IFA – In which direction is the fair heading?

Europe's largest electronics trade fair, IFA, was held at Messe Berlin between September 2nd and 6th. APPLiA's industry manager Matts Spångberg was there and shares his thoughts and reflections.

After this year's visit to IFA, I have more thoughts than usual. It has been a pandemic and the fair is one of the first in our industry to be held. In Berlin, face masks are still required on public transport, which is a bit strange when visitors to the fair do not need a face mask, but as soon as you get on the train towards Berlin, everyone picks one up, which is then immediately taken off when you get off the train onto the platform.

Several major players are also missing from IFA this year and there were significantly fewer visitors than before. In some halls, the content is mixed up fresh and it sometimes looks as if exhibitors have been placed who were left over when another hall was closed where they normally do not belong. This year's fair has basically no queues either for admission, refreshments or the newest products.

Is it a coincidence for the industry's largest trade fair in Europe or is it a trend? Personally, I got a bit of deja vu from last year's Domotechnica in Cologne, when several of the APPLiA members moved from Cologne to IFA and Berlin. However, I sincerely hope that I am wrong, as IFA as a manifestation in the industries is an important market event.

Matt's Spångberg

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