“There is no other consumer-targeted expo in the South African live events landscape that provides a comprehensive marketing platform for sports sponsors, retailers, importers, distributors, and manufacturers of sports equipment and gear at one single event,” says Craig Newman, CEO of Johannesburg Expo Centre. “The market does have its share of niche sports events, but these are usually aimed at a targeted audience, who are already engaged with the sport in question, a case of targeting an already engaged and captive audience. The Sports Expo @ Rand Show provides exhibitors with a valuable platform to attract brand-new customers and make new converts,” says Newman.
Entering its 124th year, Rand Show is the largest consumer exhibition in South Africa today. Rand Show 2018 is set to get underway from Friday, 30 March, to Sunday, 8 April, at the Johannesburg Expo Centre in Nasrec.
Annually Rand Show welcomes an audience of over 200,000 visitors with 70% of these comprising young families in the mid- to upper-income brackets. This audience attends the show, eager to interact with brands and experience new products. At least 68% of the show’s audience are affluent individuals aged between 25 and 49 years, providing huge growth potential for any exhibiting brands at the show. Over 93% of attendees in 2017 indicated that they would return to the show in 2018. The Sports Expo @ the Rand Show provides a golden opportunity for exhibitors to interact with this audience.
The Sports Expo @ Rand Show will be a highly interactive platform with a showcase of exciting brand activations, so there’s no such thing as watching from the sidelines. Rand Show visitors will be able to get involved with fitness classes, test their sporting skills, try out new sporting gear, enter competitions and be inspired by fitness celebrities and athletes and gain free nutritional tips.
“Largely due to the power of face-to-face engagement in a digital-driven era, consumer shows and exhibitions remain one of the most powerful marketing platforms to showcase and demonstrate your products and services, connect with new customers and generate onsite sales,” says Dave Nemeth of Trend Forward, who has partnered with Rand Show to provide strategic marketing insight for the show. “Exhibitors can use the opportunity to increase brand awareness before, during and after the show, by creating hype and excitement through traditional marketing, social media platforms, and sponsorship. The exhibition platform provides an opportunity to network with other professionals, build new business opportunities and strengthen relationships with customers,” adds Nemeth.
Despite tough economic conditions, health, fitness, nutrition and sport remain one of the megatrends in South Africa today. With South Africa’s ever-expanding middle-class demographic, the demand for fitness, nutrition, and wellbeing products and services keeps gaining momentum. South Africans are a nation of gym lovers with clubs around the country making a collective R12.5 billion per year, according to a recent article in The Economist. South Africa’s idyllic climate and beautiful courses have produced thousands of golfing enthusiasts, while road and mountain bike cycling has taken the market by storm with hundreds of individuals taking up cycling every year. That’s to say nothing of the fact that South Africans are deeply passionate about sport and that it brings together people from all walks of life that love nothing more than watching our national teams battle it out against the competition.
The Sports Expo @ Rand Show provides ample sponsorship opportunities for all participating exhibitors by bringing together a broad profile of 200,000 visitors of all ages with an interest in sport, fitness and nutrition. There is no better or more cost-effective marketing platform in South Africa today that will get you in front of such an ideal target audience, from casual sports fans to absolute fanatics. By taking advantage of the abundant sponsorship opportunities at the Sports Expo, brands have the opportunity to collaborate with the show organisers to maximise their participation. “We invite you to harness the power of the Rand Show to grow your brand and connect with existing and future customers,” concluded Newman.
