On November 9, the 4th edition of ProWine China - the leading international trade fair for wines and spirits – concluded successfully in Shanghai. As a regional event for ProWein Düsseldorf, ProWine China has continues to lead in quality and quantity regarding its international exhibitors - an ideal destination for Chinese importers, distributors and suppliers to source from the perfect vineyards. This year the trade exhibition attracted 12.431 trade visitors, an increase of 20% year-on-year, with trade visitors from outside of Shanghai representing 36%. These results further validate the extensive promotional efforts by ProWine China’s organizer and the opinion leader in major cities, promoting the exhibition to a larger audience of Chinese wine professionals. Trade professionals from Henan and Guangdong provinces and Beijing are especially active in visiting.
At this year’s ProWine China, some 650 wines and spirits manufacturers, importers and distributors from 37 countries showcased their newest and most sought-after products, presented at the 13 country pavilions and 5 regional pavilions in the exhibition. Most of the international exhibitors were from France, followed by Italy and Spain, including many large wine producers such as Les Grands Chais de France and Distell (South Africa), who have confirmed participation with increased exhibition areas. Australian pavilion doubled their participation compared with last year. The trade fair also attracted exhibitors from Ningxia and Xinjiang Provinces of China, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Belarus and Latvia along the Silk Road. Other major wine regions, including Portugal, Germany, Greece, Austria and the U.S. have also taken part in the exhibition. Brazilian Pavilion and Chianti Pavilion from Italy exhibited for the first time. Meanwhile, Yao Family Wines by YAO Ming, the Chinese basketball star, visited ProWine China 2016. No other wine industry trade fair in China offers such extensive participation by international exhibitors.
Mr. Marius Berlemann, Global Head Wine & Spirits from Messe Düsseldorf expressed great satisfaction with this year’s development: “We are excited to see the development of ProWine China during the past four years. Not only has the trade show grown in volume, but also in breadth of regions from which exhibitors and trade professionals are coming from. We continue to dedicate our resources to providing the industry with a rich and vibrant show program offering new opportunities for all areas within the industry. The addition of the ProWine Asia platform, covering the two vibrant trading hubs of Singapore and Hong Kong, bring even more global coverage to the ProWein World family of international trade shows. ”
ProWine China is jointly organised by Messe Düsseldorf (Shanghai) Co. Ltd and China International Exhibitions Ltd. Brendan Jennings, General Manager, China International Exhibitions noted: “We were delighted with the increased number but most of all by the quality of visitor that attended ProWine China 2016. Over the three day trade show exhibitors met buyers who were knowledgeable about wines and ready to place orders. A considerable advancement on last year, indicating new opportunities and growing potential of the China market for wines”.
FULL PROGRAMME offering a diverse range of activities
ProWine China offered a top-notch supporting programme during all three days of the trade show, focusing great attention to wine education. The “ProWine China Education Campaign” has been successfully held since 2014 including wine seminars, WSET Forum, WINE100 Forum, RVF China: E-Commerce in Wine: Its Current Situation and Future in China, RVF China:Yanqi: An Emerging Wine Region in China, Demeter Masterclass and Decanter Masterclass. The Industry Summit, moderated by Prof. LI Demei, explored the topic of “BRANDING----the importance of wine brand building to new wine market”. Keynote speakers include ZHOU Chuan, GUO Minghao, WANG Wei, LI Chunhui, LI Wei and LV Yang. Neal Martin, the famous wine critic showed up on ProWine China 2016 as a speaker of 'Robert Parker 95+ Master Class' and shared his wine knowledge with the trade visitors.
The exciting exhibitor presentations featured this year attracted much attention: Chinese basketball star YAO Ming attended the Yao Family Wines Masterclass, during which the chief winemaker Mr. Tom Hinde introduced the company’s four series of products. Master of Wine Debra Meiburg shared information on a selection of premium Georgian wines, including the golden sparkling wine and the producer’s exclusive and limited slightly sweet red wine. Country pavilions from France, Italy, Germany, Austria and Bulgaria also hosted masterclasses on various topics.
Special Zone: Champagne Lounge, Spirits Bar, Sommelier Lounge
The Champagne Lounge premiered during ProWine China 2016 to showcase the traditional cultivation and winemaking techniques of champagne. Nine champagne producers exhibited a variety of outstanding champagne products within the 240 square meters of the zone. The Spirits Bar, co-presented by the HK Bartenders Association, was received by trade visitors. The Spirits Bar was run by guest bartenders and Asia's top mixologists offering visitors a range of cocktails, leaving great impressions. The Sommelier Lounge hosted four events during the three days, telling the story of the winery and the wine-masters and offering samples of superb Chinese and international wines.
ProWine China 2017 Dates and Information around the ProWein Family
From 14-16 November 2017 (Tuesday-Thursday), ProWine China 2017 will be held in Shanghai New International Expo Center. ProWein 2017 from 19-21 March, will convene in Düsseldorf, Germany. ProWine ASIA’s second edition will debut in Hong Kong from 8-11 May 2017. Further information on ProWein World’s trade fair family can also be found at www.prowein-world.com, www.prowein.com, and www.prowine-asia.com.
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Quotes on ProWine China 2016
Monica Dornelles, promotion analyst from Brazilian Wine Institute, expressed her great satisfaction with ProWine China, “For Brazil, it’s very nice to be here for the first time. There were lots of good surprises as we connected with the right importers, distributors, and wholesalers. This is one of the best places to promote Brazilian wines in China. This show is very well organized and the organizer and staff are very helpful. Next year we will participate with more wineries with bigger scaled participation. We are surprised to connect with so many good contacts and I’m already so satisfied with the trade fair.”
Luca A. Alves Franco, the organizer of Chianti pavilion said, “From the institutional side, it’s important to be here. I saw several country groups present, including some new regions this year like Georgia and Hungary. It’s a very interesting blend which is promising for the future. ProWine China has more European representation, with cleaner and more well-organized visual and technical presentation.”
Willa Yang, the Head of Market China from Wine Australia, “This year is the second time for Wine Australia to participate at ProWine China. Due to the positive feedbacks from the Australian exhibitors in the previous year, the stand area was enlarged in comparison to the year before. This year, exhibitors are very satisfied with the design and layout of the pavilion and services provided by both us and the organizer. Most of them have got some potential leads.”
Robert Lawson, the owner of VICTOR Vineyards joined this year’s California pavilion, “it’s been a nice show to work! We’re doing a lot of good business and it’s been a great experience. The show is just industry, which is why we’re here. We’ve met with good buyers and we are satisfied with the quality of visitors – that’s why you buy your ticket, right? Our Chinese agent really pushed us to participate in ProWine China, and we heard some really good things from the California Wine Institute, which is why we decided to try it out this year. We plan to continue on with the ProWein World family in the future.”
Rosa Maria Martinez Lopez, Business Development Manager from VENERABLE CAPITAL S.L. mentioned, “We are very happy with ProWine China – the professionalism of the visitors brings a different “taste” to the show. We plan to continue exhibiting with the ProWine platform because we are happy with quality of the buyers and visitors who come.”
Press Contact ProWine China:
Messe Düsseldorf (Shanghai) Co.,Ltd.
Ellie Xu Tel.: +86 21 6169 8355 ellie.xu@mds.cn
Press Contact ProWine China & FHC:
China International Exhibitions Ltd.
Margaret Zhang Tel.: +86 21 6209 5209 margaret@chinaallworld.com