2017 Most Successful Odd-numbered Year in Company History
31 Jan 2018 13:40 Economy
Sales revenue more than EUR six million above plan
With the G20 Summit held at our fair complex, the award of the CCH operator contract with a 25-year term, the discontinuation of the hanseboot boat fair, the operation of the multiple award-winning German Pavilion at the EXPO 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan, and the successful debuts of two new trade fairs in Hamburg, 2017 has been an exceptionally eventful year. The planned increase of sales revenues over the reference year 2015 was exceeded significantly. All this added up to the best operational business result of an odd calendar year in the 45-year history of Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH (HMC). “We had planned for a seven million Euro increase of turnover but achieved nearly twice that,” reports Bernd Aufderheide, President and CEO of HMC. “The significance of this outcome cannot be overstated if we consider the fact that this was the first time in company history that the premises of the CCH - Congress Center Hamburg were not available to us. Again and again we had to cope with entirely new situations during the year, which demanded an enormous amount of flexibility from all our staff. I would like to emphasise that this was not limited to the G20 Summit but was also the case during the more than two dozen events normally held at the CCH which had to be integrated into the fair hall schedule. Apart from that, every first-time trade fair is an entirely new experience for us, and we handled two of them.”
Review: Exceptions become the norm
This excellent annual result can be attributed mainly to a sales revenue increase of nearly ten per cent achieved by trade fairs and services, high-profile guest events, the EXPO involvement and the G20 Summit. “In the past we considered events such as the latter two as exceptional. In retrospect and looking ahead I can say today that such ‘exceptions’ have become a major aspect of our business. In 2016 we were host to the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting, in the previous years the National Convention of the Evangelical Church in Germany as well as the Lions Clubs International Convention. Our schedule for 2019 lists the Rotary International Convention and the operational responsibility for the German pavilion at the Beijing Horticultural Expo 2019,” says Aufderheide.
At 75.8 million Euro, the 2017 turnover exceeded the result of the reference year, 2015 (62.7 million Euro), by 21 per cent. We had planned for a revenue increase of eleven per cent to achieve total revenue of 69.5 million Euro. After the subtraction of 3.1 million Euro in planned remodelling costs, high expenditures for leased venues, depreciation and amortisation of fixed assets, and interest, we arrive at an annual result of 23 million Euro in deficit, which is 7.1 million better than expected. “We have taken a huge step towards our goal of achieving a balanced consolidated result from our strong, even-numbered years and the traditionally weaker, odd years by 2024/2025,” Bernd Aufderheide stresses.
Because of the closure of the CCH - Congress Center Hamburg for revitalisation, the key figures for events and visitors at the fair complex shifted somewhat in 2017. In total, 668,974 participants and visitors attended events at the fair complex during the past fiscal year. 622,604 guests were counted at 38 trade fairs and events in Hamburg. An additional 46,370 people attended 25 CCH events held in the fair halls. With 1,078,561 square metres of floor area utilised, the record set in the even-numbered year 2016 was topped.
Among the outstanding trade fairs held at the complex in 2017 was once again INTERNORGA, the international fair for hospitality, catering, bakeries and confectioneries: Its comprehensive programme and its 1,300 exhibitors from 25 different countries drew as many as 96,000 industry visitors. About 80 per cent of the visitors at the fair, which had been shortened to five days, were decision-makers, highlighting the importance of INTERNORGA as Europe’s leading industry fair and trend-setting event.
Two fairs celebrated successful premieres: home² and HAMBURG MOTOR CLASSICS. In January 2017, home², the trade fair for real estate, building and modernisation, drew a crowd of roughly 10,000 prospective builders and home owners seeking comprehensive information from the fair’s 175 exhibitors. The year’s second inaugural event was HAMBURG MOTOR CLASSICS in October. For three days, 170 exhibitors presented their vehicles and services in three halls. A highlight of the legacy automobile expo was the “1st ADAC HAMBURG MOTOR CLASSICS RALLYE” competing for the “DREAM CAR CUP”, with approximately 60 classic and vintage cars racing the 150 kilometre track.
The culmination point of the year at the Hamburg fair complex was the G20 Summit on 7 and 8 July 2017. 36 international delegations, a total of 6,000 participants, came to Hamburg for this gathering of the leading industrialised nations and emerging economies, including 19 heads of state as well as representatives of the European Union, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and numerous NGOs.
Guest Events can count on many faithful customers
A significant share of HMC’s success can be attributed to the 31 guest events organised at the fair complex, many of them taking place on a regular basis. Among others they included Nordstil, the biennial regional buyers’ fair organised by Frankfurt Messe, the Frankfurt fair organisation, at the Hamburg fair complex for the local audience, or Aircraft Interiors Expo, the world's leading trade fair for interior outfitting of aircraft cabins, which takes place in Hamburg once per year. EINSTIEG, an education and recruiting fair, and Hanse Golf both celebrated their 15th anniversaries in 2017. The Online Marketing Rockstars Festival, launched in 2016 with an attendance of more than 16,000, saw nearly 27,000 participants last year.
CCH – 12,000 is the number of the future
Comprehensive revitalisation works began at CCH - Congress Center Hamburg in January 2017. Europe’s first dedicated convention centre (originally opened in 1973) is undergoing a 194 million Euro modernisation project to meet the requirements of future events. When finished, it will offer 12,000 square metres of exhibition space, another 12,000 square metres of foyer space, and 12,000 seats in up to 50 halls and rooms.
International activities: HMC accompanies German exhibitors abroad
Apart from managing the German pavilion at the EXPO 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan, HMC organised 17 joint exhibition stands for several hundred German exhibitors at trade fairs in Russia, Korea, China, the United States, the United Arab Emirates and other countries, either as a contractor of the German Federal Ministry of Economy and Energy, or independently.
Outlook on 2018 – new events and a small anniversary
In 2018 Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH will again depend entirely on the assets of the Hamburg fair complex. Eleven HMC-organised events are scheduled at this venue, including the flagship fair INTERNORGA; SMM – the leading international maritime trade fair, which is fully booked eight months ahead of its beginning; and WindEnergy Hamburg, held in conjunction with the global conference of WindEurope to form the Global Wind Summit 2018, the largest international event of the wind energy industry.
One of the noteworthy changes on the 2018 event calendar will be the integration of the tourism trade fair REISEN HAMBURG into the umbrella event “oohh! Die FreizeitWelten der Hamburg Messe” (freely translated: “The LeisureWorlds of Hamburg Messe”), joining the bicycling expo RAD HAMBURG, the CARAVANING HAMBURG fair and the cruise fair KREUZFAHRTWELT HAMBURG as a fourth ‘FreizeitWelt’, or specialised fair for holiday planners. This new combined event concept intends to help the respective target audiences find what they want more easily. The entrance fee will give visitors access to all four fairs plus the automobile fair AUTOTAGE HAMBURG.
A small anniversary will be celebrated in May: For the 25th time since 1994, Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH will organise the Hamburg Port Anniversary on behalf of the State Office for Economy, Transport and Innovation.
The sales revenue expected in 2018 is 99.9 million Euro.
Guest events and international business
Once again, more than 30 third-party events will contribute to the expected revenue, including the Post Expo 2018, the 53rd GOLDEN CAMERA Awards, the Online Marketing Rockstars Festival which expects yet another increase in attendance numbers, and others.
As part of its international activities, Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH will organise 14 joint stands of German exhibitors at fairs in Japan, Malaysia, Chile and other countries. In addition, HMC will prepare its management of the German pavilion at the Beijing Horticultural Expo 2019. This will be the sixth time HMC assists in German participation in a World Expo.
With the G20 Summit held at our fair complex, the award of the CCH operator contract with a 25-year term, the discontinuation of the hanseboot boat fair, the operation of the multiple award-winning German Pavilion at the EXPO 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan, and the successful debuts of two new trade fairs in Hamburg, 2017 has been an exceptionally eventful year. The planned increase of sales revenues over the reference year 2015 was exceeded significantly. All this added up to the best operational business result of an odd calendar year in the 45-year history of Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH (HMC). “We had planned for a seven million Euro increase of turnover but achieved nearly twice that,” reports Bernd Aufderheide, President and CEO of HMC. “The significance of this outcome cannot be overstated if we consider the fact that this was the first time in company history that the premises of the CCH - Congress Center Hamburg were not available to us. Again and again we had to cope with entirely new situations during the year, which demanded an enormous amount of flexibility from all our staff. I would like to emphasise that this was not limited to the G20 Summit but was also the case during the more than two dozen events normally held at the CCH which had to be integrated into the fair hall schedule. Apart from that, every first-time trade fair is an entirely new experience for us, and we handled two of them.”
Review: Exceptions become the norm
This excellent annual result can be attributed mainly to a sales revenue increase of nearly ten per cent achieved by trade fairs and services, high-profile guest events, the EXPO involvement and the G20 Summit. “In the past we considered events such as the latter two as exceptional. In retrospect and looking ahead I can say today that such ‘exceptions’ have become a major aspect of our business. In 2016 we were host to the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting, in the previous years the National Convention of the Evangelical Church in Germany as well as the Lions Clubs International Convention. Our schedule for 2019 lists the Rotary International Convention and the operational responsibility for the German pavilion at the Beijing Horticultural Expo 2019,” says Aufderheide.
At 75.8 million Euro, the 2017 turnover exceeded the result of the reference year, 2015 (62.7 million Euro), by 21 per cent. We had planned for a revenue increase of eleven per cent to achieve total revenue of 69.5 million Euro. After the subtraction of 3.1 million Euro in planned remodelling costs, high expenditures for leased venues, depreciation and amortisation of fixed assets, and interest, we arrive at an annual result of 23 million Euro in deficit, which is 7.1 million better than expected. “We have taken a huge step towards our goal of achieving a balanced consolidated result from our strong, even-numbered years and the traditionally weaker, odd years by 2024/2025,” Bernd Aufderheide stresses.
Because of the closure of the CCH - Congress Center Hamburg for revitalisation, the key figures for events and visitors at the fair complex shifted somewhat in 2017. In total, 668,974 participants and visitors attended events at the fair complex during the past fiscal year. 622,604 guests were counted at 38 trade fairs and events in Hamburg. An additional 46,370 people attended 25 CCH events held in the fair halls. With 1,078,561 square metres of floor area utilised, the record set in the even-numbered year 2016 was topped.
Among the outstanding trade fairs held at the complex in 2017 was once again INTERNORGA, the international fair for hospitality, catering, bakeries and confectioneries: Its comprehensive programme and its 1,300 exhibitors from 25 different countries drew as many as 96,000 industry visitors. About 80 per cent of the visitors at the fair, which had been shortened to five days, were decision-makers, highlighting the importance of INTERNORGA as Europe’s leading industry fair and trend-setting event.
Two fairs celebrated successful premieres: home² and HAMBURG MOTOR CLASSICS. In January 2017, home², the trade fair for real estate, building and modernisation, drew a crowd of roughly 10,000 prospective builders and home owners seeking comprehensive information from the fair’s 175 exhibitors. The year’s second inaugural event was HAMBURG MOTOR CLASSICS in October. For three days, 170 exhibitors presented their vehicles and services in three halls. A highlight of the legacy automobile expo was the “1st ADAC HAMBURG MOTOR CLASSICS RALLYE” competing for the “DREAM CAR CUP”, with approximately 60 classic and vintage cars racing the 150 kilometre track.
The culmination point of the year at the Hamburg fair complex was the G20 Summit on 7 and 8 July 2017. 36 international delegations, a total of 6,000 participants, came to Hamburg for this gathering of the leading industrialised nations and emerging economies, including 19 heads of state as well as representatives of the European Union, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and numerous NGOs.
Guest Events can count on many faithful customers
A significant share of HMC’s success can be attributed to the 31 guest events organised at the fair complex, many of them taking place on a regular basis. Among others they included Nordstil, the biennial regional buyers’ fair organised by Frankfurt Messe, the Frankfurt fair organisation, at the Hamburg fair complex for the local audience, or Aircraft Interiors Expo, the world's leading trade fair for interior outfitting of aircraft cabins, which takes place in Hamburg once per year. EINSTIEG, an education and recruiting fair, and Hanse Golf both celebrated their 15th anniversaries in 2017. The Online Marketing Rockstars Festival, launched in 2016 with an attendance of more than 16,000, saw nearly 27,000 participants last year.
CCH – 12,000 is the number of the future
Comprehensive revitalisation works began at CCH - Congress Center Hamburg in January 2017. Europe’s first dedicated convention centre (originally opened in 1973) is undergoing a 194 million Euro modernisation project to meet the requirements of future events. When finished, it will offer 12,000 square metres of exhibition space, another 12,000 square metres of foyer space, and 12,000 seats in up to 50 halls and rooms.
International activities: HMC accompanies German exhibitors abroad
Apart from managing the German pavilion at the EXPO 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan, HMC organised 17 joint exhibition stands for several hundred German exhibitors at trade fairs in Russia, Korea, China, the United States, the United Arab Emirates and other countries, either as a contractor of the German Federal Ministry of Economy and Energy, or independently.
Outlook on 2018 – new events and a small anniversary
In 2018 Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH will again depend entirely on the assets of the Hamburg fair complex. Eleven HMC-organised events are scheduled at this venue, including the flagship fair INTERNORGA; SMM – the leading international maritime trade fair, which is fully booked eight months ahead of its beginning; and WindEnergy Hamburg, held in conjunction with the global conference of WindEurope to form the Global Wind Summit 2018, the largest international event of the wind energy industry.
One of the noteworthy changes on the 2018 event calendar will be the integration of the tourism trade fair REISEN HAMBURG into the umbrella event “oohh! Die FreizeitWelten der Hamburg Messe” (freely translated: “The LeisureWorlds of Hamburg Messe”), joining the bicycling expo RAD HAMBURG, the CARAVANING HAMBURG fair and the cruise fair KREUZFAHRTWELT HAMBURG as a fourth ‘FreizeitWelt’, or specialised fair for holiday planners. This new combined event concept intends to help the respective target audiences find what they want more easily. The entrance fee will give visitors access to all four fairs plus the automobile fair AUTOTAGE HAMBURG.
A small anniversary will be celebrated in May: For the 25th time since 1994, Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH will organise the Hamburg Port Anniversary on behalf of the State Office for Economy, Transport and Innovation.
The sales revenue expected in 2018 is 99.9 million Euro.
Guest events and international business
Once again, more than 30 third-party events will contribute to the expected revenue, including the Post Expo 2018, the 53rd GOLDEN CAMERA Awards, the Online Marketing Rockstars Festival which expects yet another increase in attendance numbers, and others.
As part of its international activities, Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH will organise 14 joint stands of German exhibitors at fairs in Japan, Malaysia, Chile and other countries. In addition, HMC will prepare its management of the German pavilion at the Beijing Horticultural Expo 2019. This will be the sixth time HMC assists in German participation in a World Expo.
2017 Most Successful Odd-numbered Year in Company History
Press contact
Hamburg Messe und Congress
Karsten Broockmann
Company Spokesman
ph. +49 40 3569 2090
E-mail: karsten.broockmann@hamburg-messe.de
Karsten Broockmann
Company Spokesman
ph. +49 40 3569 2090
E-mail: karsten.broockmann@hamburg-messe.de