Pet supplies sector in a state of euphoria

With six weeks still to go before the official start of summer, the organisers of Interzoo were in a sunny mood. There was a fantastic atmosphere at the world's biggest pet supplies show. Interzoo 2006 set new records both for exhibitors and visitors and impressively underlined its position as the number one trade show in the pet supplies sector. This renewed growth comes as something of a surprise, because in recent years all the specialist fairs in the sector in Europe have stagnated or even suffered a reverse. And yet it is precisely the Europeans who once again made their mark on Interzoo, with almost 86 per cent of the visitors coming from Germany, Great Britain, France and other European states. No matter how impressive the growth rates for visitors from other continents, the Europeans continue to dominate Interzoo in terms of numbers. And this situation is not likely to change in the next few years. It's a different picture when it comes to exhibitors. The USA and China have been two of the principal exhibiting nations for years. Their numbers increased again at this year's Interzoo, while there were fewer exhibitors this time from important countries like Italy and Spain, for example, than two years ago. Eastern Europe continues to offer great growth potential for the future, with lots of new companies being created. The Czech Republic in particular spawned an astonishing number of companies exhibiting for the first time this year. As expected, the number of ground-breaking innovations at Interzoo 2006 was limited. Sensational show performances featuring scantily clad girls were often an attempt to hide the fairly modest novelty content of many stands. But what does that matter - "sex sells" and "there's no business like show business" are old maxims that apply to the pet supplies sector too. Nevertheless, a host of new products were also presented at the show that could add interest and variety to the market. New concepts guaranteeing optimum presentation at the point of sale met with a particularly high level of interest from trade visitors. Such concepts were to be found above all on the stands of accessory suppliers. A notable feature with regard to exhibitors from the aquatics segment was the number of companies aggressively promoting aquariums as a hobby. Whether the ideas and concepts presented will be taken up by speciality retailers remains to be seen. Will Interzoo help to boost the upbeat mood further? Or will the party atmosphere give…