New Messe Frankfurt Study on Gift Giving in Germany

Press Release

At Christmas, for birthdays, as a thank you – there are innumerable occasions for giving gifts. And Germans spend around € 27 billion on gifts every year – an average of € 400 per person. This is the result of a study by the GfK market-research institute on gift giving in Germany commissioned by Messe Frankfurt. According to the study, giving is not only an emotional act but also an important business factor whereby, as the study points out, it is primarily the retail trade that benefits from the desire to give presents.

Retailers can find the right assortment of gifts for all occasions and tastes in the Giving section of Ambiente 2012 from 10 to 14 February when around 1,300 international exhibitors present their creative gift ideas. “The spectrum covered at Giving ranges from high-grade, classic, design-oriented products to young, colourful and trendy gift articles”, says Yvonne Engelmann, Ambiente Director. This range includes lifestyle products, such as stationery, leather goods, candles, jewellery and fashion accessories, as well as hand-crafted products and collectors’ editions. Naturally, aficionados of gourmet gifts, such as exclusive tea specialities or fine chocolate, can also be sure of finding what they are looking for at Ambiente.

New in the assortment since Ambiente 2011 are beauty accessories, care and wellness products, which are to be found in the Beauty & Bath section in Hall 9.2 where exhibitors, such as Accentra Kosmetik, Top Team, Get Fresh Cosmetics and Soapland, present gift ideas revolving around the subjects of beauty care and wellness. According to the GfK study, perfumes and cosmetics take third place on the list of the most popular presents, immediately after flowers and cash. Many people like to give fragrances or toiletries at Christmas – a guaranteed source of pleasure for family and friends alike.

The study also reveals that almost half of all respondents like to give apparel or fashion accessories. At Ambiente, buyers will find exclusive shawls, scarves and other fashion accessories in Hall 9.3, i.e., in the immediate vicinity of the Carat product section where everything revolves around brilliant and glamorous creations and, in addition to genuine jewellery and gems, the focus is on exclusive costume jewellery. There, exhibitors such as Dazzl Design with its AyalaBar, Raksha, and Jewellery Design Oslo brands, as well as Heide Heinzendorf, Hultquist, Pilgrim and Sence Copenhagen, present their latest collections. Buyers will find design-oriented jewellery at the exhibition stands of Coeur de Lion, Langani, Luppold, Sobral and Spitzenstücke Stefanie Kölbl, to mention but a few. Genuine jewellery can be seen, for example, at the stands of Govind Jain, Ruppenthal and Siegfried Giede. And, as in the past, dealers may sell off loose products, such as precious stones and pearls, at Ambiente 2012.

Colourful, loud, bold and cool – that’s the products at Young & Trendy in Hall 11.1. No matter what they are looking for – from greetings cards with integrated tea bags to an amusing key fob – buyers of creative lifestyle products are in exactly the right place in this section of the fair. There, companies such as ARTEBENE, Donkey Products, Gift Company, Hartmut Räder Wohnaccessoires, KARE Design, Millefiori, Present Time and Zweibrüder Optoelectronics present their innovative products and trendy collections, alongside a number of new exhibitors including ETC, IDAPT, La Case de Cousin Paul and Pierre Fannes.

Classic gifts, such as candles, vases or decorative figures are to be found in the Gifts Unlimited section in Halls 9.1 and 9.2. The range of products shown there by exhibitors such as Boltze, Depesche, Gilde Handwerk, Hoff Interieur, NICI, Paperdesign and G. Wurm ranges from stationery, via leather goods, to games, souvenirs and arts / crafts products. Buyers interested in gourmet gifts, e.g., exquisite chocolate, tea specialities, selected vinegar and oil, will find them in a special area in Hall 9.2. High-grade ethnic art from Germany’s Ore Mountains will be presented by companies such as Gerda Lutherer, Graupner Holzminiaturen and Wendt & Kühn in the ‘Manufakturen & Collectables’ section, which is also in Hall 9.2. This is also the setting for unique items and small product series made of glass or ceramic.

Passage Gifts in Hall 10.0 is where wholesalers and bulk buyers should go. There, overseas exhibitors present gift articles such as games, arts & crafts, stationery and a variety of fashion accessories from bags to scarves and jewellery.

Ambiente highlights at the Giving section: trend presentations, awards ceremonies and promotional areas

At Ambiente, valuable ideas for assortment compilation are to be found at the numerous trend presentations, awards ceremonies and promotional areas such as ‘Talents’ and ‘Next’. For the first time, there will also be a ‘Talents’ area in the Carat section in Hall 9.3 at Ambiente 2012. There, young international designers will present their unique, innovative jewellery creations.

Ambiente also offers a promotional programme for young start-ups that have already been able to take their first successful steps and now want to consolidate their position in the market: ‘Next’. Buyers will also find the initial collections of these design-oriented young entrepreneurs in Hall 9.3.

Also close by are the exhibition area of the German Arts & Crafts Association (Bundesverband Kunsthandwerk) and the ‘Plastic Gold’ presentation, a jewellery project by designer Florie Salnot who, together with refugee women from the Sahara, makes wonderful, delicate pieces of jewellery from old plastic bottles, paint, sand and sunshine.

Another première in 2012 will be the first ‘Upgrade’ package of benefits for jewellery and lifestyle buyers at Ambiente. The package includes a free season ticket with free travel on local public-transport services operated and a booklet of vouchers for interesting offers at the stands of partner exhibitors. And, at the Upgrade areas in Halls 9.2 and 9.3, buyers can relax with refreshments, and exchange ideas and opinion with their colleagues.

Ambiente
Ambiente is the leading international trade fair for products for the table, kitchen, household, giving and decorating, as well as for home and furnishing accessories. For five days at the beginning of the business year, over 4,500 exhibitors show what consumers will be able to see in shops around the world in 2012. However, Ambiente is a must not only for the range of products, which is unrivalled in terms of both depth and breadth, but also for the complementary programme with its numerous events, trend presentations and awards ceremonies.

Note for journalists:
You will find further information about Ambiente and high-resolution photographs on the internet at www.ambiente.messefrankfurt.com.

Background information on Messe Frankfurt
Messe Frankfurt is Germany’s leading trade fair organiser with € 448.3 million in sales and more than 1,600 active employees worldwide. The Messe Frankfurt Group has a global network of 28 subsidiaries, five branch offices and 52 international Sales Partners, giving it a presence for its customers in more than 150 countries. Events “made by Messe Frankfurt” take place at more than 30 locations around the globe. In 2010, Messe Frankfurt organised 87 trade fairs, of which more than half took place outside Germany.

Messe Frankfurt’s exhibition grounds, featuring 578,000 square metres, are currently home to ten exhibition halls and an adjacent Congress Centre. The company is publicly owned, with the City of Frankfurt holding 60 percent and the State of Hesse 40 percent. For more information, please visit our website at: www.messefrankfurt.com