The 33rd edition of GGP, held from October 4 to 6, was well attended. There were a total of 261 participants spread across three colored routes (red, blue, and grey), covering a length of over 1.2 kilometers. Even with more space and rentals, there was already a waiting list for participants during the setup, and the technical area also became increasingly crowded.
With 261 participants, there was a growth of approximately 10 percent compared to the previous year. This year, 70 percent of the participants were in the green sector, compared to 67 percent in 2022. The participant field was also more international.
Three days
On October 4 at 9:00, GrootGroenPlus 2023 was officially opened. During this word of welcome, the new activity 'ggp.news' was also launched. This news website was created with the support of Stichting EPS, the license holder of the trade fair. On this platform, all updates - and there are quite a few - are collected in both Dutch and English. As of the 2023 edition of GGP, it is possible to enter into a partnership with this news site; the first partnerships were already concluded at the fair.
The first day of the fair gave every reason for satisfaction. On Wednesday, 8% more visitors attended compared to the Wednesday of the previous edition, and there was also more international diversity. The visitor flow was consistently good throughout the day. Various surveys among participants satisfied responses, especially regarding the increased quality of the visitors. All judging had been moved from Tuesday to Wednesday morning, and this was deemed meaningful. This way, the juries got a better sense of the stands while they were 'in action,' and visitors could observe the plant judging.
Visitors
Thursday saw a 12 percent increase in visitors compared to that day in the previous year. This immediately became the busiest day of the trade fair. On Thursday, the external press tour and the children's press tour took place. The children's press tour is a new addition and was a resounding success and good PR for the nursery stock industry. The mayor and the newly appointed child mayor of the tree nursery municipality of Zundert joined to add even more appeal to the event.
In total, there was an 8.2 percent increase in visitors over the entire fair compared to 2022 and a 5.3 percent increase compared to 2021. The higher percentage of international visitors was characteristic, with the largest groups coming from Germany, France, Poland, Italy, England, Portugal, Denmark, Serbia, and Montenegro. The number of international visitors increased from 27 percent in 2022 to 31 percent in 2023. The number of represented countries also increased from 27 to 32.
Of the visitors, 18 percent stated that this was their first time at GGP. 8.6 percent identified themselves as forwarders or traders, 4.5 percent mentioned being involved in garden landscaping, and 4.5 percent represented a garden center; these are all increases compared to 2022. 52.6 percent stated that they were the owners of the company they represented during their visit, and 9.4 percent identified themselves as purchasers. The latter is also an increase compared to 2022.
9.7 percent knew the trade fair from printed trade magazines. 7 percent heard about GGP through the Internet. 41.5 percent came to GGP based on an advertisement. 20 percent of the advertisements were in print media, and 80 percent were online.
Award ceremonies
Once again this year, awards and medals were presented. All award ceremonies can be digitally reviewed through the app, the website, and the YouTube channel. The photo albums are also available on the website. The theme 'Dynamic & Digital' was evident throughout the fair; in the decoration of the stands but also in the program components. The KVBC awarded six medals for the novelties. In the second Green Grand Prix judging, where a total of 19 plants were judged, five plants received a classification. The Zunderts Groen Imago Prijs, the Jac Lodders Award, and the Jan van Dongen Award were all distributed as usual. These award ceremonies can also be reviewed on YouTube.
For more information:
GrootGroenPlus
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www.grootgroenplus.nl