History of Messe Frankfurt: Represented abroad for 100 years

Not only in many private households did the lack of variety during the Corona lockdowns help to sort and organize things.

At Messe Frankfurt, the past has been dealt with more intensively and archivist Peter Kerwien came across an anniversary: ​​100 years of business via foreign agencies.

What sounds a bit cumbersome has become an important factor for the trade fair in the past.

Although trade fairs brought people from far and wide to Frankfurt more than 800 years ago, business relationships only became institutionalized when there were foreign representations.

According to a report by the trade fair presented on Thursday, the starting point for this was in the spring of 1922. As a consequence of the international conference in Genoa, at which financial and trade relations were reorganized after the end of the First World War, Germany also returned to the world market.

International agencies in 25 countries are listed for the first time in the spring fair catalogue, most of which are in Europe, such as Italy and Switzerland.

Within five years, another eleven foreign agencies were added, including one in India.

At that time, these ambassadors from all over the world still worked on a voluntary basis and received a commission for their work on the rented stands, the trade fair reports.

No more activities in Russia

Today, the international network extends to agencies in 190 countries, there are 30 subsidiaries and around 50 sales partners.

This is unique in the German trade fair landscape.

Exhibition boss Wolfgang Marzin praises: “Our global network is a model for success, because many of our foreign events are among the second or third largest in their industry worldwide after the respective leading trade fair in Frankfurt.” The pandemic has also shown how important the international network is.

"Through our events abroad, we were able to generate sales that were not available in Frankfurt," says Marzin.

Before the pandemic, business abroad accounted for about a third of sales, since it began about half.

Messe Frankfurt has also had business relationships with Russia for a long time; since 2002 they have been running through the subsidiary Messe Frankfurt RUS in Moscow with around 50 employees.

In view of the war in Ukraine, activities there have been put on hold.

What should happen to the subsidiary is currently being discussed by the shareholders - the fair is 60 percent owned by the city of Frankfurt and 40 percent by the state of Hesse - said on Thursday at the request of the FAZ

Wars and crises have repeatedly made business more difficult, so the Frankfurt international trade fairs and thus business with the foreign agencies were discontinued in 1929 after the spring fair due to the global economic crisis.

World War II followed, and relations remained troubled.

It was not until 1949 and 1950 that new agencies were established in Australia, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Turkey.

In the 40 years that followed, Messe Frankfurt grew worldwide.

It reached two milestones in 1987 with the organization of Interstoff Asia, the first foreign trade fair in Hong Kong, and in 1990 with the founding of the first subsidiary in Tokyo.

Some of today's subsidiaries have emerged from previous foreign representations, such as the branch in France, which has existed since 2002.

The global network is growing

"Even in difficult times, such as the global pandemic that has now lasted more than two years, we believe in our international network," says Marzin and adds: "Because we believe in international understanding through personal encounters and the peaceful exchange of ideas and products.

Countless sustainable professional partnerships and friendships for life have been formed at trade fairs.” For 100 years, the trade fair has been working successfully and long-term with its foreign representatives – who now operate as sales partners.

They carried out sales work on site and thus gave Messe Frankfurt access to sectors, customers, ministries and associations in the countries.

The global network is constantly being expanded.

The subsidiaries are said to operate on a different, sometimes overlapping level than the sales partners.

They organize trade fairs in the countries, mostly based on the leading trade fairs in Frankfurt.

In doing so, they also brought new customers to the Frankfurt location again and again.

The trade fair sees this as a model for success, especially in Asia.

In China, Frankfurt is the largest organizer with more than 50 events and the largest offshoot of a German trade fair company with more than 500 employees in six cities.

With more than 20 shows, Frankfurt is also the largest of its kind in India. All foreign representatives help to strengthen Messe Frankfurt: before the pandemic, a good three quarters of the exhibitors and more than half of the trade fair guests came from abroad.