Vinexpo hangs its hat in Hong Kong

Hong Kong has beaten Singapore to be the permanent host city for major wine trade fair Vinexpo Asia. 

Event organisers Vinexposium announced that Vinexpo Asia will return to Hong Kong in 2027 from June 8-10 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC).

The move ends the alternating Hong Kong-Singapore format introduced after the Covid pandemic.

The event will now be held annually in Hong Kong, establishing a single, consistent meeting point for the wine and spirits industry in Asia and marking a new strategic cycle for Vinexpo Asia in the region.

"Hong Kong has been part of Vinexpo Asia's history since 1998 and remains one of the most relevant gateways to Asian markets for the wine and spirits industry,” says Rodolphe Lameyse, CEO of Comexposium's Food & Beverage Division

“Establishing Vinexpo Asia as an annual event in Hong Kong reflects Vinexposium's confidence in the city and supports Comexposium's broader food and beverage strategy in Asia.”

Building on nearly three decades of activity in Asia, Vinexposium says it is reinforcing its role in the region by providing the wine and spirits industry with a stable annual meeting point in Hong Kong. 

This evolution aims to offer greater continuity for international producers, buyers, importers, distributors and industry stakeholders across Asia.

Hong Kong's central position in Asia, as a gateway to mainland China and a platform closely connected to south-east Asia and the wider Asia-Pacific region, makes it a natural base from which to bring together the full spectrum of Asian markets, Vinexposium said in a media release.

Grace Ghazalé, International Events Director at Vinexposium, says the new annual format responds to the industry's need for greater stability, momentum and visibility in Asia. 

By establishing Vinexpo Asia in Hong Kong on a yearly basis, Vinexposium aims to offer exhibitors and visitors a clearer framework to build long-term relationships, plan their participation more effectively and support the continued development of trade across the region.

Australian wine producers hail "strong" results from Vinexpo Asia

Australian wine producers from 31 different regions attended Vinexpo Asia, the leading trade exhibition for wine and spirits professionals in the region in Hong Kong last week.

Wine Australia led the Australian contingent of 63 wineries as Vinexpo Asia 2024 brought together more than 14,000 trade visitors from 60 countries, who had the opportunity to engage with exhibitors from around the world over three days.

The Australian Wine Pavilion is a firm fixture at the event and offered producers a chance to showcase their brands to the most influential buyers, importers, distributors, producers, sommeliers, and merchants from around the world,

Wine Australia general manager for marketing, Paul Turale, said the activities around the pavilion supported Australian wineries to build connections to help unlock the growing opportunities across markets in Asia.

“In-person connections are so important for our sector and it’s been heartening to see such a strong interest from the trade in the diversity and quality of Australian wine over the three days,” he said.

“There is a real sense of optimism about the opportunities for Australian wine in Asia - it’s a hopeful and exciting time for Australian wine producers.”

Turale said the new Australian Wine national branding was also previewed at Vinexpo.

“The national brand encapsulates the adventure and diversity of Australian winemaking and it was great to see this applied across the pavilion and in supporting regional and wine brand assets at Vinexpo,” he said.

“This is our first time at Vinexpo Asia and it's been a really great experience to try and understand the big complex market that is Asia," said Kim Chalmers of Chalmers Wines in Victoria.

"We've been impressed with our visitors from mainland China who are so excited to have new, different Australian wines back and we've also been excited to learn that there is a thirst for understanding the diversity of Australian wine.”

Paul McArdle from Small Wonder in Tasmania and Wayfinder in Western Australia said: "The numbers and the diversity of cultures and countries at Vinexpo Asia is overwhelming.

"We’ve certainly had a lot of interest out of mainland China but also out of South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Japan.

"It feels a bit like the old days where there is very good representation and a strong presence of Australian wine and a strong interest in Australian wine. So that all goes well for our export markets. Fingers crossed. We await the orders.”

Vinexpo says farewell to Hong Kong, hello to Singapore

In a move that had long been expected, Vinexposium is changing the location of its flagship wine trade exhibition in the Asia-Pacific region and has chosen Singapore to host Vinexpo Asia in May 2023.

The group intends to capitalise on the history of Vinexpo Hong Kong (above), which was held in Hong Kong for 20 years until 2018. With a new name echoing its broader scope, Vinexpo Asia is returning to the region with the aim of maximising its influence.

Vinexpo Asia will take place in Singapore from May 23-25, 2023 in the heart of the Marina Bay Sands complex.

The new venue has been chosen thanks to the appeal of Singapore as a growing business hub.

Vinexpo Asia will focus entirely on wines and spirits and will become an annual event in the group’s portfolio.

Vinexpo Asia expects betweeny 1,000 to 1,200 exhibitors from across the globe.

The latest research by the IWSR for Vinexposium forecasts an annual rate of overall growth of 1.5% by 2025 in Asia-Pacific, which is higher than the forecast for Europe, estimated at 1.4%.

“There is currently strong demand among our exhibitors to return to Asia in the best possible conditions," says Rodolphe Lameyse, CEO of Vinexposium.

"Singapore stands out as an obvious choice for serving the interests of the entire Asia-Pacific region and act as a magnet, not only for Chinese clients, but also Australians, South Koreans, Thais, Japanese and Vietnamese, to name a few.” 

Vinexposium is the world's leading organiser of wine and spirits trade events.