Running from October 6 to 14, the 52nd edition of the Genoa Boat Show will provide its visitors with a unique experience mixing up business and innovation, as well as sport and love for the sea.
Genoa International Boat Show
The 52nd Genoa International Boat Show, organised by Fiera di Genova and UCINA Confindustria Nautica (the Italian Marine Industry Association), was officially presented in Milan on July 11. The Boat Show will be held at Genoa Fair and Exhibition Centre (Fiera di Genova) from 6th to 14th October 2012.
This year’s edition of the Boat Show will mark the beginning of a new path ahead, aiming in particular to ensure not only the excellence of the incredibly wide range of products on display, but also that taking part in the Show is a truly unique experience for everyone, combining business, love for the sea, interactive meetings and events.
The Exhibition Layout
The layout of the Boat Show – which extends over four pavilions, two marinas and large outdoor areas – has evolved over the years to ensure the best possible product arrangement and allow all visitors to enjoy the beauty of the floating part to the fullest. In the new marina in particular, a special arrangement of floating jetties will allow the exhibitors to perform sea trials on the boats on display and to set up dedicated areas to welcome their guests and clients at best thanks to a perfect correspondence between their land offices and the crafts moored in the marina.
A new exhibition concept will also be implemented for accessories and technical components inside pavilion C, where a dynamic, interactive format will be applied this year to display technical apparel in a very innovative way. Electronic equipment, tourism and miscellaneous services, diving equipment and a general shopping area will be located in the first gallery of Pavilion S.
Inflatable boats will be on display in the Blue Pavilion and in Pavilion S (package models). To ensure the best possible product arrangement, sailing boats will be moved this year to the Marina 1, a new location that will grant this important and fast-growing sector all the visibility and attentions it deserves.
The diving sector
In the past the diving sector was always present at the Show, which was considered as the most prestigious venue – and the best time of the year – to promote sector products. After a few years’ absence, the members of the Confisub confederation (the association, part of Confindustria Genova, that gathers Italian companies designing, manufacturing and marketing professional diving equipment) will make their comeback at the Boat Show, where they will display the most prestigious Italian brands.
There are several reasons behind this important decision, all sharing, however, one common denominator: the will to be part of a “true sea experience”. A very innovative and highly effective exhibition format will be in place this year: all participating companies will set up one common interactive area in the first gallery of Pavilion S. The top event during the nine days of the Show will be the awarding ceremony of the Tridente d’Oro (the Golden Trident), which is considered as the Nobel prize of worldwide diving and has reached its 52nd edition.
An international conference on technical aspects and sea rescue operations will also be held, gathering the world’s leading experts and the most important marine works companies from all over the globe. Confisub’s goal is to turn this pilot initiative into a long-term success and hopes this year’s event will work as an ‘incubator’ that will attract an increasingly large number of qualified participants, also from other sectors related to diving.
Progetto giovani – Navigar m’è dolce
UCINA Confindustria Nautica has carried out the Navigar m’è dolce (Sweet Navigation) campaign for eight years to promote sea culture and recreational boating all over Italy. This year this important project will also rely on a close cooperation with the Italian Sailing Federation and a sort of “joint venture” with Fondazione Carige’s Progetto Giovani.
More specifically, thanks to a dedicated project developed with the Italian Sailing Federation, the Weymouth Olympic and Paralympic Village will be set up at the entrance of the Boat Show and will allow all sailing enthusiasts to admire the sailing boats used during this year’s London Olympic Games, as well as to discover the Olympic classes that will take part in Rio 2016 Games, including the new kite boarding class. An interactive area will be located next to the village, offering children the opportunity to try out sailing and other water sports in a special swimming pool.
Following an ideal theme itinerary, sailing will also be in the spotlight at the Sea Theatre (Teatro del Mare), which this year will be set up in the central area in front of the Service Centre and which will host meetings with writers and sports champions, sailors and sea culture representatives.
This year the Sailing Stadium (Stadio della Vela), which has always been the stage for training activities and demonstrations, will host the entire fleet that took part in the 2nd edition of the training project “L’Italia in Barca a Vela: il Mare che Unisce” (Italy on a sailing boat: the sea that unites), promoted by the Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research in cooperation with the Italian Sailing Federation, Lega Navale Italiana, and the Italian Coast Guard – Harbour Offices. During the Boat Show lessons for upper secondary school pupils will be held outdoor, while primary and lower secondary school pupils will be involved in the “Vela Scuola” project, another important initiative developed thanks to the cooperation between the Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research and the Italian Sailing Federation.
Moreover, as a result of the cooperation with the regional sports association Movimento sportivo popolare ligure, the Italian Olympic Committee, various Italian sea sports federations, Lega Navale Italiana (Italian Naval League), the Italian Coast Guard, Società di Salvamento (the Italian Rescue Association), Atlantic Challenge and Acquario di Genova (Genoa Aquarium), the younger ones will be able to experience the sea first-hand by trying out not only sailing, but also rowing and others sports, as well as following safety-at-sea and biology lessons.
As a result of the increasingly close cooperation between and among the Boat Show organisers, the Italian Sailing Federation (FIV) and the Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research, this year all FIV members will have available a special ticket valid throughout the nine days of the event.
Moreover, thanks to the cooperation with UIM, the World Powerboating Federation and FIM, the Italian Powerboating Federation, amateur and professional competitions will be organised for junior athletes, Formula Junior and Formula Future sea trials will be held for children aged between 8 and 18 years, and the public will be able to admire jet-ski and radio-controlled power boating performances. UIM and FIM will also organise a series of events dealing with environmental issues and illustrating various initiatives promoted jointly with other powerboating associations at an international level.
This year too the Boat Show will include the Techtrade section, displaying components and accessories and targeted at professional operators in particular, but also to the Show’s increasingly aware and experienced visitors. Monday 8th and Tuesday 9th October will be the preferential days for b2b meetings.
An increasingly international Show
UCINA promotes Genoa International Boat Show at an international level throughout the year and is constantly committed to supporting internationalism in the production sector it represents, both through own financial resources and through public-private partnerships with the Italian Ministry for Economic Development and operating agreements with the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade.
Even though the Institute recently went through a major restructuring that partially slowed down its activities, this year ICE was able to directly manage – relying on its own resources – as many as eleven projects whereby a large number of Italian companies took part in international trade fairs, both collectively and as individual enterprises. In order to help Italian companies enter new emerging markets, memoranda were signed in Brazil with the state of Santa Catarina, the state of Amazonas and, in May, with Acobar (the Brazilian Pleasure Boating Association), as well as in China, with the Tianjin Commerce Commission and the Hainan Province DIIT, as a result of which several b2b meetings B with Brazilian and Chinese operators will be held in Genoa during the Boat Show.
This year Boat Show representatives will take part in several initiatives abroad organised under the aegis of Liguria International, the Liguria Region’s company for the internationalisation of local businesses, with which Fiera di Genova recently signed a cooperation agreement.
The first important event will be the presentation of the Show at the Moscow Office of the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade on 17th July, aiming to ensure the presence of a delegation of Russian operators at Genoa Boat Show in October. A Turkish delegation will also visit the Show as part of the partnership with Liguria International, with the organisational support of UCINA and Sea Future.
But there is more: during the nine days of the Boat Show a series of initiatives targeted at foreign businessmen will be organised, including the second edition of the International Boating Forum – a round table involving the leading European associations members of EBI (European Boating Industry) – and two workshops promoted with the support of two important magazines: IBI will be involved in the meeting organised in cooperation with EESC (the European Economic and Social Committee, a EU consultative body), while Yacht Builder International will be one of the organisers of the “Buy Buy Italia” event.
Conferences, meetings and other events
This year too the Boat Show will include an extensive calendar of conferences and side events. The conferences, organised by UCINA Confindustria Nautica (the Italian Marine Industry Association), will focus on several topical issues and will aim to provide an overview of the Italian boating industry and discuss the most important aspects and problems currently involving this sector.
Various institutions, politicians and opinion leaders will take part in a debate on the national and regional policies regulating the Italian marine industry, Italy’s and the world’s economy, the role of the media and of social networks.
Start to Business, the event devoted to innovation organised in cooperation with CDI Manager and Consorzio Quinn and aiming to promote business between the boating industry and high-tech companies, will be back at the Show this year and will consist of two different phases: a presentation of innovative solutions and technologies never applied in the boating sector so far, followed by one-to-one meetings with boatyards and shipyards.
GenovaInBlu
Last year GenovaInBlu, the “Show Fringe” featuring a large number of events held outside the fairground, animated the whole city with outstanding initiatives, shows and performances and attracted thousands and thousands of people. The 2012 calendar of events will be even more enthralling: every night, from 6.00 pm to 11.00 pm the entire city of Genoa – from the old town to its suburban areas – will host cultural events, shopping initiatives and performances organised jointly by UCINA Confindustria Nautica, Genoa Chamber of Commerce and Genoa City Council in partnership with the Liguria Regional Council, Genoa Provincial Council, the shopkeepers associations ASCOM and Confesercenti, and Convention Bureau.
Design, engineering and innovation
Design, engineering and innovation will be among this year’s leading themes at the Show. The cooperation between the Universities of Genoa and Miami has indeed resulted in the development of a design/training project devoted to new trends in yacht design that will involve professors, students, and the entire boatbuilding sector. In this framework, the Italian Register of Engineers will hold a series of professional meetings and refresher courses on design.
Moreover, for the first time ever, a special area will be set up where all sailing enthusiasts will have the opportunity to meet famous sailing boat designers and talk about new materials, performances and design solutions.
The “Best marine woman of the year” Award
The award “The Best Marine Woman of the year” has been created by the Italian and Ligurian regional association AIDDA (Women Entrepreneurs and Executives Association), Fiera di Genova and UCINA to pay tribute to the role played by women professionals working in the boating sector as whole – boatyards, maritime agencies, marinas, boat shows, refitting and shore service companies, protected marine areas, tourist resorts, the marine apparel sector and the broker & chartering sector: thanks to women’s entrepreneurial spirit, combining business and environmental awareness and capable of seizing the opportunities offered by constant innovation, these sectors are successfully tackling the current crisis while looking ahead at the future optimistically. The awarding ceremony will be held during the Boat Show.
Services
As far as services are concerned, major changes have been introduced, starting from the services provided to exhibitors: from handling to telephone and Internet connections, all the way to special agreements with 29 hotels in Genoa and the nearby area. Visitors will again have available helicopter transfers, while the Boat Show guests will be able to use a “private pier”.
For the first time, exhibitors will be granted a “Gold Card” for their best clients, allowing to take advantage – upon reservation – of a series of dedicated services, such as reserved parking spots and the access to the Gold Card Lounge, located on the mezzanine floor of the Blu Pavilion.
Tourist packages and hospitality
There will be some interesting tourist packages combining a visit to the Boat Show with cultural events, wonderful tours of Genoa and other charming towns in the area, food-and-wine itineraries, tourist fishing, golfing, wellness and shopping.
“Tailored” packages for the most demanding customers may also be prepared upon request. A special agreement has already been reached with some air companies to ensure foreign visitors and professional operators can reach Genoa in the easiest and most comfortable way.
As part of the “Welcome Project” organised by Fiera di Genova and UCINA in cooperation with Genoa Chamber of Commerce, shuttle buses will connect the fairground to the airport, railway stations, parking areas and main hotels in town (including 3-star ones); an information kit will be available for all Boat Show visitors and a large information desk will be set up inside the fairground. The services made available through this project have extended and improved over the years, with the aim of increasingly meeting the needs of visitors and exhibitors alike and ensuring that everyone can enjoy their stay in Genoa to the fullest.
Available services will also include a special ‘shopping and city tour’ bus service connecting the Boat Show to the city centre. In particular, connections from the Boat Show to the City will be organised, so as to allow the public to take part in as many GenovaInBlu side events as possible.
Sponsors
For the fourth consecutive year the Boat Show’s main sponsor will be Rolex, the Show’s “official watch”. The partnership with the Banca Carige Group has also been confirmed and this year will ensure the allocation of funds covering up to 80% of the costs that the exhibitors will have to incur to take part in the Boat Show.
The Boat Show’s website and app
The Boat Show’s website, which integrates Fiera di Genova’s and UCINA’s systems allowing them to jointly manage all commercial operations with exhibitors, has further evolved this year by adding new entry pages in Chinese, Russian, Portuguese, Spanish, French and German to its traditional Italian/English version, thus allowing more foreign exhibitors and visitors to find information about the Show in their own language. Moreover, as of September the Boat Show app will be available not only for i-Phone but also for Android.
Opening hours and tickets
The Boat Show will be open every day from 10.00 am to 6.30 pm (10.30 pm on the opening day, Saturday 6th).
The ticket will cost € 15.00, concessions € 13.00. For the first time, this year children up to the age of 14 , if accompanied by an adult, will be able to visit the Show for free throughout the nine days of the event. Tickets can be purchased online (starting in September).
Four-wheel scooters and wheelchairs will be available for all disabled visitors as part of the welcome project implemented in cooperation with the association Terre di Mare.
