FIRA DE BARCELONA
| REPORTS 2012
Leadership and
international scope
Miquel Valls i Maseda
President of the Barcelona Chamber
of Commerce and second vice-president
of Fira de Barcelona General Council
Once again it is time to assess the activities carried
out last year by Fira de Barcelona. One cannot
overlook that 2012 has been another difficult
year for companies and for the economy as a
whole, which has suffered the negative impact of a
complicated situation on its activities. This negative
impact, however, has been minimized by the good
results in tourism and a satisfactory development
in exportation. Therefore, despite the unfavourable
context, we can say that Fira’s activity has been
decisive in softening the impact of the crisis on our
companies. Most importantly because its activity
is directly and indirectly related to tourism and
exportation, since, year after year, Fira promotes the
internationalization of shows, which in turn receive
more international visitors each year.
Intense activity
In 2012, Fira de Barcelona maintained trade fair
activity and finished the year with a turnover of
more than 115 million euros, thus complying with
the budget established at the beginning of the
year. As far as events are concerned, the Montjuïc
and Gran Via venues hosted several shows and
congresses, as well as 60 corporate, business and
sports events, and activities related to the different
shows. The entity thus maintains its leading
position, both in professional and industrial trade
fairs and in its international scope.
The Mobile World Congress, Alimentaria, Hispack,
Hostelco, EIBTM and Smart City Expo were some of
the shows hosted by Fira in 2012, but I would like to
take this opportunity to thank especially the launching
of the Barcelona Mobile World Capital Foundation,
which took place in March 2011. After Barcelona was
designated mobile communications world capital until
2018, 2012 saw the establishment of the Barcelona
Mobile World Capital Foundation, which will manage
all the projects developed within the context of the
mobile world capital.
Economy of knowledge
Hosting the Mobile World Congress until 2018 is
excellent news for the city and for Catalonia. This is
why I would like to congratulate and acknowledge
the efforts, on the behalf of the Chamber of
Commerce and on mine, of all the people and
institutions involved, for achieving all our goals.
It is excellent news because it means a decisive
boost for the economy of knowledge and the mobile
technologies sector, as well as for the Barcelona
brand; but also because it is the product of public
and private cooperation, which has brought so
much success to our city and our country in the
last years.
Also worth of special mention is the purchase by
Fira de Barcelona of 50% of Alimentaria Exhibitions
from the British multinational Reed Exhibitions.
This makes Fira the only owner of one of the most
consolidated shows in our city. This has resulted in
a higher international presence of this show, which,
from now on, will be exported to other countries.
In 2013, Fira de Barcelona will host major
medical congresses, gathering more than 49,000
delegates, as well as high-scale technological
meetings such as those organized by companies
like SAP and Hewlett Packard. Likewise, other
relevant shows such as Construmat, Salón del
Automóvil, Mobile World Congress, the Barcelona
International Boat Show or EIBTM, among others,
as well as two new shows: Pharmaprocess,
centered on industrial processes in the
pharmaceutical industry, and Bodylife Barcelona,
devoted to fitness.
These are all examples of how Fira is at the service
of companies, of the economy, of the city and
of the country, while becoming an international
platform from which to foster the different sectors
of Barcelona and Catalonia.
A platform for business
and knowledge
Josep Lluís Bonet
President of the Board of Directors
Fira de Barcelona
Fira de Barcelona closed the year 2012 leading
the Spanish trade show scene, mainly due to the
achievements in the industrial and professional
shows, and becoming a worldwide reference. Not
only because of the degree of internationalization
of many of the events, but also because of its
innovating capacity and a firm commitment in
favour of knowledge.
The institution’s results could be considered globally
positive, as they surpassed 115 million euros.
Worthy of mention is the fact that this turnover
was achieved in the context of a particularly
difficult economic situation, to which we have
sadly been forced to refer over the last years when
assessing trade fair activities. Taking measures
such as compliance with the trade fair calendar,
internationalization of events, innovation policy,
diversification of the activity, hosting major shows
and expenditure restraint has been crucial in
achieving those results.
Business culture
Broadly speaking, it is worthy of note that in 2012
the two Fira de Barcelona venues held 60 shows
and congresses, as well as more than 70 corporate,
institutional, business and sports events. I would
like to stress that, more than 500 different activities
took place within the framework of the shows held
at Fira, which proves its will to foster knowledge and
promotion of business culture.
Many major shows were hosted in 2012, such
as the Mobile World Congress, Alimentaria, the
Barcelona International Boat Show, Hispack,
Hostelco, EIBTM or Smart City Expo, among
many others. Over the year, other shows were
incorporated which arise from new economic and
social needs, such as MIHealth Forum, specialized
in health management and innovation, and Seafood
Barcelona, devoted to the fishing industry and its
derived products.
Throughout the year, Fira de Barcelona
has worked to contribute to the economic
revitalization of the country, Barcelona and its
surroundings. A central part of this policy has
been to stress the international dimension of
our shows and to promote the presence of our
companies abroad.
International benchmark
Our institution has worked in a threefold direction.
Firstly, on initiatives devised to attract and originate
major events that provide our territory with
economic activity and generate synergies between
companies, vindicating Fira as one of the best
European platforms for commercial and knowledge
exchange and for business creation.
Secondly, we have fostered the international
dimension and positioning of our shows –this
being of great importance bearing in mind
the decrease in domestic demand–, favouring
exchanges between local companies and global
economic sectors. In this respect, I must mention
the increasing presence of sectors such as food,
technology, fashion, services, etc. A good example
is the growing leading role acquired by Smart
City Expo, which in two years has become an
undisputed international benchmark in the sphere
of smart cities.
Our view of international trade also involves
promoting companies abroad, through the
Fira shows held in international events.
It is the case of Hostelco, The Brandery, Piscina
and Construmat, which have taken part in many
fairs, especially in Asia and South America.
Assessment to other fairs, such as the agreement
with Montreal, is part of this new international
dimension taken by Fira, which at the time
of writing this summary has offices in
43 countries.
Worthy of note is that during the year object of
this study, the institution has played a very active
role, through the Barcelona Mobile World Capital
Foundation, in the development of projects and
activities related with the mobile world capital. It
has meant a significant contribution to the economy
and the to the opportunities which arise from new
activities based on knowledge.
GOVERNING
BODIES
GENERAL COUNCIL
President
Xavier Trias i Vidal de Llobatera
1st Vice President
Felip Puig i Godes
2nd Vice President
Miquel Valls i Maseda
Members
Lluís Bertran i Saura
Albert Carné i Hernández
Josep Cercós Martínez
Enric Enrech i Artal
Alberto Fernández Díaz
Joan Gaspart i Solves
Marc Guerrero i Tarragó
Jordi Martí i Grau
