Hoping for still more international visitors

The leading US pet products show, the Global Pet Expo, will take place on 12-14 March at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando/Florida, and officials report that they are expecting more international buyers and exhibitors than ever before.
The 2014 event, which also happens to be the 10th Annual Global Pet Expo, aims to demonstrate the show’s international influence in a very powerful way, with numbers expected to surpass those of previous record-setting shows.

In 2013, the Global Pet Expo’s international attendees made a significant contribution to overall attendance figures. More than 18 per cent, or 172 of the 964 exhibitors, were from outside the US. This is nearly triple the number of international exhibitors at the inaugural Global Pet Expo that took place a decade ago. The show also had record attendance of 5 324 qualified buyers. International attendance accounted for nearly 27 per cent of the overall buyer attendance rate, representing 72 countries from around the world. Additionally, the show featured 2 686 stands on more than 60 000 m2 and more than 3 000 new product launches. These numbers further reinforce the show’s position as a key trading opportunity for countries from around the world.
“The international presence at Global Pet Expo has grown significantly over the past decade,” said Andrew Darmohraj, executive vice president & COO of APPA. “With a continued, impressive upward trend in numbers of buyers and exhibitors from around the world, Global Pet Expo has proved to be the must-attend show of the year. This is also the first opportunity of the year for buyers to see, first-hand, more new product launches than they will find at any other industry show.”

The exhibition will be larger than ever in 2014, providing attendees with the opportunity to see even more of the latest innovations making their debut at this show. The New Products Showcase will also be expanded in this year, featuring more than 800 cutting-edge pet products. The display will cover more than 1 300 m2, and offers buyers an exclusive look at the newest pro­ducts entering the market for 2014. Buyers are invited to judge the year’s best new pet products, and the Best in Show awards will be…