Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2011 | Page 21

EXPO REAL 2010:

Back on Track
and Ready
for Business
EXPO REAL 2010 was brimming with good vibrations.
For the first time since 2008, EXPO REAL was clearly
signalling the recovery of the industry: around 37,000
participants attended the 13th International Trade Fair
for Commercial Property and Investment. The number
of industry professionals (21,000) matched the total of
the previous year, but the number of representatives of
exhibiting companies (16,000) showed an increase of
1,000 companies in comparison to 2009. In terms of
exhibitors, EXPO REAL 2010 achieved an increase of
four percent, with a total of 1,645 companies.

E

ugen Egetenmeir, Managing Director of Messe
München, was quite pleased
with the turnout, commenting
that EXPO REAL is the only
trade fair in the industry that
has been able to achieve a slight
growth in 2010.
“The industry is starting
to breathe again,” Egetenmeir
summed up the fair which fully

met the organisers’ expectations.
Andreas Quint, CEO of
Jones Lang Lasalle, stated that
the significant improvement in
the market environment and the
feeling of making a “new start”
were tangible in Munich.
“EXPO REAL has seized
on this optimism and once again
proven its unique nature as a
business trade fair.”

Stefan Brendgen, CEO
of Allianz Real Estate Germany, reinforced this, saying EXPO REAL came at just the right
time for launching negotiations
and finding out about potential
new properties.
“Our discussions at the
trade fair have been extremely
successful and have involved
contacts from all around the
world.”

Better Days Ahead
The rising confidence level of
the industry players was also reflected in the EXPO REAL visitor survey: according to Gelszus
Messe-Marktforschung, over 60
percent of visitors were of the
opinion that the economic situation in the industry will improve in the future.
Based on the number of
visitors, the top ten countries
visiting the exposition after
Germany were the UK, Austria, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France, Poland, the Czech
Republic, Russia, the USA and
Luxembourg.
Poland in particular had a
notable presence; it increased its
number of exhibitors by 60 percent compared to 2009. Austria,
Russia, Serbia and the Czech
Republic also increased their
number of exhibitors.
This year, the prefix ‘RE’
was the central theme of the

conference programme; it stood
not only for real estate, but also
for a new start in many areas of
the industry. Bernd-Uwe Willer, Head of Germany at Savills,
stated that once again, the focus was on finding solutions, not
problems.
“A significant amount of
dynamism has returned to the
markets,” he assessed, claiming that 2011 will be even better than 2010.

Green Comeback
Sustainability was another important theme of the fair. According to the organisers, this
topic was now stronger than ever on the agenda of the real estate industry: especially the economic advantages of green plan