Vietnam showcases crafts at Ambiente 2016

The fair, organized by Messe Frankfurt, took place at Frankfurt am Main on February 12-16. All told, 137,000 visitors from 143 countries (against 134,600 in 2015) attended the event.

With support from the Vietnam Association of Small-and Medium-sized Enterprises (VINASME), 14 local companies showcased their crafts imbued with beauty and traditional culture at the event, hoping to cultivate global markets and develop new business.

Notably, the proportion of visitors from outside Germany accounted for 55% of the total (compared with 53% in 2015) – more than ever before, said Vice Chairman To Hoai Nam of VINASME.

Nam said the top ten visiting nations after Germany in descending order of size were Italy, France, Spain, the Netherlands, UK, China, USA, Switzerland, Turkey and the Republic of Korea.

“The whole world does business at Ambiente,” said Nam as Frankfurt in February is where the trends are set for the international consumer-goods industry for the upcoming year.

A representative of exhibitor, Hien Uyen Vi Co. Ltd (from Ho Chi Minh City) was also upbeat about the internationality of the fair noting that the company signed three high dollar contracts with Spanish and Dutch partners at it.

Meanwhile Lavanto Co Ltd (from Binh Duong Province) was equally enthusiastic, having reportedly signed 40 deals with foreign companies along with obtaining a myriad of leads for work that look very promising.    

We are very pleased with the dollar value of business we obtained at the fair and the positive feedback received from our worldwide business partners, said a representative of Lavanto Co Ltd.

He said as the leading trade fair in the globe for the consumer goods industry, Ambiente continues to be the most important platform for Vietnamese businesses to present their wares.

And, of course, both companies said they definitely are looking forward to coming back again next year.

The days in Frankfurt were certainly well spent said VINASME Vice Chairman Nam, because nowhere else can Vietnamese businesses find such a wide variety of suppliers covering the entire spectrum of tableware, kitchenware, gift articles and home accessories.

If Vietnamese companies want to be trendsetters in the marketplace and competitive in retailing consumer goods, then they should’ve been at Ambiente, said Nam.

The saying is that businesses must either be here in Ambiente or ‘be square’ and its true, said Nam, adding that if Vietnamese businesses want to access foreign markets they can’t afford to miss these types of trade events.