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For Pirmin Germann (50), co-owner of the plumbing company Innobad Swiss AG, Olma is a fixed point in the calendar. But the eastern Swiss entrepreneur isn’t interested in having a glass of wine with visitors. Relies on new customers and connections. Many small business owners feel the same way. This situation has been jeopardized by the demise of trade fairs in Switzerland. Blick meets the managing director of Lenggenwil SG at the Olma stand.
Pirmin Germann has been participating in Switzerland’s largest public trade fair every year since 2017. Don’t be is a platform for his company. “You have to get out there and talk to people,” says Germann. Innobad Swiss AG specializes in bathroom renovations. It’s about new showers, redesigned bathtubs or completely new bathrooms. «You need to be able to see and touch these products. This is very important,” explains the co-owner.
After all, the figures after the fair must be accurate. Germann pays around 6,000 francs for a fairly small exhibition space. It’s not cheap for eleven days. But it’s definitely worth it, says Germann: “The Being has resulted in around 30 new orders for us. “This will replace two months of good work.” Additionally, many customers remember the name and order at a later date.
Other participants agree. The public trade show is also very important for kitchen manufacturers and TV dealers. A television store confirmed to Blick that it made a quarter of its annual turnover from Olma. If there were no more existence, a large part of it would disappear.
That’s not that realistic right now. Because Olma fairs have a financial problem. St. The company behind the exhibition center in St. Gallen almost went bankrupt in 2020 due to the corona pandemic. The public sector would have to inject millions. Although things look better now, the Olma fairs are not over yet. Currently there is still a capital shortfall of 10 million francs. People are excitedly looking for shareholders.
The trade fair industry in Switzerland is in turmoil. More and more customers are turning to online shopping. Changing consumer behavior also affects public fairs. In recent years, many major events such as Basel Muba, Zurich Züspa and Lausanne Comptoir Suisse have had to close their doors.
The Olma fairs were self-sustaining until 2019 and defied the fair’s demise. However, the corona epidemic also hit the fair industry. Since then, Olma also had major financial problems. The company had also recently started building a new hall for 120 million francs. It’s a bad time. In 2020, Olma fairs were on the verge of bankruptcy.
St. The city and canton of Gallen, together with several banks, prepared a rescue package worth 24 million francs. After a few months, it became clear that the measure was not enough. As a result, the cooperative fair company was transformed into a joint stock company.
New shareholders have since contributed additional capital of ten million francs. The same amount of money must be collected by the end of the year. But the search for shareholders has stalled recently.
The trade fair industry in Switzerland is in turmoil. More and more customers are turning to online shopping. Changing consumer behavior also affects public fairs. In recent years, many major events such as Basel Muba, Zurich Züspa and Lausanne Comptoir Suisse have had to close their doors.
The Olma fairs were self-sustaining until 2019 and defied the fair’s demise. However, the corona epidemic also hit the fair industry. Since then, Olma also had major financial problems. The company had also recently started building a new hall for 120 million francs. It’s a bad time. In 2020, Olma fairs were on the verge of bankruptcy.
St. The city and canton of Gallen, together with several banks, prepared a rescue package worth 24 million francs. After a few months, it became clear that the measure was not enough. As a result, the cooperative fair company was transformed into a joint stock company.
New shareholders have since contributed additional capital of ten million francs. The same amount of money must be collected by the end of the year. But the search for shareholders has stalled recently.
At least the real work is working again. “If we are allowed to operate, we will be left in the dark,” the Olma trade fairs explain to Blick. Also, interest in Being is still great. “We recorded a 10 percent increase compared to last year, with over 550 exhibitors,” the exhibition center continued. Since the exhibition will last until Sunday, current visitor numbers are not yet clear. However, over 320,000 visitors are expected.
According to Pirmin Germann, it is clear that with so many visitors nothing can go wrong. “Our audience needs this trade fair, we need this trade fair,” says the man from Eastern Switzerland hopefully.
Source :Blick
I’m Tim David and I work as an author for 24 Instant News, covering the Market section. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, my mission is to provide accurate, timely and insightful news coverage that helps our readers stay informed about the latest trends in the market. My writing style is focused on making complex economic topics easy to understand for everyone.
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