On June 19, the 2025 International Exhibition Industry CEO Shanghai Conference was grandly held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). Jiang Chengwen, President of the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Industry Association, led more than 10 member companies to attend the conference to help the association's member companies seize opportunities and continuously deepen international cooperation.
The conference was co-organized by the Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Industry Association and the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., with the theme of "Exhibition Innovation, Driving Sustainable Development". More than 350 executives from international exhibition groups, associations and companies from China, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Saudi Arabia and Southeast Asia and other countries and regions gathered at the conference.
Among them, Chris Skeith, CEO and Managing Director of the International Exhibition Industry Association (UFI), delivered a speech at the conference, reviewed the global exhibition market in 2024, and looked forward to the development prospects of the industry in 2025.
Ke Shiqi said that according to the "World Exhibition Hall Map 2024" report, 32,000 exhibitions were held worldwide in 2024, with a total rental area of 143.7 million square meters. The report tracked a total of 1,432 exhibition halls around the world, each with an area of more than 5,000 square meters. China continues to dominate the global exhibition market, with exhibition hall capacity accounting for 31.2% of the total global exhibition hall capacity, followed by the United States (14.1%) and Germany (7.3%). China continues to dominate the global exhibition market in 2024.
Looking forward to 2025, Ke Shiqi believes that factors that may affect the exhibition industry in 2025 include climate change, accelerated development of artificial intelligence, and emergencies.
Zhu Min, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, said in his speech that Shanghai has more than 40 exhibitions certified by the International Exhibition Industry Association (UFI), ranking first among the world's major exhibition cities. In 2024, the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) will hold nearly 60 exhibitions throughout the year, with an exhibition area of more than 7.5 million square meters. Among them, the overall exhibition area of the 7th CIIE exceeded 420,000 square meters, and 297 Fortune 500 companies and industry leaders participated in the exhibition, setting a historical record. According to relevant officials from Qingpu District, after four years of construction, the Qingpu Convention and Exhibition Industrial Park has gathered 426 exhibition-related companies, including 38 organizers, 120 construction service companies, and 268 other supporting companies, with an annual revenue of more than 4 billion yuan.
Obtaining UFI certification means that the exhibition has reached the world-class level in all aspects and is an important symbol of high-quality exhibitions.
In the roundtable forum of the conference, Hugh Jones, Chairman of the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI) and CEO of Reed Exhibitions, Chris Skeith, OBE, CEO of the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI), and many other domestic and international guests conducted in-depth discussions on topics such as "Challenges and opportunities brought by global and regional economic changes" and "Co-construction of global exhibition standards and localization practices". President Jiang of Shenzhen Exhibition Association briefly introduced the current situation and challenges of China's exhibition standards, opportunities for the internationalization of China's exhibition standards, and opportunities for the implementation of the internationalization of China's exhibition standards. He hoped to work with more exhibition companies to promote the internationalization of China's exhibition standards and contribute more Chinese solutions to global exhibitions.
At the conference, 22 well-known domestic and international exhibition industry organizations and exhibition companies jointly signed the "2025 Shanghai Declaration of CEOs of the International Exhibition Industry" (hereinafter referred to as the "Shanghai Declaration"). 1. Build a global collaborative network to promote cooperation in the exhibition industry; 2. Promote innovation in exhibition products and services and reshape the value chain of the exhibition industry; 3. Embrace the wave of technological innovation and build a smart exhibition ecosystem; 4. Promote business model innovation and enhance the resilience of the exhibition industry; 5. Upgrade the industry standard system and lead the low-carbon transformation; 6. Support the training of professional talents and stimulate innovation vitality. A consensus was reached on aspects such as supporting the cultivation of professional talents and stimulating innovation vitality.
In the international economic development situation and the development opportunities, challenges and countermeasures of the exhibition industry, a long-term collaboration mechanism will be established to share practical experience and work with colleagues around the world to draw a beautiful blueprint for the future of the exhibition industry.
The 2025 International Exhibition Industry CEO Shanghai Conference is not only an industry event, but also a rare opportunity for learning and communication, which helps companies understand the latest domestic and international trends in the industry, find cooperation opportunities, and promote their own development and innovation. In the future, we will continue to participate in similar events to open up markets for companies and jointly promote the internationalization and professionalization of the exhibition industry.
The content involved in this case comes from the official public account of the relevant exhibition and is for reference only.
Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China 