Genoa 50th International Boat Show ends optimistically

by Fiera di Genova SpA Press Office on 12 Oct 2010 With a final number of 260,300 visitors, the 50th Genoa International Boat Show has confirmed its authority and international leadership.

This result (-7.2% compared to 280,500 in 2009) is considered extremely positive by the organisers, Fiera di Genova and UCINA, in light of the general economic scenario and of the events that took place over the first few days of the Show: mainly the protests that on the opening day considerably hindered access to the city and to the fairground and the terrible weather that struck the area on Monday and Tuesday, keeping visitors away from Genoa. Starting on Wednesday, the Show experienced a remarkable recovery that allowed to achieve a satisfactory final result.

Against a generally fragile worldwide upturn, the boating sector has proven its liveliness, and the Show's exhibition and commercial strengths have stood out in particular. The participation of 1,400 exhibitors from 36 countries has ensured that all visitors could find a complete range of products on display. Moreover, Genoa has confirmed its role as one of the companies’ favourite venues to present their premieres and previews: out of 2,300 boats on display, more than 500 were new models.

The atmosphere among exhibitors is now substantially favourable: the investments made in innovation and R&D by many companies operating in the boating sector have increased the customers' interest in their products, although considerable differences exist between companies, depending on their market positioning.

Highly motivated, aware and more qualified visitors: this was the distinctive feature of the Show's fiftieth edition. The number of foreigners was considerable among visitors and professional operators alike; 700 b2b meetings were organised within the framework of the mission organised by the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade and UCINA, with operators coming from Argentina, Brazil, China, India, the United Kingdom, the USA, Vietnam, and the United Arabian Emirates.

The Executive Committee of IFBSO (the International Federation of Boat Show Organisers) met in Genoa and visited the Boat Show: the Secretary, Tom Wills, the President, Andrew Williams - representing London and Southampton Boat Shows -, Ben Wold from NMMA Boat Shows, Jordi Freixas and Luis Conde Moller from Barcelona Boat Show, Goetz-Ulf Jungmichel from Dusseldorf’s Boot, Bengt Walling representing Gothenburg Boat Show, Heike Schlimbach from Hamburg Messe, and the Management of the Kintex Complex (Seoul's Fair and Exhibition Centre).

'Fiera di Genova SpA – stated its Chairman, Mr Paolo Lombardi – has once more proven to be a driving force at the service of the business world as well as the perfect venue to present new products and models. In particular, this year’s fiftieth edition of the Boat Show has confirmed the event’s distinctive features: a complete exhibition of everything the boating industry can offer the market, and stylish and functional exhibition areas and facilities, both ashore and in the water. Starting tomorrow, we will be focusing on the new industrial plan, in which once more the Boat Show will be a priority objective.'

Fiera di Genova's Managing Director, Mr Roberto Urbani, added: 'Genoa 50th International Boat Show has been the result of accurate planning and of the fine-tuning of a series of processes involving a large number of players. Everyone has played their part and this has allowed to overcome known and totally unexpected difficulties. In the future the Boat Show will be characterised by a further improvement of service quality, technological advancement, and an ever-increasing attention for the companies' needs.'

UCINA's President, Mr Anton Francesco Albertoni said: 'During the opening ceremony, we used the words ‘cautious optimism’. Today we are pleased to be able to say that our expectations have been met. The Show has rewarded those businessmen that decided to invest in innovation and that managed to adjust to the market’s new size and needs. Over the past few days many negotiations were started and numerous agreements were signed, especially with regard to new products, whose presence really makes the difference between Genoa Boat Show and other autumn events in this sector.'

UCINA's General Manager, Ms Marina Stella said: 'This edition has been a unique opportunity to focus on and discuss the themes that are currently of most interest in our sector: regulatory streamlining, internationalisation, tax-related policies, and environmental sustainability. UCINA has managed to trigger and encourage a debate aimed at sustaining and strengthening one of Italy's most dynamic sectors.'

81 side events, including conferences, debates, workshops and presentations, were held at the Sea Theatre, the Press Centre, Fieracongressi (the congress centre), and in the Mezzanine Hall of the new Pavilion B. UCINA organised five conferences: 'La nautica in cifre. Analisi del mercato per l’anno 2009' (The boating sector in figures. Market analysis for the year 2009), 'Dall’Italia all’Europa, le politiche per la competitività' (From Italy to Europe. Competitiveness-oriented policies), 'Dal presente al futuro, la nautica guarda avanti' (From the present to the future, the boating sector looks ahead), 'Il Gpl per la nautica: un esempio di propulsione a basso impatto'(LPG for the boating sector: an example of low-impact propulsion), 'Dallo Stato alle Regioni, sostenere la crescita'(From the State to the Regions: sustaining growth).

The development of the Italian boating industry was in the spotlight thanks to the many outstanding contributions to the ongoing debate: the Italian Minister for Transport and Infrastructures, Mr Altero Matteoli, who officially opened the Show on Saturday 2 October; the Vice-President of the European Commission, Mr Antonio Tajani; the Deputy Minister for Transport and Infrastructures, Mr Roberto Castelli; the Undersecretary for Regulatory Streamlining, Mr Francesco Belsito; the Chairman of the Italian Senate's Commission for Transport, Mr Luigi Grillo, the Chairman of the Italian Senate’s Commission for Industry, Commerce, and Tourism, Mr Cesare Cursi; the Chairman of the Italian Senate’s Commission for Land and the Environment, Mr Antonio D’Alì; the vice-President of the Italian Council of State, Mr Pasquale de Lise; the President Emeritus of the Italian Constitutional Court, Mr Riccardo Chieppa; and the President Emeritus of the Italian Council of State, Mr Alberto De Roberto.

Regaring the sporting world, among others at the Show were the President of UIM (Union Internationale Motonautique), Raffaele Chiulli, and the President of the Italian Sailing Federation, Carlo Croce; sailors Diego Romero (winner of the bronze medal at the latest Olympic Games), Pietro D’Alì, Matteo Miceli, Alessandro Di Benedetto; motorbike racers Ayrton Badovini and Ruben Xaus; the players of football team Sampdoria Franco Semioli, Gianluca Curci, Fernando Tissone and Stefano Lucchini; the coach of Genoa football club Gian Piero Gasperini; Ciro Ferrara; the Kazhak cyclist Alexander Vinokurov, and Pro Recco waterpolo players. From the show business, Patrizio Roversi, Syusy Blady, Valerio Staffelli, Enrique Balbontin and Massimo Boldi visited the Show this year.

Over 2,240 journalists were accredited by the Press Office, representing 29 different countries, including emerging countries like China, Korea, and India.

The Show’s official website www.genoaboatshow.com was visited by 412,000 viewers; over three million two hundred thousand pages were accessed, mainly among foreigners - French, followed by Swiss, British, German and US users.

22,000 visitors decided to reach the Show by sea, using the ferry boats leaving from the Old Port, Ponte Colombo, the Marina in Sestri Ponente, and Pegli.

The initiative Navigar m'è dolce was again extremely successful: a dedicated sea stretch was set up in the Western Basin for sailing tryouts, canoe polo performances and canoeing and boating lessons were held in Basin 1, and a simulator showing basic sailing manoeuvres was available near the Old Theatre.

Now that the 2010 edition is over, Fiera di Genova and UCINA are already looking ahead at the future: Genoa fifty-first International Boat Show will be held at Fiera di Genova from 1 to 9 October 2011.

More at www.genoaboatshow.com