Messe Frankfurt acquires Thailand Lighting Fair and Thailand Building Fair

Messe Frankfurt New Era Business Media Ltd has acquired Thailand Lighting Fair and Thailand Building Fair to expand the worldwide portfolio of its Light + Building brand of trade fairs. Powered by Messe Frankfurt since their inception in 2015, the two fairs will now officially form part of the Light + Building family that totals 15 fairs around the globe. Messe Frankfurt will leverage its extensive international experience in growing trade fairs, while at the same time utilise its local organising partners' knowledge to propel the fairs forward as ASEAN’s leading trade fairs for lighting and building technology, design and solutions.

Thailand Lighting Fair and Thailand Building Fair will be held from 8 – 10 November at Bangkok International Convention & Exhibition Centre. The 2018 edition is expected to welcome over 165 exhibitors utilising some 10,000 sqm of exhibition space.

Mr Stephan Buurma, Member of the Board of Management of Messe Frankfurt Group, commented on the acquisition: “The Light + Building brand of shows is well-recognised around the world for its high quality event format and its power to attract the best in the industry. Adding the Thailand Lighting Fair and Thailand Building Fair to this growing family will complement our existing shows by creating a synergy between the different lighting and building markets.”

“With a combined GDP of over USD2.4 trillion, the region is collectively the sixth largest economy in the world and the third most populous. The acquisition will facilitate Messe Frankfurt to further develop our presence within the network of ASEAN countries. It will also allow us to expand and strengthen our portfolio in the ASEAN region. Our local partners ‒ The ExhibiZ and the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) ‒ have been instrumental in establishing the shows and we look forward to working together with them for many years ahead,” Mr Buurma added.

Thailand serves as the gateway into the booming ASEAN region

Messe Frankfurt has had a successful partnership for over 30 years with The ExhibiZ’s owner, Worldex G.E.C Co Ltd. An experienced organiser of trade fairs in Thailand, The ExhibiZ is eager to continue working alongside its seasoned international partner, explains Ms Pakwan Jiamjiroj, General Manager: “We are delighted to bring the Thailand Lighting Fair and the Thailand Building Fair into a new era thanks to the partnership with Messe Frankfurt. With their strong international reputation and some 800 years’ experience in organising trade fairs, we know that both shows have the potential to grow immensely. The lighting industry in Southeast Asia is already worth as much as USD5 billion, with the LED lighting industry accounting for over USD1.5 billion of that value. This healthy outlook demonstrates that the time to invest in Thailand and its neighbouring countries is most certainly now.”

The PEA is a government enterprise that handles the generation, distribution, sales and provision of electricity to the business, industrial and general public sectors in Thailand. As a result of a number of pro-investment policies by the Thai government, the LED market in Thailand continues to expand. One such project currently being undertaken by the PEA is a three-phase project devised to completely replace Thailand’s streetlights with more energy-efficient LEDs. The Governor, Mr Sermsakool Klaikaew, said: “The Thailand lighting market is worth almost USD1 billion and has witnessed positive annual growth year after year. As we undertake such crucial nationwide projects to improve our infrastructure, it is vitally important that we continue to grow as an industry. By growing the international focus of the fairs, we will help to bring greater understanding and expertise from the international lighting and building communities directly to Thailand. We hope that this will foster innovation and continue to spur on the region’s exciting growth.”

Messe Frankfurt has already established renowned lighting and building fairs across Asia in Guangzhou, Shanghai, New Delhi and Mumbai since the turn of the century. The shared expertise that has been gained in running these shows will benefit the Thailand Lighting Fair and Thailand Building Fair and should bring these diverse markets closer together. Indeed, significant trade connections already exist between Thailand and some of these nations whereby Thailand currently imports around 90% of its LED products from China and other countries. ^[1]

The two fairs will be held concurrently with Secutech Thailand, a premier platform that showcases the latest innovations in security, smart homes and fire and safety products. By hosting Thailand Lighting Fair, Thailand Building Fair and Secutech Thailand under one roof, the interconnected lighting, building and safety industries have an unrivalled one-stop sourcing opportunity. For more information, please visit www.thailandlightingfair.com

Messe Frankfurt is present in 178 countries and hosts exhibitions and conferences in around 30 locations with its brands and brand families. The company has a considerable portfolio of lighting and building fairs across Asia, while the Light + Building family of trade shows is headed by the biennial Light + Building mother show in Frankfurt, Germany.

For more information about Messe Frankfurt’s Light + Building fairs, please visit www.light-building.messefrankfurt.com

[1] http://www.ledinside.com/outlook/2014/12/emerging_market_trends_in_2014

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Background information on Messe Frankfurt
Messe Frankfurt is the world’s largest trade fair, congress and event organiser with its own exhibition grounds. With more than 2,500* employees at some 30 locations, the company generates annual sales of around €661* million. Thanks to its far-reaching ties with the relevant sectors and to its international sales network, the Group looks after the business interests of its customers effectively. A comprehensive range of services – both onsite and online – ensures that customers worldwide enjoy consistently high quality and flexibility when planning, organising and running their events. The wide range of services includes renting exhibition grounds, trade fair construction and marketing, personnel and food services. With its headquarters in Frankfurt am Main, the company is owned by the City of Frankfurt (60 percent) and the State of Hesse (40 percent).
* preliminary numbers 2017
For more information, please visit our website at:
www.messefrankfurt.com | www.congressfrankfurt.de | www.festhalle.de