The 28th edition of Xylexpo, the biennial international exhibition of woodworking and furniture technology, closed its gates on May the 24th, with more than satisfactory results. Official figures – validated by IsfCert, an institute for the certification of exhibition statistics – show a substantial stability of the event, with an attendance of 11,288 people, 27 percent from abroad. Among the latter, 70 percent came from Europe, 18 percent from Asia, 5 percent from the Americas and 5 percent from Africa.
“We must admit we expected lower figures, considering the difficult period for trade fairs, but as it seems, Xylexpo’s long tradition has once again shown its attraction power”, said Dario Corbetta, exhibition director, few hours after the end of the event. “Also, the decision to stay within the standard working days – Tuesday to Friday, leaving the Saturday free – was rewarded and ensured consistent attendance, after the opening day, on all exhibition days”.
The days of Xylexpo 2024 – an exhibition exclusively dedicated to furniture and wood technologies and equipment – offered many hints for reflection, starting from the need to present exhibitors and visitors with an event open to new horizons, a challenge that the organizers have already taken up for the next edition.
Strong attention was aroused by “Industry 5.0” topics, although the still missing definition of implementation rules by the Italian authorities has cancelled the expected boost to orders. Nevertheless, many of the 270 exhibitors attending, 33 percent from abroad, reported high-quality contacts and closing several deals during the exhibition.
Very positive figures were recorded by Xylexpo’s online activity: from April 24 to May 25, the number of “contacts” was huge (58 thousand on Facebook, 77 thousand on Linkedin, 145 thousand on Instagram and over 13 thousand views on YouTube). Xylexpo Digital also played its part: offering a collection of contents created for and during the exhibition, the channel attracted more than 3,200 “visitors” during the trade fair, and this figure will grow exponentially in the coming weeks, as all “Xylexpo Digital” contents will remain accessible on-demand to the community.
