Click here to view the Photo Report of IFTEX 2016.
Tip: If you are looking for your picture and do not want to scroll through the entire report, you can use the search function on the photo home page, by entering your name or company name.
Attracting more buyers
The exhibitors and organization of the show were pleased with the quality and quantity of the visitors. According to Dick van Raamsdonk, General Director of HPP Exhibitions, this year and the 2014 show have been the best editions so far. However, the demanding director of the exhibitions always sees room for improvement. "We received a lot of international buyers from Australia, Japan, China, Russia, but we want to welcome more. Therefore, the aim for the next exhibition is to attract more new buyers from existing markets and more buyers from new markets. And attracting buyers from the USA is an important part of the latter aim. ''This year, we received a couple of Americans, but there is a good potential to receive more. Many of the American buyers are not aware of the quality of the African flowers. They still think that the best flowers come from South America. And by visiting this show, they can see the difference and they might adjust their opinion", says Raamsdonk.
Keep expanding
The IFTEX keeps on expanding. The 2015 exhibition floor was 20% larger compared to the year before and this year's show increased 10% in size. And for next year, Raamsdonk is planning to expand the show even further. "We still have some room in the basement", he says. An important reason for the expansion of the show is the fact that not only are increasingly more growers opting for the direct trade, but so are the buyers. Even though direct trade involves more risks in general, it offers growers more stability regarding the prices of the flowers. However also for the buyers, direct trade offers advantages as they can receive fresher flowers.
In the coming weeks, you can find several articles on Kenyan floriculture in our newsletter.
Next year, the IFTEX will be held from June 7-9, 2017.
Click here to view the Photo Report of IFTEX 2016.