO Summit used the stadium.
Plans are still ongoing to create
a concert hall, congress centre and
hotels around the vicinity of the
stadium.
The exhibition sector is acting as a
key driver for the economy. Davide
Odella, Sales Director of EXPO XXI
Warsaw, a major venue with nearly
20 years’ experience and 3,000
events under its belt, states: “There
is currently a clear trend and growth
in B2C shows, and new sectoral B2B
e-commerce events”.
Robert Zapulski, Director of the
Ptak
Warsaw
Expo is
the largest
organiser
of 30
in-house
events,
which are
growing by
over 30% a
year.
Main image:
Warsaw’s Ptak
is developing
fast
Inset:
Warsaw’s
historic Palace
of Science and
Culture, now
open for events
56
Issue 5 2019
Marketing Festival and Print Festival,
which took place in September,
endorse EXPO XXI Warsaw as “still is
the best place for B2B fairs”.
EXPO XXI now has some new
venues to contend with; the ‘Ptak
Warsaw Expo International Exhibition
& Congress Centre’ opened in 2015 and
recently ranked first in Poland and
19th in Europe, in terms of total venue
space.
Ptak offers six-halls with a
combined space of 143,000sqm. The
venue is host of the Warsaw Motor
Show, Go Active and Warsaw Industry
Week, among other events: “Ptak
Warsaw Expo is the largest organiser
of nearly 30 in-house events and
developing all of them – they are
growing by more than 30% per year,”
says Zaneta Berus, CEO of In21Win
and Board Advisor to Ptak Warsaw.
She admits the company is still a “very
young” tradeshow organiser, but
developing fast.
Global Expo is another venue that
opened in Warsaw in 2018. It includes
a conference and banquet room of
2,015sqm and stands on the site of the
former FSO car factory. Global Expo
incorporates post-industrial design
with innovation technology.
Zapulski adds: “The Warsaw
events market is growing very
fast. We are noticing that visitors
like a combination of traditional
fairs and networking. Face-to-face
communication is still very important
and we are thinking about designing
new tradefairs and small conferences
for specific audiences”.
w w w.exhibitionworld.co.uk