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| Vinexpo Bordeaux – A New Direction |
| By Arjun Sachar |
| The 18th edition of Vinexpo, the leading international exhibition for the wine and spirits sector, was held at "Parc des Expositions" in Bordeaux from the 14th - 18th of June 2015. |
| With a very credible threat of competition from other international exhibitions, specifically Prowein, Vinexpo could not rest on a glorious past since 1981. Guillaume Deglise, the CEO of Vinexpo appointed in September 2013 and hosting his first Vinexpo Bordeaux, had the responsibility to repackage and deliver on the promise. |
| The new tagline “Taste the Unexpected” showed the intent and brought in extra mysticism in the minds of the 48,500 professional visitors who came from over 151 countries and the 2,350 exhibitors from 42 producing countries. |
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The new tagline |
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| Inauguration by the French President |
| For the first time in history, Vinexpo 2015 was officially inaugurated by the President of the French Republic, François Hollande, who was accompanied by Stéphane Le Foll, Minister of Agriculture, Agrifood and Forestry and Matthias Fekl, Secretary of State. He applauded Vinexpo for being a leader in its field and said, "Today Bordeaux is an exhibition venue for the whole of France, the capital of the world of wines and spirits. We must sustain the industry’s growth and its position worldwide: we are number one and we need to remain it." |
| New @ Vinexpo |
| Besides a new improved layout for the exhibition, a number of support features were seen this year. The new tram line that connected Bordeaux city centre to the exhibition grounds reduced the gruelling trek for visitors to a more comfortable 15 minutes, and allowed more flexibility to the visitors' schedules. |
| The innovative digital communication platform, #DigiZone, was launched to allow bloggers and social media commentators to exchange information in the wines and spirits sector. This nudged the show's digital strategy, as visitors shared their thoughts on Vinexpo as well. |
| New Flight Tasting Spaces were set up with dispensing systems to allow visitors to taste without the brand owners presence and plan their visits. These islands showed a sample selection of different styles of wine. A noticeable glitch was control over the quantities poured – some visitors did end up drinking (as opposed to sampling) and replenishments could not always make it on time. |
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The Halls |
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| One2Wine meetings, the personalized meeting service was quite productive and set up more than 1,000 business meetings (as per Vinexpo). |
| Tasting sessions, seminars and conferences have always been an integral part of the Vinexpo experience. Delivered by highly acclaimed and knowledgeable experts including Masters of Wine, these have provided a better understanding of international markets. For the key markets of USA and China, Wine Spectator and Wine Intelligence hosted conferences in association with Inseec Wines and Spirits Institute in Bordeaux. |
| Gastronomy represents the excellence of the French art de vivre. With wine, food is very important and Vinexpo plugged this leak with the gastronomic promenade that featured restaurants, snack booths and food trucks at the lake. Gault & Millau's food and wine workshops were led by top chefs. Of course, the gala evenings at the Chateaux in the region were much sought after, but for a select few. |
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The Gastronomic Promenade |
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| The audience |
| The 2015 edition did not see witness an increase in the visitors registered, as compared to the 2013 edition – even if French visitors dropped 2%. Vinexpo communicated that this figure was stable, but the "visitor profile was more professional and international than at previous editions more professional and international than at previous editions." A 15% increase was noticed in the USA (Guest of Honour at the 18th Vinexpo), marking the comeback of Vinexpo's most important historical client and also in China, Vinexpo's fastest growing client. Africa (+18%) and Oceania (+28%) add more geographical width to Vinexpo. |
| Guillaume Deglise summarised, "The 2015 edition is just one step for Vinexpo. We will redouble our efforts, and we will make the French wine industry proud to host this global meeting."In case you missed out and can’t wait till 2017, then get a taste at Vinexpo Hong Kong (24th - 26th May 2016) and/ or Vinexpo Tokyo (15th - 16th November 2016). Xavier de Eizaguirre, President of Vinexpo announced that in the 2017 edition, Vinexpo will have a new format lasting 4 days from Monday to Thursday. |
| Arjun Sachar graduated in wine studies from INSEEC Wines and Spirits Institute in Bordeaux, and works in India on several wine projects. He travelled to Bordeaux and was kind enough to share his Vinexpo experience for vino india. Please share any feedback with vino india info@vinoindia.in |
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