The event has been visited by over 20 thousand operators from 99 countries: foreigners from Eastern Europe, United States, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Iran, Australia on the increase. French and Spanish visitors decreasing. The success of the valuable finished marble showcased in the 12,000 square metre hall. Highly attended high-profile conferences and meetings. The industry trend promises to become stable after a long negative season.

The attendance of 20,380 professional visitors, 3,986 of whom came from abroad (from 99 different countries), 11% more than in 2005, and 440 exhibitors (+ 6% compared to 2005), over 23 thousand square metres (+23%) are the figures (about to be ISF certified) that are evidence of the positive results delivered by CarraraMarmotec, which affirms itself as an international landmark for marble and technology.

“A satisfactory result – comments the president of CarraraFiere, Giancarlo Tonini – especially because it seems to confirm, at least partly, those positive signs that have come up over the last few months and that have given confidence back to the companies, especially the Italian companies. This is just the aspect that I think can be associated with the increase in the attendance of the Italian operators, who are experiencing such a trend reversal. The first ones to feel such winds of change have been the companies that are based in the historical marble-quarrying and -processing regions that took part in the fair with great booths, where they showcased the best products ever, especially in the new hall that hosted and enhanced their proactive efforts. CarraraMarmotec is a fair that aims at quality attendance and displaying excellent products, and in this respect we can say we are content with the results”. 54% of the Italian operators came from Central Italy, 32% from Northern Italy and 14% from the South and the islands.

Italian visitors from Campania, Liguria, Lombardy, Marche, Puglia, Sardinia and Veneto have increased, Tuscans are the usual number, which has always been a high number.

Foreign visitors have proven that the intensive promotional activity carried out all over the world, targeted to trade operators and associations, involving participation in international fairs and conferences as well as technical workshops, was very effective: a total of about thirty events all over the world with thousands of selected contacts.

50% of the foreign visitors came from the EU, 12% from non-EU Europe, 9% from Mediterranean Africa and 1% from sub-Saharan Africa, 8% from North America and 5% from Central and South America. The number of visitors from the Middle East (9%) and from the Far East (5%) was as high as usual, while a significant number (1%) came from Oceania.

Broadly speaking, the number of operators from such areas as Mediterranean Africa and Eastern Europe has increased, while northern Europe has remained stable, on very high numbers. If we look at each country, we find some substantial increase in the number of visitors from historically-important partners, such as the United States, Germany, Great Britain, Belgium, Denmark, as well as from new producers and partners, such as Iran, the Czech Republic, Lebanon and Qatar. The numbers of Greek and Turkish operators were stable, those of French, Spanish and Indian ones which had seen an upsurge in 2005 are decreasing.

The operators could take part in a fair that showed a positive sign of growth in the numbers and quality of the operators, and CarraraMarmotec is expected to turn into the “boutique” of the stone and technology fairs.

So the fair turned into an “all round”, top-quality event, the ideal place to be seen in, and, through a wide schedule of conferences, an opportunity for exchanging ideas with the big names of architecture and those who work in the area of scientific research or offer solutions to the big industry issues.

A unique fair, where the raw materials have stolen the limelight and have been showcased along with the ‘king of marble’: white marble from the Apuan Alps, which was the real star of the event, as has been highlighted by many operators, impressed by the extraordinary combination of excellent technology and finished products with raw materials, that have substantially helped create the emotion of discovery, turning the fair into a unique event. CarraraMarmotec has uninterruptedly informed 100,000 companies and professionals across the world, that are contacted through a wide range of media: promotional emails, promotional faxes, invitation cards which are normally sent to the operators along with 100,000 badges with barcodes for automated entrance, that have been used to collect important information about the visitors.

Some categories have been specifically targeted by email, including 10,000 architects and 15,000 building contractors and operators.

“A positive fair which also brought to the fore some interesting factors – comments Paris Mazzanti, managing director of CarraraFiere – that will help us plan the next fair. First of all, the widespread presence of blocks and raw materials in the outdoor areas and the powerful promotion of finished products in the inside halls. The standards of the meetings and the attendance of people who were extremely interested in the initiatives, such as Mario Botta’s lecture about Marble and stone in a new Renaissance, prove that our fair as well as being a promotional opportunity for marble and technology is also a great cultural tool, a sort of bridge between the manufacturing world and the world of people who design and use natural stone. We will work at that, to create new opportunities and stimuli, especially for the architects, who seemed to be extremely interested in the fair and in the displayed materials. The decision taken by some very important companies, to showcase their latest breakthroughs in Carrara, helped improve the quality of the products on display and corroborates the importance of an industry that, although exposed to fierce international competition, can still be proactive and competitive”.

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Contact:

The Show Management - CarraraFiere S.r.l.
Tel. +39 0585 787963
Fax +39 0585 787602

E-mail: info@carraramarmotec.com