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News › Euro Bus Expo 2006 breaks through the 10,000 attendance barrier, reflecting the huge interest in this years long awaited leading trade show
Euro Bus Expo 2006 breaks through the 10,000 attendance barrier, reflecting the huge interest in this years long awaited leading trade show
2006-11-10
- Attendance figure of 10,190 (subject to audit)
- International visitors from 51 countries (an increase of 38% from Coach & Bus 2003)
- Over 1000 international attendees (increase of 30%)
- 250 exhibitors from 30 countries
- 70% of space has been booked already for Coach and Bus Live 2007
Euro Bus Expo closed on a high note yesterday (November 9th) after three days of record-breaking crowds, stunning displays of over 150 vehicles and exhibitors expressing their delight at the new business they have generated, announced the organisers of EBE 2006 at the Birmingham NEC.
With an impressive rise in attendance figures, covering every category, it confirmed EBE as the European meeting place for the dedicated Bus and Coach industry.
This new look event combined with Transport Innovations 2006 saw a significant increase in numbers with over 10,000 attending. As well as a huge influx from Europe, visitors came from all parts of the world, 51 counties in total, including Australia, Japan and the United States.
Early indications from the show floor indicated a unanimous upbeat mood among both exhibitors and Visitors. Representatives from across the wide spectrum of exhibitors expressed their satisfaction at the number of sales achieved and leads gained. EBE 2006 was seen as the best platform by far for them to be able to showcase their vehicles and products and network with industry professionals.
Mark Griffin, Show Director for Euro Bus Expo comments:
"We are delighted with the unparalleled interest in EBE from the European and worldwide industry which has been totally driven by the remarkable number of manufacturers and suppliers who have used EBE as the platform to launch new vehicles and products. I am very proud of what has been achieved here at this show."
A key aspect of the show was the positive response from the visitors and Exhibitors alike. Many of the exhibitors were firm in the opinion that they would definitely be returning for the next edition of Euro Bus Expo in 2008.
Enthusiastic feedback from across the show floor
Exhibitors were delighted with the quality and number of visitors who came to the show.
This show was more than worthwhile for us. We have had a lot of strong interest in our products and were particularly delighted with the response and feedback from those who visited our stand.
Bob Nevitt, General Manager, Retail Sales, Scania
Fabulous! This is the first time we have exhibited in 6 years and have picked up 200 quality leads. If just one of them is turned into a sale, it will have repaid all our investment in this show.
Dagmar Johnson, Director, Coachline Insurance Services
This has been a great 3 days for us. We do a lot of business with small independent operators and it was fantastic to meet so many of them. This more than justified our decision to attend the show.
Martin Slater, National Sales Manager, Greatdays Travel Group
Without doubt this is the best show we have ever done. On the opening day alone we took orders in excess of 1000 seats.
Roger Cload, Sales Manager, Cogent Passenger Seating Ltd
We have had an excellent show with an excellent order intake.
Mike Ball, Managing Director Volvo Bus
We have seen everyone we could have ever wished to see in the Bus and Coach Industry. There was definitely an international feel to this show and we have had many visitors from overseas meeting with us. And to cap it all, we had a visitor who was the largest Bus Operator in India owning over 15,000 vehicles asking about our vehicles. Needless to say, he was given the warmest of welcomes! EBE 2006 was a fantastic show for us.
Mark Nodder, Vice President, Wrightbus
We have had the nice problem of never having enough staff on our stand because we were so busy. Indeed at one stage, I was continually occupied with visitors on the stand for 5 hours, becoming increasingly cross-legged, before I could eventually excuse myself to visit the rest room!
Vince Welsh, Chief Executive Officer, Neoman Bus UK
And visitors were equally delighted with the impressive range of exhibitors, vehicles, educational sessions and displays, which more than justified their time away from the office. In particular, one visitor, who is the largest Bus Operator in India and who came specifically to attend EBE.
We are the biggest operators in India with over 15,000 buses. This is a great show. One has to be here to see an event of such magnitude and grandeur. At EBE 06, I was able to see a panoramic view of the Bus industry and particularly new vehicles, innovations and trends. I would like to formally commend the Show Organisers for staging such a marvellous event and strongly recommend that this show should be held more frequently.
V Dinesh Reddy, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation, India
Plans are already well advanced to organise the next show, which will return to the Birmingham NEC in 2008 with provisional booking made for 2010.
"Building on the success of this year's show and the need for a central European hub to support EBE as it continues to grow at an increasing rate, we needed a venue which has accessibility, support and location as key factors, hence why we are staying in Birmingham" explained Mark Griffin.
Griffin paid tribute and expressed his thanks to the total and unwavering support given to the show by CPT and the exhibitors.
"The success of this event is largely down to the commitment and drive by the manufacturers and suppliers who see Europe as one of the most vibrant and growing markets. Their support and co-operation in marketing the show to new and existing clients was one of the key factors in the success of EBE."
Griffin concluded: "Improving on this years show to deliver EBE 2008 is going to be a real challenge. However, we are riding high on the success of this show. We thrive on such a challenge and with the dedicated support of CPT and our exhibitors, we will build on this show to deliver to the industry, an outstanding event in 2008."
Complete 2006 audited attendance and demographic show statistics will be available in December.
