When plastics companies descend on Fakuma — typically held two out of every three years — the economic impact is felt well beyond the walls of the exhibition halls and the days of the show, according to the longtime mayor of Friedrichshafen, Germany.
Andres Brand has led the municipality since 2009, winning his second eight-year term in office in 2017. So he has been witness to Fakuma many times over the years and understands the importance of the trade fair.
The municipality owns half of Messe Friedrichshafen GmbH, the operating company for the facility that plays host to a variety of shows each year.
This year alone, there are nearly three dozen events scheduled for the conference center covering a wide variety of topics including fruit, motorcycles, cake design, fishing, board games and, of course, plastics processing.
Fakuma, the show itself, is owned by P.E. Schall GmbH & Co. and will attract tens of thousands of visitors to Messe Friedrichshafen for the 28th edition. Bettina Schall, managing director of P.E. Schall, with a 4.4 percent share, is one of several private citizens and companies that also own a portion of Messe Friedrichshafen GmbH.
"Fakuma is a meeting place for the international trade public, and visitors make the journey from all over the world. For Friedrichshafen and the entire Lake Constance region, the Fakuma is an important economic factor," Brand said in an email interview.