Trade show facts for kids

Stands during MWC Barcelona 2019, a big event for mobile phones in Barcelona, Spain

A trade show is like a big event where different companies from the same type of business gather. They come to show off their newest products and services. It's also a place for them to meet other businesses they work with, find new customers, and see what their competitors are doing. They also learn about new trends and chances in their market.

Some trade shows are open to everyone, like a public fair. But many are only for people who work in that specific business, like professionals or members of the press. These are called "trade only" shows. For example, the Frankfurt Book Fair is only for business people for a few days, then it opens to the public. Trade shows happen all the time around the world. In the U.S. alone, there are over 10,000 every year!

The History of Trade Shows
What Happens at a Trade Show?
Major Trade Show Locations
Big Trade Shows Around the World
Images for kids
See also

The History of Trade Shows

Trade shows today are a lot like the old trade fairs from the Middle Ages in Europe. Back then, people who made things or grew food would visit towns for these fairs. They would sell their goods and show off what they could do.

As the Industrial Revolution brought new technology, industrial exhibitions became more common in Europe and North America. This was in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

By the late 1800s, the idea of yearly trade shows for whole industries became popular. This started in Europe and spread to North America. In the 1900s, special companies began to manage these events. Big, permanent places called convention centers were built just for trade shows. These centers host different shows all year long.

In the 2000s, countries in Asia started to grow very fast. Because of this, trade shows are now very common across Asia. China is a huge leader in this, hosting more than half of all exhibition space in Asia in 2011.

What Happens at a Trade Show?

IBM's display at CeBIT 2010 in Hanover, Germany

A small trade show in Croatia, showing a display from the Croatian Chamber of Economy

Trade shows are really important for marketing and making connections in business. Companies go to meet others at their level in the supply chain. They also look for new suppliers and potential buyers.

Usually, there's a main area with many booths. Companies set up these booths to show their products or services. Throughout the day, there are often talks and workshops. These teach people about new trends, best ways to do things, and rules in their industry. There might also be shared meals with special speakers and social events in the evenings. The booths can be simple tables or very fancy setups.

Companies spend a lot of time and money to be at trade shows. They plan meetings with other attendees before the show. They also need to follow up on any chances they find at the show. Costs include renting space, designing and building their display, phone and internet services, travel, and places to stay. They also pay for brochures and small items to give away.

There are also costs for services at the show, like electricity, cleaning, and moving their items. Cities often support trade shows because this local spending helps their economy grow. It also gives local businesses chances to expand and attracts new businesses to the area.

Major Trade Show Locations

Trade shows need huge spaces. Here are some of the biggest places in the world where these events happen:

#	Ground	City	Indoor floor area	Outdoor floor area
1	Hanover Fairground	Hanover	496,000 m² (5,340,000 sq ft)	58,070 m² (625,100 sq ft)
2	World Market Center Las Vegas	Las Vegas	460,000 m² (5,000,000 sq ft)
3	Messe Frankfurt	Frankfurt	366,600 m² (3,946,000 sq ft)	96,000 m² (1,030,000 sq ft)
4	Fira de Barcelona	Barcelona	365,000 m² (3,930,000 sq ft)	50,000 m² (540,000 sq ft)
5	Fiera Milano	Milan	345,000 m² (3,710,000 sq ft)	60,000 m² (650,000 sq ft)
6	Canton Fair Complex	Guangzhou	338,000 m² (3,640,000 sq ft)	43,600 m² (469,000 sq ft)
7	Las Vegas Convention Center	Winchester, Nevada (Las Vegas)	297,000 m² (3,200,000 sq ft)
8	Koelnmesse	Cologne	284,000 m² (3,060,000 sq ft)	100,000 m² (1,100,000 sq ft)
9	Messe Düsseldorf	Düsseldorf	262,740 m² (2,828,100 sq ft)	43,000 m² (460,000 sq ft)
10	McCormick Place	Chicago	248,000 m² (2,670,000 sq ft)
11	Parc des Expositions de Villepinte	Paris	246,300 m² (2,651,000 sq ft)
12	Paris expo Porte de Versailles	Paris	227,000 m² (2,440,000 sq ft)
13	Feria de Madrid IFEMA	Madrid	200,000 m² (2,200,000 sq ft)
14	National Exhibition Centre	Solihull, UK	186,000 m² (2,000,000 sq ft)	100,000 m² (1,100,000 sq ft)
15	Messe München	Munich	180,000 m² (1,900,000 sq ft)	425,000 m² (4,570,000 sq ft)
16	Messe Nürnberg	Nuremberg	180,000 m² (1,900,000 sq ft)	50,000 m² (540,000 sq ft)
17	Messe Berlin	Berlin	160,000 m² (1,700,000 sq ft)	390,000 m² (4,200,000 sq ft)

Big Trade Shows Around the World

Here is a list of some very large trade shows that have more than 50,000 visitors:

Fairs with a published attendance of more than 50,000
Title	Description	Dates	Location	Visitors
AgQuip	Agriculture	August 22–24, 2017	Gunnedah, New South Wales, Australia	100,000 approximately in 2005
AGRO	Agriculture	June 7–10, 2017	Kyiv, Ukraine	121,220 in 2012
ANUGA	Food and beverage	October 7–11, 2017	Koelnmesse, Germany	165,000 approximately in 2017
Arab Health	Healthcare	January 24, 2022 - January 27, 2022	Dubai World Trade Centre, United Arab Emirates	58,028 in 2022
Automechanika	Automotive aftermarket	September 13–17, 2016	Messe Frankfurt, Germany	136,000
BAUMA	Construction	April 8–17, 2019	Munich, Germany	620,000 in 2019
Bangladesh Livestock Exhibition	Livestock, animal, agriculture, agricultural machinery	Mid-February	Dhaka, Bangladesh
Beef Australia	Beef	May (triennially)	Rockhampton, Australia	90,000 in 2015
Berlin Music Week	Music	September 3–7, 2014	Berlin, Germany	70,000 in 2012
Bologna Motor Show	Auto show	December 3–11, 2016	Bologna, Italy	450,000 in 2013
boot Düsseldorf	Boats	January 21–29, 2017	Messe Düsseldorf, Germany	267,379 in 2008
Buenos Aires International Book Fair	Books	April 27 – May 15, 2017	Buenos Aires, Argentina	1,240,000 in 2008
Cairo International Book Fair	Books	January 27, 2017 - February 10, 2017	Cairo, Egypt	2,000,000 in 2007
Canton Fair	Consumer and industry products	Spring session: April 15–19 (Phase 1); April 23–27 (Phase 2); May 1–5 (Phase 3). (111th Session) Autumn session: October 15–19 (Phase 1); October 23–27 (Phase 2); October 31- November 4 (Phase 3).	Guangzhou, China	192,013 in Spring Session 2008
CeBIT	Information and communication technology	March 20–24	Hanover, Germany	480,000 in 2007
CES (Consumer Electronics Show)	Consumer electronics	Jan 7 – Jan 10, Every Year	Las Vegas Convention Center, United States
Comic Market	Comics	August 11–13, 2017	Tokyo, Japan	550,000 in Summer Session 2008
COMPUTEX Taipei	Computer show	May 30, 2017 – June 3, 2017	Taipei, Taiwan	106,517 in 2008
CONEXPO-CON/AGG	Construction	March 7–11, 2017	Las Vegas Convention Center, Taiwan	145,000 approximately in 2008
Dhaka International Trade Fair	Consumer products	January 1 - January 31, Every Year	Bangabandhu Exhibition Center, Dhaka, Bangladesh	Hundreds of Thousands
Drupa	Printing equipment	May 31 – June 10, 2016	Messe Düsseldorf, Germany	393,654 in 2004 from 127 countries
Dubai Food Festival (DFF)	Foods	May 2 - May 15	Dubai Festival City, United Arab Emirates
Dubai Airshow	Aerospace	Biennial	Dubai World Central, United Arab Emirates
Ekushey Book Fair	Books	February 1 - February 28, Every Year	Bangla Academy, Ramna, Dhaka, Bangladesh	70,000
E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo)	Video games	June 13–15, 2017	Los Angeles, California, United States	68,400 (2017)
EICMA	Motorcycles	November 10–13, 2016	Fiera Milano, Italy	504,999 in 2008
Euroflora	Flower show	April/May once time every 5 years	Genoa, Italy	730,000 in 1986
EuroShop	Retailing	March 5–09, 2017	Messe Düsseldorf, Germany	104,766 in 2008
Farnborough Air Show	Aerospace	16–22 July 2018	Farnborough Airport, Hampshire, United Kingdom	209,000 (2012)
Fieracavalli	Horse show	November 10–13, 2016	Verona, Italy	125,975 in 2008
Fiera internazionale del libro	Books	May 18–22, 2017	Turin, Italy	300,000 in 2007
Frankfurt Book Fair	Books	October 11–15, 2017	Messe Frankfurt, Germany	280,194 in 2011
Games Convention	Video games	ended 2008	Leipzig, Germany	203,000 in 2008
Gamescom	Video games	August 21–25, 2018	Koelnmesse, Germany	350,000 in 2017
Genoa International Boat Show	Boats	September 21–26, 2017	Genoa, Italy	236,322 in 2008
GITEX	Consumer electronics	March 29, 2007 – April 1, 2017	Dubai, United Arab Emirates	146,000 in 2016
Hannover Messe	Industry, technology	April 24–28, 2017	Hanover, Germany	193,222 in 2008
High Point Market	Furniture	April and October	High Point, North Carolina, United States	70,000-80,000
IFA	Consumer electronics and home appliances	September 1–6, 2017	Berlin, Germany	240,000 in 2016
IITF (India International Trade Fair)	Consumer products	Mid-November	Delhi, India
imm Cologne	Furniture	January 15–21, 2018	Koelnmesse, Germany	106,677 in 2008
InnoTrans	Rail Transport Technology	September 22–25, 2020	Messe Berlin, Germany	106,612 in 2010
Intermot	Motorcycles	October 3–7, 2018	Koelnmesse, Germany	203,000 in 2012
International CES	Consumer electronics	January 9–12, 2018	Las Vegas Convention Center, Nevada, United States	177,000+ in 2016
Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung	Cars	September 14–29, 2017	Messe Frankfurt, Germany	931,700 in 2015
IGW Berlin	Sustainable agriculture	January 20–29, 2017	Messe Berlin, Germany	424,502 in 2008
ITB Berlin	tourism	March 10–12, 2017	Messe Berlin, Germany	149,776 in 2008
International Technical Fair	machine engineering, automobiles, transport, information technologies, software, electronics, electrical engineering, construction, chemistry, power engineering, ecology	September 25–30, 2017	Plovdiv, Bulgaria	141,000 in 2006
Jakarta Fair	Retail (Cars and motorcycles, electronics, sports equipment, fashion accessories and garments, to household utilities, furniture, food, handcrafts, herbs and medicine, cosmetics, banking services and many others)	May 22–30, 2019	Jakarta, Indonesia
Kolkata International Book Fair	Books	Late January - Early February	Kolkata, India	2,000,000 in 2012 - largest book fair in the world
Light + Building	Architectural lighting design	March 18–23, 2018	Messe Frankfurt, Germany	167,084 in 2008
Mass-Trans Innovation Japan	Rail Transport Technology	November 27–29, 2019	Makuhari Messe, Tokyo, Japan
MEDICA Trade Fair	Medical technology	November 13–16, 2017	Messe Düsseldorf, Germany	136,871 in 2008
Mobile World Congress	mobile telephony, Communications	February 25, 2019 – February 28, 2019	Barcelona, Spain	107,000 in 2018
SIAL Paris	Food industry	October 15, 2022 - October 18, 2022	Paris, France	310,000 in 2018
Mondial de l'Automobile	Auto show	September 29, 2016 – October 16, 2016	Paris, France	1,400,000 in 2006
NAB Show	Broadcasting	April 22–27, 2017	Las Vegas Convention Center, Nevada, United States	93,000+ in 2013
The NAMM Show	Music	January 16–19, 2020	Anaheim, California, United States	115,888
NAIAS	Cars	January 14–21, 2018	Detroit, Michigan, United States	800,000 in 2018
National Agricultural Fieldays	Agriculture	4 days in mid June	Hamilton, New Zealand	125,878 in 2007
Novi Sad Fair	Agriculture	Middle of May	Novi Sad, Serbia	600,000
Nuremberg International Toy Fair	Toys, Games	February 1–6, 2017	Nuremberg, Germany	80,000 in 2011
Paris International Agricultural Show	Agricultural show	February 25, 2017 - March 5, 2017	Paris, France	619,000 in 2017
Paris Air Show - SIAE	Aerospace	June 19–25, 2017	Paris, France	322,000 in 2017
Pitha Utsob	Cake and food	January First week	Dhaka, Bangladesh
Photokina	Photography	May 27–30, 2020	Koelnmesse, Germany	180,000 in 2018
Salone del Mobile (International Furniture Fair)	Furniture	March 2007	FieraMilano, Italy	270,000 in 2007
SEMA Show	Automobile aftermarket	First week of November	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	125,000 in 2014
SHOT Show	Firearms	January 22–25, 2019	Sands Expo, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	60,000+ in 2018
SIMA	Real estate	May 25–28, 2017	Madrid, Spain	122,760 in 2008
SIMO TCI	Consumer electronics	October 18–20, 2017	Madrid, Spain	300,000 approximately
Sydney Royal Easter Show	Agriculture	14 days over Easter	Sydney, Australia	900,000 in 2007
Tehran International Book Fair	Books	May 3–13, 2017	Tehran, Iran	2,000,000 approximately in 2010
The Big 5	Construction	November 26–29, 2017 (annual)	Dubai, UAE	78,579 participants in 2016
Thessaloniki International Fair	General	Annually	Thessaloniki, Greece	250,000 in 2011
Tokyo Motor Show	Auto shows	October 27, 2017 - November 5, 2017	Tokyo, Japan	1,512,100 in 2005
Tokyo Game Show	Video games	September 21–24, 2017	Tokyo, Japan	271,224 in 2016
Trade Expo Indonesia	Export	October 24–28, 2018	BSD City, Indonesia	28,000
World Ag Expo	Agriculture	Annually	Tulare, California, United States	Approx. 100,000 annually
World Dairy Expo	Dairy industry	October 3-03, 2017	Alliant Energy Center, 2015 at Madison, Wisconsin, United States	75,000