PaintExpo 2022 - Review

After four years, the big paint show is finally back on stage. The first PaintExpo after the Corona crisis, which took place in Karlsruhe from April 26 to 29, showed an astonishing dynamism and visitors and exhibitors alike were predominantly very satisfied with the course of the trade show.

After a four-year break due to the pandemic, the joy that the trade show could finally take place again was palpable everywhere during the four days of the trade show. The exhibition aisles were always well filled and clusters of visitors regularly formed at many booths. Trend topics such as efficiency enhancement, automation and digitalization as well as sustainability were in focus. As a global showcase for the industry, PaintExpo welcomed 9,180 trade visitors from 57 countries. Trend topics such as sustainability, increasing efficiency and many product premieres were the focus of the visitors, whose industries ranged from contract coating, the automotive industry and vehicle construction to mechanical and plant engineering, the plastics processing industry and the electrical and furniture industries. The range of products and services represented a broad spectrum of the industry - from surface treatment, coatings and painting systems to final quality assurance. At the end of the trade show, the 430 exhibitors from 27 countries drew a very positive conclusion, also and especially with regard to the quality of contacts.

"We are very satisfied with the great response PaintExpo received from national and international exhibitors and visitors. With their attractive stands and with their innovations and services, the exhibitors have made the event a global showcase for industrial painting technology," Markus Geisenberger, Managing Director of Leipziger Messe, was pleased to report. After the takeover of PaintExpo by Leipziger Messe, the first impact was thus more than successful. He adds: "The bar has been set for the coming events. PaintExpo is ideally positioned in Karlsruhe and will be expanded in the long term."

PaintExpo covered the entire spectrum of industrial painting with its products and services. The spectrum ranged from surface treatment solutions, to paints and painting systems, respectively powder and powder coating systems, to final quality assurance. The worldwide unique showcase of industrial painting technology bundled coating solutions for all industries, applications and materials - whether wet painting, powder coating or coil coating.

"With this concept, the trade show is the central platform for all projects related to industrial coating," he said. "No matter what project is planned, this is where you come together with all the manufacturers and service providers you need - in one place and in the shortest possible time," says Ivonne Simons. The PaintExpo project manager emphasizes, "The trade show participants took advantage of exactly that. Business relationships were initiated at the booths, new projects were discussed and concrete business deals were also concluded."

Dr. Rainer Frei agrees with this assessment. For the managing director of paint producer Emil Frei, PaintExpo seamlessly picks up where old successes left off, despite the Corona break. "Here we have the entire spectrum of industrial painting technology at one event. It is the biggest leading trade show for us." Markus Sonnenstatter, CSO Industrial Solutions at plant manufacturer Wagner, makes a similar point: "It is simply important to be at PaintExpo. Here, we succeed in gaining new customers but also in cultivating our existing customers. It was a colorful mix of relevant interest and concrete project inquiries. It's exactly this mix that makes PaintExpo an irreplaceable industry gathering."

The exhibition aisles were always well filled and clusters of visitors regularly formed at many booths. The quality as well as the satisfaction of the visitors was remarkable. According to the survey, the number of top decision-makers, specialists and managers was very high. According to the survey, around 88 percent have a significant influence on investment decisions in their companies. More than 90 percent plan to attend the next edition of PaintExpo again in two years.

The proportion of international trade show visitors was also very high. More than one in three guests traveled from abroad. In addition to Germany, the trade visitors came primarily from Switzerland, Italy, France, Austria and Poland. "It was noticeable that the trade show continues to gain in importance internationally. Visitors from many European countries and from the USA were present and, for us as a global company, are directly part of our target group," Nicole Mihlan, Marketing Manager at Venjakob, was pleased to say.

Many of the 430 exhibitors drew a very positive conclusion at the end of the trade show, also and especially with regard to the quality of contacts. The exhibition aisles were always well filled and clusters of visitors regularly formed at many stands. 95 percent of the exhibitors praised the high quality of the contacts and the professional qualifications of the visitors. The fair was considered a success by 94 percent of the exhibitors.

"We are glad that we decided to participate in the fair for the first time. Our conclusion is clear: PaintExpo is one of the most important industry meetings at which to exhibit. This is where the future is talked about," summed up Tobias Laxa, Marketing Manager Europe at surface treatment specialist Henkel.

"That was fun. It was a pleasure to see how well the trade show was received by the visitors after the long break. Despite, or perhaps because of, the current difficult framework conditions, a remarkable now-first-right mood was noticeable. As a result, many investment projects are not being postponed but implemented and new innovations are valued," said Thomas Rippert on the successful comeback of PaintExpo.

The date for the next PaintExpo in 2024 has already been set. The world's leading trade show for industrial painting technology will then take place as usual at the Karlsruhe Exhibition Center from April 9 to 12, 2024.

Leipziger Messe GmbH

www.paintexpo.de www.leipziger-messe.de