Cosmoprof Asia 2009 Registers 4% Increase in Visitors

Cosmoprof Asia closed its doors on November 13 after hosting 41,000 attendees, marking a 4% increase over 2008. The number of overseas visitors grew 8%, and 1,412 companies exhibited, a growth of 4% over the 2008 show. The 14th edition of the show took up a total exhibition area of 52,000-square meters at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Through collaborations with countries seeking to expand their foreign trade in beauty, Cosmoprof Asia dedicated special sections on the show floor to 18 national and group pavilions: Australia, Mainland China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the U.K. and the U.S. The show also featured the inaugural Polish pavilion.

Taking note of the ever-growing strength of emerging markets, Cosmoprof Asia continued its commitment to the International Buyer Programme, which was launched in 2007. A Cosmoprof exclusive, the International Buyer Programme unites buyers and sellers from around the world with the resources, contacts, and data to create business. For the third year, beauty and cosmetics companies showcasing their products at Cosmoprof Asia were offered the opportunity to meet with a group of selected key buyers from strategic growth markets around the globe. For this edition, the organizers selected India, China and Russia as the main focus. More than 100 pre-arranged business meetings took place between exhibitors and the hosted buyers.

Apart from the exhibition, Cosmoprof Asia offered a full program of networking and education events. High level educational seminars were filled to capacity with 475 attendees, drawn by the topical content specially designed to help professional and companies grow their business. Industry leaders from multiple sectors participated in round-table discussions and panels to share their experience and views.

Highlighted educational seminars included:

"Is There Still Room for Innovation?" presented by DuPont Cosmetic Solutions and Alcan Packaging Beauty. The two giants of the packaging industry looked at the unique and innovative options for cosmetic packaging, sharing know-how and vision on how to think 'out of the box' in developing new and differentiated packaging solutions to attract customer's attention in-store and strengthen brand power.

"The 4th Development of the Cosmetic Market in China Conference: Entering the Cosmetics Retail Sector in China," organized in cooperation with Cosmetic Observer magazine, provided an in-depth analysis of the current situation and trends in the Chinese cosmetic market with a special focus on the three major retail distribution channels: department stores, supermarkets and franchise stores.

"The Current Situation and Prospects of Japanese Beauty Market—Natural and Organic Cosmetics, and Japanese Spa" focused on the changes of the natural and organic cosmetic market in Japan during the last decade and its future development. The conference was followed by a discussion on the specialty of the Japanese spa business.

Cosmoprof Asia is next scheduled to be held from Nov. 10–12, 2010, at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.

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