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Nursery Industry brings you news from Cologne....
Kind + Jugend, the world's leading trade fair for baby and toddlers' outfitting signals that the quality label "Made in Germany" is once again in demand.
products, not only sets new trends every year; it also serves as the mood In general, concerns about prices play a relatively minor role for end
indicator for the entire sector. From 17th to 20th September 2009, consumers who invest time in researching and deliberating over whether to
approximately 800 companies from about 40 countries will come to the choose a product. The reasons for this include the fact that couples often are
Cologne exhibition centre to present their latest products in the segments of waiting longer before starting a family and have established their careers first,
children's furniture, safety seats, textiles, prams, hygiene articles, toys and ensuring that their financial basis is sound and stable. Parents are then willing
fashion for babies and toddlers. The trade fair continues to show signs of to spend money on their children's needs and wishes.
growth, which has even resulted in an expansion of the total exhibition area. Due to the great demand for individualisation, many manufacturers are
In the segment of toys and games for babies and toddlers, numerous toy dispensing with keeping large quantities of goods in warehouse storage in
manufacturers from Europe and overseas have registered for the first time. order to meet their customers' demands quickly and flexibly. Particularly in the
Participation in the fair is considered a must by exhibitors who have been children's car seats and prams segments, for instance, end consumers not only
presenting their products at Kind + Jugend in Cologne for many years. value high quality products, but are also placing an increasing emphasis on
The trade fair is the perfect event for intensifying business activities and lifestyle. In other words, the product should match the lifestyle of the
opening up new markets. The event provides good opportunities for sales on individual. In addition, men and fathers are getting more involved in making
foreign markets, and Kind + Jugend is the ideal platform for making new purchasing decisions in these areas.
business contacts. In contrast to high quality products, declines have been recorded in the
All in all, the mood in the sector is positive. Family life is highly valued and medium price range. Consumers are choosing cheap products instead or are
considered something worth investing in, so business in the baby and toddlers' searching the Internet for bargains. And the sector's turnover suffers because
outfitting sector currently ranges from stable to displaying a slight upward many people pass on baby clothing to friends and acquaintances or swap
trend. Even though the fashion sector has been subject to considerable them via second-hand clothing exchanges.
fluctuations and the predicted increase of turnover is only one per cent, the Overall, however, the sector is heading toward positive development. The
baby and toddlers' outfitting sector is proving it is a special exception to this toys and games segment in particular is displaying an upswing. Kind +
trend. With each newborn baby contributing to the sector's turnover, an Jugend's organisers have taken this into account by expanding the available
increase of three per cent has been posted. exhibition space. The growth potential of this segment has not yet been fully
This is surely also because children are deciding what they want to wear at exploited, and with toys and games (not only for the infant to three-year-old
increasingly younger ages than in the past, and they favour expensive brand age group) the sector can still open up new markets. Here, new strategies and
products. In general, the sector's end consumers put a high value on quality. product expansions are boosting turnover. In addition, manufacturers are
It is clear that consumers are willing to spend money on high quality continuing to focus on their export businesses.
products, and it is such products in particular that are the sector's more "crisis- Further information on Kind + Jugend and the range of services available
resistant" goods. can be found at: www.kindundjugend.com
When it comes to purchasing decisions, the most important factors are In the following pages of our Kind und Jugend supplement, you will
quality and originality, and the very varied product range reflects individual find an exclusive interview with Markus Oster, Vice President of
tastes. Playing a major role, in addition to high quality, are long durability, fine Business Unit Communications, Art and Fashion, Koelnmesse GmbH
materials and striking designs. Another crucial factor when it comes to alongside stand and product information from an exciting range of
selecting products is that they should be safe for the environment and for exhibitors. All this in addition to a handy floor plan and UK exhibitor
children's health. In the children's furniture and textiles segments there are list - don't leave for Cologne without it!
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