Busworld Europe (Kortrijk), the international B2B exhibition for bus and coach only, is moving to Brussels Expo in 2019, after being organised in Kortrijk Xpo for 24 editions or 45 years. This will be a very big step in the history of Busworld.
Busworld had no other option than to look for a bigger venue. Edition after edition, the exhibition grew bigger. Also the exhibition halls grew bigger over the years, until they reached their final limits of extension. At first, Busworld managed to solve this problem by building temporary pavilions, but this was not a viable long term solution. During the last edition, in 2015, the visitor number grew again and this lead, amongst other issues, to mobility problems around the venue.
Mr. Mieke Glorieux, Managing Director of Busworld Europe (Kortrijk) explains: “Busworld Kortrijk became the most important international B2B trade fair for the bus and coach industry with almost 35.000 visitors in 2015. We sincerely regret having to leave Kortrijk Xpo. They have been supportive for all those years and contributed without a doubt to the Busworld Kortrijk atmosphere and success.”
However, Kortrijk Xpo will still have a considerable part in the future Busworld Europe story. The Kortrijk Xpo team remains the provider of the extra services for the exhibitors, which is very positive for the exhibitors, since they can count on the experience that the team gained in this area over the years.
“Busworld, with its international and growing ambitions, had to find a new location due to the lack of space in Kortrijk and therefore chose to move to the largest exhibition space in Belgium with the biggest international appeal. We think that both our visibility as our political influence could increase significantly,” explains Redgy Deschacht, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Busworld.
Next to the international image of the city of Brussels and the large capacity of Brussels Expo, there were other logistical factors that convinced the Busworld team of their decision, the presence of an international airport, international train station and the large hotel room capacity. These factors will simplify the visit to Busworld Europe, as well for the Busworld exhibitors as the visitors.
“In our 115,000 m² infrastructure, we can easily accommodate the event with opportunities for expansion in the future. Brussels Expo has a long experience in hosting exhibitions that are similar to Busworld, being both B2B and international, like Seafood and Label expo. We were able to develop specific services for international visitors. We are also certain that the presence of Busworld in Brussels will be a factor in its future growth.”, said Geert Maes, General Manager Fairs & Events Brussels Expo and Denis Delforge, CEO Brussels expo.
The city of Brussels is also very eager to welcome Busworld Europe and its visitors. Mr. Philippe Close, Alderman for Tourism and Finance of Brussels and President of Brussels Expo confirmed: “This is excellent news for the city of Brussels. Many tourist and economic actors in Brussels have rolled out the red carpet for this international event, as Brussels will take great advantage of the many positive economic consequences that such an event can bring.”
After consulting the biggest exhibitors about their opinion, the Board of Directors made their final decision to move to Brussels Expo. Busworld is convinced that this move will be beneficial for all parties involved. Of course, the name of Busworld Kortrijk or simply ‘Kortrijk’, as many loyal exhibitors and visitors tend to call it, will start to disappear. Busworld is actually still looking for a new iconic name for its exhibition, since Busworld ‘Europe’ reaches out beyond European borders. Good ideas are welcome at inge@busworld.org.