The just-concluded  gulfBID and gulfINTERIORS exhibitions have confirmed Bahrain's position as the key venue for industry expos in the Northern Gulf.

In spite of a global recession that has seen similar events across the world cancelled or reduced in size these shows attracted an increase of almost 80 per cent in the number of visitors this year.

A total of 5,990 unique professional trade visitors representing leading construction and interiors companies attended the events last week at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre (BIEC), compared with 3,387 unique trade visitors who attended gulfBID in 2009.

'HCE now looks forward to building on the buzz generated by gulfBID and gulfINTERIORS this year to deliver even better shows in 2011,' said organiser, Hilal Conferences and Exhibitions (HCE) managing director, Jubran Abdulrahman.

'More than 80 per cent of our exhibitors have already officially signalled their intent to return next year, many planning to take more space than this year. Furthermore, the majority of countries with national pavilions have promised their support for next year.

'We aim to build on this momentum as HCE establishes gulfBID and gulfINTERIORS as the flagship events for the Northern Gulf's construction and interiors sectors.

'We are grateful for the unwavering support of His Royal Highness the Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, in line with his vision to establish the kingdom of Bahrain as the strategic exhibitions hub for the Gulf region as part of the broader Economic Vision 2030.

'HCE is dedicated to delivering successful trade shows to turn these visions into reality, and to this end I am delighted to say that gulfBID and gulfINTERIORS 2010 have been a resounding success.'

More than 5,552 of the 5,990 visitors were from the GCC countries, including 4,196 from Bahrain, 1,077 from Saudi Arabia and 279 from the rest of the GCC. There were 34 visitors in total from Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt.

The total number of international visitors was 404, from Ethiopia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Ireland, Pakistan, Philippines, Sweden, Spain, Turkey, Switzerland, the UK and the US.

HCE believes the main reasons behind the large increase were improved sentiment in the construction and interiors sectors of the Northern Gulf due to new projects, the launch of gulfINTERIORS, a dedicated show for the design and interiors sectors, a doubling of the visitor promotion spend by HCE to target visitors from Bahrain and the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain's growing status as the Gulf's strategic exhibitions hub.

'The increase in visitor numbers completely bucks the regional trend where trade shows elsewhere in the GCC are suffering in the downturn, and perhaps this reflects a shift in geographical importance from the Southern Gulf to the Northern Gulf in terms of construction and interiors trade shows,' said HCE exhibitions director Kim Willis.

'HCE is clearly delivering the type of dedicated shows which meet the core business-to-business and market awareness objectives of construction and interiors companies in the Northern Gulf. gulfBID has now come of age and is now recognised as one of the most influential events of its type in the Middle East trade show calendar.

'The strategic decision to launch gulfINTERIORS this year as a separate showcase for design and interiors firms also appears to have paid off strongly, with very positive feedback coming from exhibitors,' she added.

'Our confidence in doubling our visitor promotion spend to attract visitors from Bahrain and the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia appears justified, and this is in keeping with the overall positive sentiment currently felt within the construction and interiors sectors as major projects in the Northern Gulf continue unabated.'

gulfBID and gulfINTERIORS featured a total of 166 exhibitors from 21 countries, many of whom reported high quality enquiries for their products and services as well as the forging of strategic partnerships and long-term relationships at the shows.

The sixth gulfBID and second gulfINTERIORS exhibitions will be held from May 3 to 5 next year.-TradeArabia News Service