!" $e&09 $u&& P+04-05:!012082&.6-132!e8s2:ega:.qxd 21/08/2009 15:19 Page 4
Ni Kind + Jugend
Preview
Kind und Jugend at the heart
of the Industry
Talking exclusively with Ni, Markus Oster, Vice President of
Business Unit Communications, Art and Fashion, Koelnmesse
GmbH tells us what to expect from this year’s show…
When was Kind and Jugend established?
Koelnmesse conducted its first trade fair for the baby and toddler outfitting
sector in 1960. The event was called, simply enough, “baby”. At that first
event, which took place from 7th to 10th January 1960, a total of 50
exhibitors presented prams, 27 showed buggies and 52 suppliers exhibited
babies' and children's fashion at the event. The event’s gross exhibition space
was approximately 17,000 m². Since then, the trade fair has developed in a
very positive fashion and has been complemented with further segments.
How many halls are there and what can we expect to see in
each?
In addition to the four hall levels occupied at previous events, this year Kind +
Jugend will also take place in Hall 11.3 for the first time. With this step we are
enlarging the gross exhibition space to about 100,000 m². By once again
expanding the fair’s capacity, we have responded to the constantly growing
demand generated by Kind + Jugend. This is enabling us to achieve an even
better segmentation and to dedicate a spacious area in Hall 11.3 to the growth
segment of toys for the zero to 4-year-old age group. More than 200
companies will be presenting their new products in this segment. Among these
exhibitors will be renowned manufacturers including Mattel, Chicco, Tomy,
RC2, Haba, Vulli and Kids II. Vtech meanwhile, will be taking part for the first
time at Kind + Jugend. In the other four hall levels we’ve also created a clearer
structure that minimises the distances visitors have to walk to find the products
they are looking for. Children’s furniture and textiles are to be found in Hall
10.1; prams, safety seats and accessories in Halls 10.2 and 11.1; and nursery
products and electrical appliances on Level 11.2. The range of products in
Hall 11.3 is rounded off by fashions for babies and toddlers as well as
maternity wear.
What types of retailer visit and from where in the world?
Last year about 17,000 visitors came to Kind + Jugend to experience the
exhibitors’ products, including over 13,000 from abroad who travelled to
Cologne specifically for the trade fair. They come from all areas of the baby
and toddler outfitting sector. Representatives from baby outfitting specialist
stores and specialist retailers, for instance, meet buyers from department stores
and representatives from the wholesale trade or furniture stores. The trade fair
also attracts decision-makers from purchasing associations located in Germany
and abroad, as well as buyers from crèches and kindergartens. As you can see,
Kind + Jugend provides a complete overview of the sector.
What do you have to offer our UK nursery retailers?
This year we will have a UK pavilion for the first time, where many British
companies will exhibit their products. The group includes numerous new
companies that are bringing their design-oriented products to Cologne for the
first time. This enables the visitors to evaluate the broad product range of the
British companies from the baby and toddler outfitting sector on a continuous
area in Hall 10.1. And with its 800 exhibitors, Kind + Jugend also offers a
comprehensive range of products exhibited by companies from more than 40
countries. In Cologne you therefore gain an overview of the entire baby and
toddler outfitting sector in Europe and overseas. And Cologne is only a little
over an hour from London by air, which means that even a day trip is sufficient
to allow you to supplement your product offerings with interesting products
from the worldwide sector and engage in talks with manufacturers from
around the world.
4
•
K+J NURSERY INDUSTRY
•
SEPTEMBER 2009
•
www.nursery-industry.co.uk
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62