Quality trade buyers and new business opportunities generated ensures high exhibitor satisfaction

Ongoing potential in Chinese market and strong demand for international products bodes well for overseas exhibitors

Reflecting the general optimism surrounding the technical textiles and nonwovens market in Asia, Cinte Techtextil China ended on a high last month with steady increases in the size of the fair and its internationalism. 480 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions (2014: 460, 22 countries and regions) took part, with new representation from Denmark, Japan, Poland and Sweden at this edition. This increase was matched in the buyer figure with 13,085 visits recorded (2014: 12,496), and these trade buyers coming from 67 countries and regions (2014: 61). The top 10 overseas countries and regions were Korea, Taiwan, Japan, USA, India, Russia, Italy, Germany, Hong Kong and Thailand. Both the exhibitor and visit figures were new records for Cinte Techtextil China, while at 35,000 gross sqm, the fair was the same size as the previous edition.

“Our focus in the lead up to the event was on ensuring we provided a quality trade platform for both exhibitors and buyers, and the feedback from both groups confirms this was the case,” Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager, Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd said. “Attracting high-quality buyers both from China and further afield, including many new potential business partners for exhibitors, Cinte Techtextil China has further solidified its reputation in Asia as the leading trade event for the technical textiles and nonwovens industry. Coupled with the strong demand in the region at present – which is predicted to continue in the coming years, particularly in China – the 2016 edition of the fair can be considered a strong success.”

Quality trade buyers and new business opportunities generated ensures high exhibitor satisfaction

Demonstrating this strong demand and the fair’s effectiveness, many exhibitors reported strong buyer flow, the chance to meet new, quality contacts, as well as orders being placed during the three-day event. One such exhibitor was Johns Manville, participating in the fair for the first time. “I think the buyers in this fair are very professional compared to other shows in China,” Mr Raymond Zhang, Technical Support Engineer from the American company’s Shanghai office explained. “The fair has helped us meet both existing and new buyers – 60% of enquiries are new contacts. What’s more, this is a good platform to learn more about the Chinese trends and market information to help our business. We can see many of our competitors here too so that proves this is the right place to be.” Fellow first-time exhibitors J.H. Ziegler from Germany, who already have a high-end customer base in China including BMW and Audi, expressed a similar view. “After participating here for the first time, it transpires that the results have been better than other fairs we attend in China. Many of our target customers came to our booth to seek cooperation, and they were all high-end buyers,” Mr Roger Zhang, Sales Manager said.

Also participating from Germany and targeting domestic buyers was Temafa Maschinenfabrik, part of the Dilo Group. Mr Uwe Kamps, Sales District Manager commented: “The fair has been good for us as we’ve been able to meet many existing customers, as well as some potential new clients. We have had the right target buyers visit our booth too. This fair is definitely effective for targeting the Chinese market, and is one of the most important fairs in China.”

Asian exhibitors also found the fair effective for generating new business, particularly those in the Korea Pavilion organised by the Korea Textile Trade Association (KTTA). “Our exhibitors have had many orders in the first two days including from Europe, the US and Australia. Around 70% of them received orders on the spot,” Mr Tako Lee, manager from KTTA explained. Modern Intech was one of these exhibitors. “We met our existing clients here as well as new potential customers from China, India and Europe. I’m happy with the quality of these buyers too,” Mr Jun-Ki Shin, the Overseas Business Dept. Team Manager outlined. Likewise, exhibitors from China came away happy with their participation in the fair. “Cinte Techtextil enjoys a strong reputation in China,” Mr Xiaolin Lee, Manager of Industrial Yarn Foreign Trade, Jiangsu Hengli Chemical Fibre said. “What’s more, it has a strong international profile too, so many overseas buyers have come to our booth.”

Ongoing potential in Chinese market and strong demand for international products bodes well for overseas exhibitors

Overseas exhibitors in particular were buoyant about the ongoing potential in the Chinese market, as well as the demand from domestic buyers for international brands. “The technical textiles industry is growing this year and we still expect much more growth in the next few years. When I talk to my customers here, most of them are optimistic about the future, and are still investing and expecting more business in China,” Mr Cees van de Sande, Technical Manager Performance Coating Division of Dutch company Stahl explained. When asked about the demand for overseas brands, he continued: “The Chinese market needs better quality and more environmentally friendly products in the future. As the industry in China upgrades, companies with high-quality products will do well here, which is why exhibitors at this fair are targeting the mid to high-end markets.”

Autefa Solution’s Dr Joachim Binnig, Vice President, Head of Development & Technology, concurred. “Business is still good in China for us despite the slower economy. There is a definite shift to more high-quality machinery in China that isn’t affected by the economic situation. Moreover, there are opportunities for overseas suppliers as there is still a gap between what Chinese companies produce and us. We are optimistic going forward in this market.” Fellow German company Ibena also benefited from their European brand, with Ms Ping Chen, General Manager of Ibena Shanghai Technical Textiles commenting: “In the Chinese market, customers want good quality products, so overseas companies have a lot of potential. This fair is also a good way to keep updated with market developments in China too.” Swiss firm Swisstulle returned to the fair to take advantage of strong demand. “As we supply the automotive industry, we’re not being affected by the slower economy in China; in fact we are growing here. We’ve been surprised that the growth has been maintained here actually, so we’re optimistic about the future of the Chinese market. We’ve had many more buyers come to our booth this year, both existing customers and new potential customers,” Ms Susana Godinho, Sales Director said.

A number of exhibitors also commented that eco-friendly products were gaining in popularity in China, including KTTA and J.H. Ziegler. Another was Jowat (Beijing) Adhesives: “As the demand for green products is increasing in China, we feel optimistic about our business prospects, and chose this fair as a stepping stone to enter the Chinese market. Being an overseas brand, this attracts more domestic buyers who are looking for quality products,” Mr Stone Shi, Technical Service Engineer explained.

Synergies from fair’s 12 product application areas appreciated by exhibitors and buyers

By featuring products that cover 12 different application areas, the fair creates more opportunities for participants than events with a more narrow focus, something that was appreciated by both exhibitors and buyers. “As our company has a range of products that can be used in various industry sectors, it’s good for us that the fair covers the different areas as we can meet more potential customers,” said Mr Shin from Modern Intech. “Many of our existing customers are also exhibitors here at the fair,” Mr Steven Liu, Sales Manager of Sanitized from Switzerland commented. Autefa, Stahl and Swisstulle all shared the same experience, with Ms Godinho from Swisstulle saying: “Nonwovens buyers from another hall have stopped at our booth to see what we have, so it’s useful having all the application areas here.”

Mr Simon Sweetland, Sales Director (Asia) of KL Technologies from the UK also found the product variety beneficial. “I prefer that the fair covers more applications for functional textiles as it means greater opportunities to promote to more buyers,” he said. One of these buyers was Mr Thapelo Mabasa from Lazwi Engineering, South Africa. “Since the show covers 12 application areas, I can see some materials or technologies that I didn’t know about. Whatever my customers need, I’m likely to find it here.”

Innovation, product range and quality impress buyers

Buyers praised the fair not only for its wide product coverage, but also for the quality of exhibitors and the opportunity to discover new trends and technologies. “This is a good fair with quality exhibitors, and we are able to see new products and technologies here,” Mr Issa Abdullah, Wipes World – Wet Wipes Factory of Israel commented. “It’s also beneficial the fair covers a wide range of applications as we can see new products and get inspiration for our business.” First-time visitor Mr Kiril Kirilov from Naishfelts of Bulgaria was satisfied with the product range. “I can find many companies with the products I need here, and I will follow up with them after the fair. What’s more, I can discover new trends here from the innovative products on offer.”

Mr Andrey A. Bakhurin from TOPMASH, a Russian industry association was impressed with the quality of domestic exhibitors at the fair. “We expected to see high-quality Chinese machinery here and that expectation has been met,” he said. “The Chinese suppliers have improved a lot in recent years, so we plan to sign agreements with some of them here.” Mr Rudi van der Hooft from ZYEX Ltd in the UK was also impressed with the Chinese exhibitors. “Nowadays in this industry, China is starting to produce high-value products like those from Europe and the US. This fair helps us to find these type of exhibitors and to get to know the Chinese market better. Coming to this fair has paved the way for my company’s business in China.”

Cinte Techtextil China was organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Nonwovens & Industrial Textiles Association (CNITA). The next Messe Frankfurt technical textiles trade fair in China will be the China International Nonwovens Expo & Forum (CINE) taking place from 21 – 23 June 2017 in Shanghai. The next Cinte Techtextil China will take place in 2018.