Automechanika Shanghai celebrates 10 years of existence

This year’s Automechanika Shanghai is celebrating 10 years of existence when it is held 10 – 13 December, 2013 at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre, China.
Organised by Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co Ltd and the China National Automotive Industry International Corporation (CNAICO), Automechanika Shanghai is Asia’s largest trade fair for auto parts, accessories, equipment and services, offering the world’s biggest group of Chinese companies and leading brands.

During the past 10 years Automechanika Shanghai has grown significantly since its first edition in 2004 which offered only 235 exhibitors in 10,000 sqm of exhibition space.

Commenting on the show, Mr Jason Cao, Senior General Manager, Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd said: “The show’s growth over the past years has been remarkable. >From a humble start we have grown into the world’s second biggest Automechanika show offering a quality platform for domestic and international visitors from the whole automobile industry chain. This year’s show will see us using all 17 halls at the venue to accommodate more than 4,600 exhibitors in 214,000 sqm. What’s more, as a result of the show’s expanded scale, more than 80,000 buyers and trade visitors from all over the world are expected to attend this one-stop platform for trading, brand building, marketing, information exchange and networking opportunities.”

New buyer delegations to attend show

Mr Xuecheng Ji, President of CNAICO, said that the show was gaining more strong support from leading international media, as well as local industry associations and government agencies from across the automotive spectrum. He explained: “This year we have two new media organisations and several industry associations bringing more specific visitor groups to the show. This helps to deepen the show’s influence, and to further strengthen its position as the leading industry show in Asia.”

Visiting the show for the first time will be buyer delegations organised by two of Korea’s leading automotive magazines, Carpos and Car & Tech.

Carpos is published by the Korea Car Maintenance Business Association which also operates its own CARPOS car maintenance service centres across Korea. The magazine is organising a group of 40 delegates from 20 companies representing the repair and maintenance and accessories and tuning sectors. Mr Ui Soo Park, Union President of Carpos commented: “We recognise Automechanika Shanghai as an excellent platform for tapping into the Chinese market and networking with industry players from around the world.”

Sharing a similar view is Car & Tech which is a monthly auto repair magazine which was first published in 1991. Its buyer delegation will have 30 delegates from 20 repair and maintenance companies. Mr Young Jun Yu, Car & Tech’s President and Publisher remarked: “The show offers an effective platform for understanding Chinese business operations and culture.”

Other countries represented by international buyer delegations include Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Malaysia.

The Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association (AAAA) is organising their third delegation to the show and this year’s group will be the largest ever with more than 40 quality buyers.

Commenting on the buyer delegation, Mr Ben Bartlett, AAAA’s Senior Manager, Government Relations & International said: “Past AAAA delegates were mainly from the parts and components sector but this year our group is larger because we are bringing more delegates from the accessories industry. Our delegates have been very satisfied with previous shows and many went on to do business with Chinese suppliers. They were impressed that an increasing number of Chinese suppliers can deliver high quality products that meet international standards.”

The number of domestic buyer delegations is also increasing with new groups from the repair and maintenance, and accessories and tuning sectors attending the show. Attracted by the show’s Repair & Maintenance halls, new local visitor groups are coming from Henan and Shijiazhuang. There will be around 100 delegates in the Henan group with 60 percent representing the repair and maintenance sectors and 40 percent from the accessories and tuning sectors. The delegates are mainly dealers. In addition, the show is attracting expanded groups from Beijing, Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan, Shanghai and Sichuan.

The Auto Maintenance Professional Committee of Sichuan Province have organised a delegation of around 100 delegates to the show this year. Mr Zhang Xiaosheng, the committee’s Secretary General said: “Sichuan’s auto sales are higher than other provinces, boosting the province’s auto aftermarket sector. Our delegation will comprise more than 100 repair and maintenance dealers, representatives from large scale garages, as well as 4S shops and chains. At the show they will be able to see the developing automotive trends and to communicate with industry specialists, as well as fulfilling their need to purchase.”

New visitor groups from Anhui, Hubei, Jiangxi and Shangdong are also coming to the show to explore the Accessories & Tuning halls. These groups are mainly dealers, 4S shops and terminal stores and they will be looking for new products, to exchange market information and participate in fringe programmes.

In addition, the Auto Supplies Electronic Commerce Association (ASECA), is organising their first ever delegation to Automechanika Shanghai as Shanghai is the leading area for auto accessories electronic commerce. With more than 200 quality members, ASECA is one of the most influential electronic auto supplies associations in China which receives strong support from local government.

Mr Xu Qing, ASECA’s Secretary General said: “We have organised a delegation of more than half of our members to attend the show. The show’s three Accessories & Tuning halls match the delegation’s purchasing goals. Apart from seeing new domestic and international products and technologies, gaining a better understanding of industry development, and communicating with industry specialists, our delegates hope to gain additional knowledge at the fringe programmes about the latest marketing models which will help their businesses to develop.”

The size of the buyer groups from the auto parts and components sector has increased significantly this is year as buyer group invitations were extended to different regions in Central and Western China. Mr Famin Ren, Vice President of the Beijing Auto Parts Chambers of Federation of Industry and Commerce, said his association had worked together with the show since its inception to organise important buyer delegations. He added: “This year we are organising more delegations from second and third-tier cities and the leading distributors from central and western regions, so that more trade visitors from different cities and regions can benefit from the rapidly growing show.”

Automechanika Shanghai is one of 13 Automechanika fairs held in Africa, Asia, Europe and Central and South America. More than 80,000 buyers and trade visitors from all over the world are expected to attend this one-stop platform for trading, brand building, marketing and networking opportunities.

The Shanghai show is also known for its highly respected educational fringe programmes, facilitating information exchange across the industry sectors of parts and components, repair and maintenance, and accessories and tuning.
For further information about the fair, please visit www.automechanika-shanghai.com