boot Düsseldorf rebooted-Water sports trade fair makes successful comeback

• Over 1,500 exhibitors met with nearly 237,000 visitors from over 100 countries in 16 exhibition halls
• Business deals, good conversations and high spirits

Registering nearly 237,000 visitors from over 100 countries and more than 1,500 exhibitors from 68 nations on 220,000 square metres in 16 exhibition halls, boot Düsseldorf reports back with impressive figures. The pandemic-related, forced 3-year break could not do the Düsseldorf water sports event any harm. Instead, the entire international industry was once again drawn to the Rhenish metropolis from 21 to 29 January.

“Despite the difficult general conditions, boot 2023 has written a success story. We would not have dreamt of this outcome. boot has finally reached calm waters and is once again firmly anchored in its Düsseldorf home port. The successful comeback has demonstrated that trade fairs ‘made in Düsseldorf’ have an international appeal,” reports President and CEO of Messe Düsseldorf Wolfram Diener. Both for powerboats, luxury yachts, sailing boats and for diving equipment, trend sports and holiday regions the global players and dream destinations were “on the starting line”.  

boot Director Petros Michelidakis is delighted: “The visits paid to exhibitors were incredibly good, viewing appointments on the boats completely booked up and the companies reported a large number of boat and accessory sales. The halls were also buzzing with diving and trend sports. Our crew has done its utmost, set sails perfectly and ‘sailed’ boot 2023 to the top of the international water sports trade fairs again. We are pleased that boot was once again able to offer the economy this marketplace and to present itself successfully despite the difficult current economic situation.” Alongside visitors from all over Germany, especially experts from the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, France, UK, Turkiye and Spain used the trade fair to find out about the latest innovations in the sector. Numerous manufacturers and prospective buyers from the USA, South America and Asia made the trip to Düsseldorf again and enriched the industry get-together with innovative products, inspirations and in-depth knowledge transfer.

After the nine trade fair days, the international exhibitors are also highly satisfied as Robert Marx, President of boot and General Manager of Marx-Technik, sums up: “What the Düsseldorf trade fair organisers got off the ground here, smoothly following on from pre-pandemic times, is just great. With boot 2023 the trade fair company has shown that it has embraced the future and can also successfully navigate in rough seas. A big thanks goes to the Düsseldorf crew with its skipper Wolfram Diener. You have really done a great job.”

Speaking on behalf of the German Marine Federation e.V. Managing Director Karsten Stahlhut summed up the situation in the industry: “Due to the on-going crises since 2020 and two cancelled boot shows all of us started the trade fair with mixed feelings. Overall, however, for most, expectations were not only met, but exceeded in every respect. A strong boot in January is always an indication for a good year. I am convinced it will prove better than we thought only a few weeks ago.”

Also attracting a lot of attention was the new sustainability forum ‘blue innovation dock’ at boot 2023. Here industry, policy-makers and international associations met for high-level dialogue and exchange. Philip Easthill, Secretary General of the Association of the European Boating Industry from Brussels, sums up the 9-day programme very positively: “The ‘blue innovation dock’ has come to stay. It proved a big success for the trade fair and opened a fascinating new perspective for the boating industry for a sustainable future. The presence of over 110 high-calibre speakers ranging from CEOs to political decision-makers emphasises the importance of sustainability for water sports. The industry has already made great strides in the development of sustainable materials, propulsion systems and marinas and we will be able to support them intensively in the future with the blue innovation dock.

boot will be at its Düsseldorf home port again from 20 to 28 January 2024. 

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