“The member companies of the Union hold more than 1,000 trade and industrial exhibitions and 2,000 big conventions and conferences annually. More than 100,000 domestic and foreign companies take part in them, and 7.5 million people visit them annually”, said Sergey Alexeev, President of the Russian Union of Exhibitions and Fairs (RUEF), Vice-President of ExpoForum-International LLC.

He summed up the results of the association’s operation not only during the reporting period, and that’s 3 years, but also during the 25 years the Union exists: “In the course of one quarter of a century, RUEF united 87 highly professional organizations specializing in organization and holding exhibitions and being in accordance with the world standards, from 35 cities of Russia, representing 7 federal districts. The total revenues of RUEF amount to more than 20 billion rubles, and if we take the tourist effect the destinations get and which goes in the form of cash to regional budgets into account, the revenues amount to 1 trillion rubles”. The speaker mentioned that contracts and deals concluded at the events were not taken into account in the above said figures, they amount totally to billions of USD.

“All that allows to say that the convention and exhibition industry is one of the leading industries of the Russian economy. Besides, according to UFI research, Russia is one of the ten leading exhibition holding countries in the amounts of exhibition areas’ sales, more than 100 Russian exhibitions are UFI approved events and carry its seal of quality”, said the RUEF President.

Sergey Pavlovich spoke not only about achievements but also about the problems of the industry, connected with the economic crisis, geopolitical situation, new challenges proceeding from new technologies, insufficient investments into the sector, personnel problems: “The recent years were not easy both for separate RUEF members and the association as a whole, and were characterized by reduction of the main statistical figures for the events. In 2013–2015, the exhibition area decreased by 13.3%, the total number of exhibitors decreased by 26%, including domestic by 25.7% and foreign by 27.2%”.

According to RUEF, this year reduction slowed down, and some parameters demonstrate growth. Analysis of preliminary results of activities of RUEF members in the three quarters of2016 incomparison with the respective period of 2015 revealed an uptrend in rented areas by 3.5%, at the same time the net exhibition area stayed the same. The total number of exhibitors reduced by 1%, with the number of domestic exhibitors increasing by 2%, and foreign exhibitors reducing by 10%.

Because of that the main goal of the association is to help companies of the industry to overcome negative crisis effects in the economy of the country. The RUEF Presidium worked out the Development Strategy of Convention and Exhibition Activities, including offers for cooperation with state authorities, chambers of industry and commerce, the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, sector associations, lobbying company interests, promotion of the industry on the national and international levels. The Unions does a lot of work in all the said focal areas.

Sergey Pavlovich also mentioned the importance of the personnel issue: “About 5,000 people with a lot of professional experience are engaged in the exhibition industry in our country.
But in order to train new employees RUEF worked out professional standard “Specialist in exhibition and fair activities in the field of trade and industrial exhibitions”. This will
allow to solve the matter of introduction of a common standard for training and appraisal of employees of exhibition companies and industrial enterprises presenting their products at exhibitions”.

The President of the Union also mentioned the necessity of organizational strengthening of the association and offered to discuss inclusion of sector associations in RUEF in order to make the discussion more goal-oriented, exclude duplication of thematic exhibitions and understand exhibitors’ requirements better.

Sergey Selivanov, Head of the Exhibition Section of the International Cooperation Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, told about state support measures for the Russian exhibition industry: “The convention and exhibition activities are an important tool of the trade and economic policy of the state and help to promote domestic products on the home and foreign markets, technological updating and growth of industrial export, strengthening of economic potential, improvement of investment climate and strengthening of Russia on the international arena”.

Sergey Viktorovich mentioned that the development concept for the convention and exhibition activities was implemented as a part of the state support of the sector. An offer was sent to the Government of the Russian Federation as to protection of exhibitors’ rights to intellectual property, offers were prepared to develop material and technical facilities and infrastructure of the sector, a draft resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation was worked out on creation of the Russian National Convention and Exhibition Bureau. 

The Russian Union of Exhibitions and Fairs is an association of Russian organizers of exhibitions, owners of exhibition complexes, enterprises assisting exhibition business as well as representatives of exhibition business of Moldova and the Ukraine. It was set up in 1991, it has been a UFI – Global Association of the Exhibition Industry – member since 1994.

Over 25 years RUEF, uniting more than one third of the leading national organizers of exhibitions, owners of exhibition complexes, enterprises assisting exhibition business, has become the consolidating link of the exhibition business of Russia, and members of the Union form the main indices in the area of exhibition, fair and convention activities in Russia. The highest reward for an exhibition event in our country is the RUEF Mark.

The general meeting of RUEF members held to hear reports and elect officials takes place in St. Petersburg for the second time in a row – in 2013 it was held in the Lenexpo Exhibition Complex.