The 27th Fakuma trade fair was never going to be just another plastics show.
As the first major European plastics trade show to go forward as an in person event in two years, no one knew what to expect. Would the exhibitors come? Would there be visitors who were willing, able or allowed to travel to Friedrichshafen?
Our international team of reporters was there, to produce the English-language daily newspapers distributed at the show. At the Messe, the aisles were wider and Coronavirus restrictions were in place, with visitors required to wear masks. We were repeatedly told how difficult a decision it had been simply to decide whether to come or not. Many exhibitors waited as late as September to take the plunge, before finally deciding to ‘just do it’, as one raw materials supplier said.
While other potential participants decided otherwise, as evidenced by the various open spaces scattered through the halls of the Messe, in general, attendance was good - for many, surprisingly so - making it for the majority of exhibitors more than worthwhile to have come to the fair. Although day one and day five were slow, the number of visitors on days two, three and four was more than high enough to keep busy.
“In the run-up to this year´s Fakuma, we did not know how well the on-site trade fair would be frequented. Despite the lower number of visitors in comparison to the years before, it was a successful trade fair,” said Carsten Koch, CEO at Koch Technik.
