Korea International Boat Show offers incentives for exhibitors

by KOTRA on 2 May 2010 Australian business visitors to the Korea International Boat Show this year will be able to obtain a 50% refund of their return airfares to Korea. In addition they will be eligible for free-of-charge benefits including three nights’ accommodation in an international class hotel with breakfast, airport transfers and show shuttle bus.

The Korea International Boat Show will run from June 9 to 13 at the Jeongok Marina of Hwaseong City, about 100km from the capital, Seoul. This is the third year of staging of Korea’s premier boat show. Last year, over 280 exhibitors from 22 countries were featured and over 230,000 visitors attended. The fledgling Korean domestic marine industry will be there again looking to form partnerships with overseas companies.

The show is shaping up even bigger this year and Australian visitors are invited to participate in various business and networking functions that have been scheduled by the organisers. These include an International Trade Meeting, a Marine Business Conference, a regional Marine Tourism Projects presentation and tour and a Gala Dinner. The main races of the World Racing Tour’s Korea Match Cup 2010 will also be run over the show period.

The Australian International Marine Export Group (AIMEX) has secured a major exhibition space and will present an Australian pavilion featuring a contingent of their members alongside other Australian boating and marine companies. Companies exhibiting include Superior Jetties, Seawind, Aqualuma, Bellingham, ASEA Yacht Design, Austral, Multipanel, Coursemaster, Voyager, Stress Free, Spear Green, ATL Composites and D’Albora.

This is a tremendous opportunity for an Australian company to consider the possible opportunities in the Korean recreational boating and marine tourism sectors.

The Korea International Boat Show 2009 was held at Jeongok Marina from June 3-7, 2009,
and attracted 237,679 visitors. In total, 280 enterprises including 161 overseas participants exhibited at the Show.

Among the overseas exhibitors were companies such as Beneteau of France, one of the industry's big three, Cobalt of the United States, and Chapparal also of the United States which was the winner of the Boat of the Year Award in 2008. Top domestic shipbuilders such as Gwangdong FRP Industry, Hyundai Yachts, GHI Yachts, AMTEC. were among the exhibitors.

Overseas buyers from 187 companies took part in 5,519 consultations which amounted to US$390 million. Additional related events included a marine festival, conferences, investment sessions and cultural events. It is KOTRA's assessment that such events helped to expand the yachting population, create new markets and shape the conditions for marine leisure activities to be popular.

Australian companies interested in visiting the Korea International Boat Show this year can contact Graham Worthington at the KOTRA office in Sydney for more information graham.worthington@kotra.org.au , tel: +61 2 9264 5199.

More at www.koreaboatshow.org