Show Review

Asia's unique trade show for baby & children's products launched successfully in Hong Kong

The China Sourcing Fair: Baby & Children's Products (April 20-23, 2008) concluded successfully in Hong Kong this spring. Both buyers and suppliers left with good impressions about the fair, confirming its status as an effective sourcing platform in the industry.

A focused show
The fair was the first show held in Hong Kong with all products 100% dedicated to the baby & children's sector. It featured over 130 booths from mainland China and Hong Kong, as well as a pavilion from Taiwan. The number of booths was nearly 25% more than that in the October 2007 fair when baby & children's products were featured as a product pavilion at the China Sourcing Fair: Gifts & Home Products.

Due to the positive feedback received in fall 2007, Global Sources expanded the pavilion to become a stand-alone trade show in December 2007. The first fair in Shanghai resulted in a huge success — over 5,400 international and domestic buyers attended the three-day event. The April fair was held with the aim to let more buyers meet more quality China suppliers in convenient Hong Kong.

As a specialized trade show, the fair provided buyers with a wealth of choice. Major exhibits at the fair included Baby & children's garments; Baby bedding; Baby & children's furniture; Baby & children's safety products; Baby care & bath products; Baby feeding products; Baby & children's footwear; Baby & children's fashion accessories; Children's bags; Toys, game & puzzles; Children's masks & costumes and Outdoor play equipment.

The fair was co-located with the China Sourcing Fair: Gifts & Home Products, another professional trade show also organized by Global Sources. The twin events presented buyers with over 3,300 booths of baby & children's products as well as gifts & home products under one roof.

Quality suppliers from China & Asia
The fair grouped hundreds of professional suppliers from the Greater China region. Many of these suppliers are the companies behind today's leading brands who have been producing for major international brands for years.

Buyers were impressed with the high product quality at the fair and the suppliers' manufacturing capacity. Spanish buyer Khaled Al Hassan from Visados, Import Export Services said that they used to travel to different countries every year to look for new products in large quantity. This year, the company shifted their attention to China and decided to source at the China Sourcing Fair.

"We have been here for two days. The fair is a new place for us and we hope that we can do business... We are interested in schoolbags and we already thought about buying. The order can be confirmed once we go back and finalize with the headquarters," Hassan said.

Moreover, as majority of the fair's suppliers did not exhibit in other trade shows in the region, many buyers took the exclusive opportunity to meet these suppliers face-to-face at the fair.

With 50% of their products imported from China, Australia-based intandem found their trip to the fair successful. "Our business has been growing each year, so it is very important that we have a very good array of suppliers who we know have good quality and keep up with new product trends. I found the fair a very useful source not only to find new suppliers but also to find a new range of products," said Scott Reinke, managing director of the company.

Buyers benefited from special onsite programs
Apart from meeting quality suppliers, some buyers took advantage of the special onsite programs offered at the fair to enhance their sourcing experience. The New Product Gallery in hall 11, for example, showcased some of the creative designs from selected exhibitors, giving buyers an idea of what's hot in the next season.

Meanwhile, the hugely-popular free Conference Program continued to feature interesting topics on import/export negotiating techniques, intellectual property rights, customs regulations and product trends.

The unique "Ask the Experts" service expanded this April with more sessions to answer the huge demand from buyers. Buyers had a chance to meet industry experts for a free 10-minute personalized, professional advice to their import questions.

Given all these attractions, many international buyers visited the four-day event to develop new sourcing contacts. Well-known brands who attended the April fair included Big market (cyberkids) Ltd, Bossini, Braintoys, Chickeeduck, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Kid Journeys, K-mart, Li & Fung, Ocean Park Hong Kong, Small World Toys, Target, Tesco, Toys R Us and more.

Positive feedback from suppliers
Buyers were not the only side who gave high marks to the fair. Many suppliers at the fair also reported brisk results, confirming the China Sourcing Fair as a highly-effective trading platform for both buyers and suppliers.

Baby & children's furniture supplier Cherry Design International Co., Ltd has been exhibiting at the fair for five times now. The company recognized the business opportunities at the fair. "The fair helps us a lot in exploring the international markets. More and more buyers come to the Fair year after year... Till now, we already received around 40 inquiries," said Suky Chen, general manager of this Taiwan supplier.

Good news were also heard from Zhejiang Taishun Zhenxing Toys Co., Ltd. "The result is out of our expectation. We met many buyers during the first two days, including our old customers in Hong Kong. We met about 40 buyers who really like our products, especially our toys and bedding products. They will place orders after they go back (to their offices)," said Chen Yan from the company's export department.

Tommy Wong, general manager of Global Sources Exhibitions, was satisfied with the result. "The co-located shows of the China Sourcing Fair: Gifts & Home Products and Baby & Children's Products have been praised by both suppliers and buyers as being of excellent quality. Suppliers are saying that they have met high quality and serious buyers during the past four days. While buyers have said that the fairs are better organized than other shows they have attended," he said.

Convenient location
The fair was held at AsiaWorld-Expo, Hong Kong's modern exhibition venue located next to the Hong Kong International Airport. Buyers found the location convenient, easy to access and with unparalleled support services.

Many pre-registered buyers redeemed free Airport Express train tickets provided by Global Sources for a 28-minute comfortable ride from downtown Hong Kong to the venue. Other buyers took the free shuttle buses, which were available from many convenient locations in Hong Kong and Kowloon, to the show.

Meanwhile, many buyers came straight to the fair from the airport as soon as they arrived in Hong Kong. They enjoyed free luggage transfer service to AsiaWorld-Expo and took the 1-minute Airport Express trains to the show venue.

Two more shows in 2008
To answer a growing demand for more fresh designs on a more frequent basis, Global Sources will hold another two editions of the China Sourcing Fair: Baby & Children's Products this year.

Visit the fair from October 20-23 at Hong Kong's AsiaWorld-Expo and December 3-5 at the Shanghai New International Expo in Shanghai, China to expand your vendor list! Learn more about these shows and pre-register for free admission at www.chinasourcingfair.com. We look forward to seeing you soon.

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