Of the 23137 visitors that flocked through the doors of Koelnmesse, 88% were from Europe, 5% from Asia, 4% from the Middle East and Africa and 3% from the Americas. As anticipated, Germany had the largest visitor delegation, followed by the Netherlands, the UK, Belgium, Italy and France. 68% of attendees came from outside of the host nation.

Cologne’s proximity to the Netherlands meant that FESPA 2015 welcomed its largest number of delegates from the country to a Global Expo. There was also a significant increase of visitors from Belgium, with more than double the number attending the 2015 event compared with FESPA 2010, the last time the Global Expo took place in Germany. Cologne’s Northern European location also meant that there was a 37% increase in printers from Scandinavia, compared with FESPA 2010.

FESPA’s direct presence in Turkey through FESPA Eurasia has impacted visitors from the area, with a 27% rise in attendees from the country. The FESPA China brand has also had an effect, with a 59% increase on representatives from Asia compared with FESPA 2010.

FESPA CEO, Neil Felton, comments: “FESPA 2015 has been our biggest Global Expo event by far, with the most exhibitors, the most visitors and the richest international visitor mix. It’s excellent to see the value the global print community places in the FESPA Global Expo and how our expansion outside Europe has stimulated even greater interest in our flagship event. FESPA’s peripatetic cycle attracts new followers in new territories and the move to Cologne refreshed our audience yet again, ensuring that exhibitors build new relationships with every FESPA show.

“Next year, as we move to Amsterdam for FESPA Digital 2016, we will aim to keep our loyal following, while engaging new visitor audiences from a range of vertical markets, building on the 10-year heritage of the Digital event.”

About FESPA

Founded in 1962, FESPA is a global federation of 37 member associations for the screen printing, digital printing and textile printing community. FESPA’s dual aim is to promote screen printing and digital imaging and to share knowledge about screen and digital printing with its members across the world, helping them to grow their businesses and learn about the latest developments in their fast growing industries.

Forthcoming FESPA events include

FESPA Africa, 22-24 July 2015, Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa African Print Conference, 22-23 July 2015, Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa FESPA Mexico 2015, 20-22 August 2015, Centro Banamex, Mexico City, Mexico Brasil Signage Expo, 27-28 August 2015, Expo Center Norte, São Paulo, Brazil FESPA China 2015, 21-23 October 2015, Shanghai New Int’l Expo Centre, Shanghai, China FESPA Eurasia 2015, 26-29 November 2015, CNR Expo, Istanbul, Turkey FESPA Digital 2016, 08-11 March 2016, RAI Amsterdam, The Netherlands