Europe: 14,000 visitors at FloraHolland Trade Fair Aalsmeer

The FloraHolland Trade Fair in Aalsmeer, the comprehensive international trade fair for networking and inspiration in the field of floriculture, broke all records this year. 14,000 visitors were registered, around 4,000 more than in 2012. Approximately 800 exhibitors showed their company and products, including around 500 plant growers, 200 flower growers, 50 breeders and another 50 so-called 'value-added' stands. With about 100 participants and 5,000m2 more floor space than last year, the trade fair was bigger than ever.

Connection and experience

The exhibitors were very satisfied with the level of attendance. All sections were well represented by end customers, groups of invited exporters, florists and garden centres (chains). The exporters with stands were content, while the participation of breeders saw to it that the entire product chain was represented, an aspect that was felt by both growers and buyers to have added a huge amount of value. The Village, set up in collaboration with LM Flower Fashion, was a big hit among visitors. Visitors did not only come for flowers and plants, but also to be inspired and The Village was a true 'experience' for them. Customers and end customers alike felt that this added a new dimension to the trade fair. Connections were made on the square with growers and the trade, while the organized program was also highly appreciated. "As long as the trade fair is here, we will be too. There's no doubt about that. The fair is becoming increasingly important, because direct contact with customers is becoming rarer. Contact here is easy and quick to achieve," says Jeroen Soeterbroek of Luiten Nursery

Best Stand Award

On the second day of the trade fair, the Best Stand Award was presented in three categories: cut flowers, plants and breeding. In the first category, a group of nearly twenty cooperating top cut flower growers (stand 2.2) received the Award. Among plant growers, the triumvirate Gebr. Nederpel, De Veranda and Jan van Luijk was awarded this prize. Finally, the stand of Schreurs was declared the winner with the best stand among the breeders. Karina van den Berg of Schreurs: "You do not want to know how many photos were taken. We opted to use our biggest roses and gerbera varieties, Red Naomi! and Kimsey." These were used to craft a massive heart of red roses and a field of pink gerberas. You can't get any clearer than that. The flowers were in perfect harmony with the stand, nothing was out of place. "It has to be perfect, as we set the bar high."

Best garden centre, supermarket and DIY centre

The winners of the Best Garden Centre and the award of the Best Flower and Plant Retailer were also announced at the Trade Fair. This was an initiative for these marketing channels to add value and strengthen their distinguishing capacity in the sale of flowers and plants. Consumers chose Deen as the best supermarket chain for flowers and plants. Deen Medemblik was voted Best Individual Shop in the online election. Boer Staphorst won the prize for the best DIY centre. Garden centre Boers in Maasdijk was proclaimed by consumers as the "Best Garden Center" in the Netherlands. FloraHolland was a partner in this year's organization of the awards.