Business incentives driving new exhibitors

In the third quarter, Markex (Cape) will take place 19 –21 August at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

"Over the past 22 years, Markex has become deeply entrenched as the definitive, tried-and-tested event for the marketing and promotions industries, playing an indispensable role in building market- and brand awareness," says exhibition director Lynn Chamier.

"This can be seen the minimum 10% annual growth in new exhibitors, many of whom then join the host of successful companies that go on to make Markex their priority marketing event every year."

Visitor profile

The visitor profile is a major draw card to Markex, she adds. Research from 2007 showed the top 20 visitors including representatives from banks, medical aid companies and the tourism industry. Seventy eight percent of visitors made or influenced purchasing decisions and were MDs or directors of their organisations, while 20% were business owners. The number of visitors from the rest of Africa also increased, from countries including Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Nigeria and Zimbabwe.

A newcomer to Markex is Crabtree and Evelyn, with its range of home- and personal pampering products, scents and remedies. "We've never tried Markex, as our marketing has always been through retail stores since our entry into South Africa a decade ago, says marketing assistant Tracy Hanson. "However we're doing well in the corporate market – better, in fact, than our overseas sister companies – and Markex is a good platform for us to further entrench our presence in this arena."

Research

Eleanor Kuhn, a consultant to signage company, Nimtec, responsible for marketing and direct sales, says her research has shown Markex to present the most suitable exhibition platform for the company.

"We've tried exhibitions such as Signage and Design Indaba, but they tend to focus mainly on graphics and the fashion industry respectively – neither of which is our market.

"Markex is known for its general industry attendance by agencies and large corporates, which is the type of market we want to reach."

Markex will also be the launch platform for Touchless, a new waterless hand sanitiser imported from America. Touchless Germ Control MD Antoinette Cooper says the product has never been seen before in this country.

For more information, go to www.markex.co.za and www.markexcape.co.za.