"Thank you for a fantastic week" is how the renowned Finnish shipyard Nautor sums it up on behalf of the vast majority of exhibitors. "boot Düsseldorf makes a new start. Water sports trade fair makes a successful comeback" is the headline of the trade fair company itself in the latest press release and it also quotes figures: More than 1,500 exhibitors met almost 237,000 visitors from over 100 countries in 16 exhibition halls. Three years of forced closure due to the pandemic could not have affected the event.
"Despite the challenging conditions, boot 2023 has been a success story. We could never have dreamed of such a positive result. boot has regained its calm waters and is firmly anchored in its Düsseldorf home harbour. This successful return has shown that trade fairs 'made in Düsseldorf' have international appeal," says trade fair boss Wolfram Diener. boot Düsseldorf boss Petros Michelidakis adds: "The discussions with the exhibitors were incredibly good, viewing appointments on the boats were fully booked and the companies reported a large number of boat and accessory sales." Michelidakis emphasises the international nature of the trade fair: In addition to visitors from all over Germany, experts from the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, France, the UK, Turkey and Spain in particular used the trade fair to find out about the latest innovations from the industry.
boot Düsseldorf: "If you weren't there, you missed out"
In 2020, there were still around 250,000 visitors and over 1,900 exhibitors. And well-known manufacturers such as the entire Hanseatic Group, X-Yachts and the Sirius shipyard were missing at this year's restart. On top of this, large unused areas and wide aisles in the halls initially painted a pessimistic picture, but this quickly changed.
The industry's assessment of the trade fair was consistently positive. Christian Daum from Bente Yachts: "For me, it was a very valuable trade fair in every respect. On the one hand, we presented our new Bente 28 (here the complete test, please click) We had our world premiere at boot, and we are also very happy to have been back at the leading water sports trade fair after the forced break. The public was very enthusiastic about our boats and we were also able to gain new partners. Our luggage for the journey home is well filled with numerous good business contacts and signed boat orders. Anyone who wasn't there as an exhibitor at the trade fair during this restart after Corona has definitely missed out."
Boat Düsseldorf newcomer Uwe Regensdorf, managing director of the MFH Emden shipyard, was present with his retro-classic Tide 36 (here the test, please click) and the Tide 25: "We were there for the first time, wanted to make new contacts and are hoping for serious enquiries, we are definitely satisfied and happy to have been there."
A complete success!"
Andreas Schöchl, Sunbeam Watersports
Andreas Schöchl from Sunbeam Watersports in Austria was even more enthusiastic: "The trade fair was sensational for us. A great international audience and a fantastic response to our products. We sold boats, wrote several offers and arranged trial sailing appointments. So it was a complete success."
Top competition spurs interest
The industry's heavyweights were also delighted. Beneteau spokesperson Luc Joessel: "boot 2023 was really good for Beneteau. We were very eager and excited to exhibit here again and showed over 20 boats in three halls. The good news is that our customers were just as excited. We were very impressed with the quantity and quality of potential customers at our stands. They came from all over Europe. The First 36 ( to the test ) was a great success, and the fact that it was awarded the title of Europe's yacht of the year has definitely increased interest in the boat."
Joessel's colleague Vanessa Clairgeaux from sister shipyard Jeanneau: "The 2023 edition of boot Düsseldorf was very positive for us with a lot of commercial activity, especially in the 27-foot and above powerboats and 40-foot and above sailboats. We were pleasantly surprised by the continuous flow of visitors from all over Europe, which shows that there is still interest in water sports. The show was the perfect platform to launch our new Jeanneau Yachts 55. Congratulations to the organisers for once again putting on the world's best indoor show."
Competitor Bavaria is also satisfied. CEO Marc Diening: "After a 2-year break, boot 2023 was once again a complete success for us. We welcomed many interested and knowledgeable visitors to our stands, both for our sailing yachts and our motorboats. We developed new ideas in dialogue with customers and were able to get our visitors excited about water sports and our yachts in particular."
The Dutch shipyards were also basically satisfied: Geert Wijma from Yachtwerft Heeg spoke of a good atmosphere and full, sometimes even too full stands. Marcel Offereins, Sales Manager at Contest Yachts, sees a very focussed interest among customers. Dennis Hennvanger from Saffier is less keen to follow the trend of the other statements and sees fewer international customers and a drop in the quality of interested parties.
Satisfaction again among the outfitters at boot Düsseldorf. Peter Kohlhoff, importer and wholesaler for deck equipment and steering systems: "From our point of view, the trade fair was very interesting and was great fun again after the forced break. We were struck by the great interest on all days; it felt like the 2000s, when the flow of visitors never stopped. Another thing that struck me was the large number of foreign visitors from Holland, France, Italy and overseas. We had quite a few visitors from Australia and the USA."
Meinrad Hiller, Managing Director of the fittings manufacturer and multi-brand dealer Pfeiffer Marine, essentially confirms this: "Our expectations were far exceeded! In terms of numbers and quality, there were a lot of good visitors! A good start to 2023!"
Stefan Matschuck, Managing Director of North Sails: "It was great to see customers, friends and partners again after three years in Düsseldorf. There was great interest and demand every day, even during the week. Anyone who wasn't there really missed out. We can draw a very positive conclusion."
Sustainability as a trade fair theme
According to the trade fair company, the new sustainability forum "blue innovation dock", where industry, politics and international associations met for dialogue, also attracted a great deal of attention. Philip Easthill, Secretary General of the Association of the European Boating Industry/Brussels, sums up the nine-day programme very positively: "It was a great success for the trade fair and has opened up a fascinating new perspective for a sustainable future for the boating industry. The presence of over 110 high-calibre speakers, from CEOs to political decision-makers, underlines the importance of sustainability for water sports. The industry has already made great strides in the development of sustainable materials, propulsion systems and marinas, and we will be able to support them intensively in the future with the 'blue innovation dock'."
The next boot Düsseldorf will take place from 20 to 28 January 2024.
More about boot Düsseldorf: the premieres
