The organizers of the Vinexpo Asia Pacific have released their final communication concerning the successful Vinexpo HK 2008.
The complete article is available at: http://www.vinexpo.com/en/ and below:
Press release
12 June 2008
VINEXPO ASIA-PACIFIC 2008 success confirmed by final figures
The success of Vinexpo Asia-Pacific 2008 in Hong Kong reveals how much the Asian wine and spirits professionals were awaiting the event. The attendance of large numbers of important buyers, importers and distributors, alongside the international press and renowned experts, who spoke at the seminars and led tastings, confirms the leadership of Vinexpo Asia-Pacific in this area.
Meaningful figures
The exhibition held at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, welcomed 8,868 exclusively professional visitors, exactly28.8% more than in 2006.
45% of these came from Hong Kong and Macao, while 55% were from 19 other Asian-Pacific countries: continental China (2,254) led with twice as many visitors as in 2006, followed by Korea (657), Taiwan (438), Japan (209), Singapore (203), Australia (175), Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, India and other countries in the region.
These visitors represented all the different business sectors: importers, wholesalers, retailers, sommeliers and food & beverage managers, duty free and airline purchasers, and the hospitality sector.
375 journalists from Asian press, radio and TV covered the event as well as a number of European and US general and trade press correspondents.
692 exhibitors from 32 countries presented the largest range of wines and spirits ever put on display at a single venue in Asia-Pacific and had around 70,000 bottles available for tasting.
The University hosted 33 seminars and was visited by more than 4,500 professionals. The presentations and tastings were particularly well attended by visitors, who continuously sought information with a real thirst for knowledge.
And don’t forget that number 8! It is a symbol of luck and success in Asia – the Beijing Olympics are due to begin at 8.08 on 8 August 2008 – so the 8,868 visitors, who came to Vinexpo Asia-Pacific 2008, clearly represent in Asian minds a very auspicious number…
Market trends
The strong interest generated by the exhibition confirms the energy that exists in the Asian market, which is a consequence of the growing attraction of consumers towards wine and spirits.
“All the exhibitors reported noticing marked progress over the past few years in the knowledge and appreciation of the products. We are convinced that this contributes to the development of the wine and spirits industry in the region by stimulating consumption,” declared Ms. Dominique Hériard Dubreuil, President of Vinexpo Overseas.
According to the VINEXPO / The IWSR study, Asia’s wine market will grow the fastest in the next five years, achieving 8% annual growth compared to a world average of 1%. Retail sales of still wines in Asia in 2006 amounted to US$4.753 billion and should increase by 33.9% between now and 2011.
Having downed 1.04 billion 9-litre cases in 2006, Asia-Pacific remains the leading consumer of spirits in the world - 47% of all spirits consumed in the world are drunk in Asia!
Generosity from the exhibitors
1,912 bottles including about one hundred of spirits were collected at the end of the exhibition. Vinexpo had invited exhibitors to donate bottles in aid of the Sichuan earthquake victims in China. These bottles will be put on sale in the coming month by Watson Wine Cellar for the 22,000 members of Watson Wine Club to purchase. The proceeds will then be handed over to the Hong Kong Red Cross.
(end)
Here seen in a post-exhibition celebration with the 
