THE 47TH EDITION OF HOSPITALITY CLOSES ON A POSITIVE NOTE

The turnout demonstrated operators’ willingness to invest again and sets the course for the new era of hospitality

Riva del Garda (TN), 9 February 2023 – The 47th edition of Hospitality - Il Salone dell'Accoglienza, Italy's leading international trade show dedicated to the Ho.Re.Ca. sector, which closes today, has set the course for the new era of hospitality. This is confirmed by the numbers: with more than 18,500 professional visitors, the event brought together the entire hospitality sector, with a large attendance figure already on the first day, a trend that continued in the following days.

“This result confirms Hospitality's role as a leading trade show in the sector. All this is thanks to the strategic choices and investments made in recent years, both in terms of national and international alliances and in terms of exhibition variety and quality”, said Roberto Pellegrini, Chairman of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi.

With its comprehensive range of services and products, the show demonstrated its ability to respond to every visitor need and preference. In addition to the strong turnout among businesspeople from the catering, hotel and general public  sectors, Hospitality recorded 16% growth in non-hotel operators and an impressive 50% growth in the camping segment.
 

Alessandra Albarelli, General Manager of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi, commented: “Identifying trends is the essence of this event, and in this edition we created the new Outdoor Boom exhibition, which started as a conference in 2022 and was developed in cooperation with Faita FederCamping”.

Every region in Italy was represented among buyers – with a particular increase in attendance from Veneto, Lombardy as well as Liguria, Marche, Abruzzo, Puglia and Campania.

“Visiting operators were very satisfied with the extraordinary quality of the products and services offered by the 636 exhibitors, with over 40% represented by new companies and the presence of major industry brands”, said Giovanna Voltolini, Exhibition Manager for Hospitality. “During the four days of the show, the hospitality and catering industry had the opportunity to discover a complete and diversified exhibition, offering innovative solutions and tools that can grow their business and help them stay competitive on the market”.

Satisfaction was also expressed by delegations from selected countries such as Germany, Malta and a number of countries in Central America. All of them were positively impressed and surprised by the quality of the exhibitors and the variety of the Hospitality offer, as well as by the many inspirations and ideas enabling them to find the right partners for their purchases.

Again this year, Hospitality devoted ample space to training. Between workshops, educational sessions, seminars and experiential initiatives, the show was a stage packed with multidisciplinary content that involved over 25% of attendees (1 in 4) in the Mainstage, the Theatre in Hall D, and in the four arenas - Beer Arena, Outdoor Boom Arena, RPM Arena and Winescape Arena.

The programme also included a focus on innovation with 11 technology start-ups that illustrated new solutions for hotels, restaurants and suppliers in the Ho.Re.Ca. sector. In "Future of Hospitality", the contest organised by Startup Turismo in partnership with WMF - We Make Future, Booking Designer, the booking management system created to improve and simplify tourism management processes topped the podium, and was awarded the opportunity to participate in the WMF 2023 digital innovation festival.

The 48th edition of Hospitality – Il Salone dell’Accoglienza will be held in Riva del Garda from 5 to 8 February 2024.

What the exhibitors said

Silvio Barbero, Vice-Chairman of University of Gastronomic Sciences, Pollenzo

“It was a successful, useful and quality event. Successful because the public I met was certainly attentive and interested, and exhibitor satisfaction also seemed high. Useful because it provided the opportunity for an all-round and in-depth look at the world of accommodation and hospitality with innovative solutions, technologies and products. The show managed to combine the exhibition aspect with opportunities to reflect, a success that I hope will continue next year with the contribution of our University”.

Luca Rigotti, Chairman of the Mezzacorona Group – Chair of the Wine Working Group of Copa-Cogeca (the association of European agricultural organisations and cooperatives) 

“It is also a very important show for the agricultural sector, and production in the wine sector. In Italy, the synergy between agricultural products and tourism is fundamental. On the one hand, the agricultural sector’s contribution is to preserve and maintain the land and offer unique products; on the other hand, the hospitality and hotel sector publicises and promotes it. It is a very important pairing for the economy, and I think that a show like Hospitality is important to promote both hospitality activities and excellence in wine and agri-food products, as well as the cultural heritage and hospitality that protect the region”.

Alberto Granzotto, Chairman of Faita-Federcamping

“We are satisfied with the agreement between Faita-Federcamping and Fiera di Riva del Garda, which has given many businesspeople in lake and mountain resorts direct access to many important innovations offered by the market. This is the beginning of a path that we intend to pursue in the long term in a variety of directions, adding content to an important and nationally recognised event”.

Alberto Alonso, General Manager of Fiera di Valladolid

“I found that one of the strengths of the 47th edition of Hospitality, in addition to the great organisation behind a trade show of this scope, was the interesting audience of visitors and exhibitors representing the whole of the Ho.Re.Ca. sector, bringing together the best of every single segment of professional hospitality”.

Andrea Gallesi, CEO of Glant 

“The Riva del Garda event has always represented a fundamental opportunity for companies in the Ho.Re.Ca. sector from northern Italy, and we are happy to note that the number of operators from the centre and south of the country who come to visit us is also constantly on the increase. This year we recorded a positive performance and the show remains an important opportunity to meet for us, also thanks to the great attention devoted to the hospitality segment“.