REALTY fair records 20% jump in attendance

Belgium’s REALTY 2013 real estate trade fair held in May recorded a with 20% jump in attendance to over 6,000.

The rise in the number of visitors attending the fifth REALTY real estate trade fair held in Brussels on May 28 - 30 was nearly double pre-show forecasts with 6,333 people passing through the gates of the Tour & Taxis exhibition venue - a 20% increase over 2012.

REALTY exhibition manager Gregory Olszewski said: 'We were projecting a 10% rise in visitors this year, because the exhibition space was sold out weeks in advance, but this result exceeded our expectations and is a great achievement. It was also clear that the quality of the stands had improved significantly as exhibitors realised they needed to make their offerings stand out in a tough market and the networking events were very well attended.'

The entire 8,000 m2 of exhibition space at REALTY was reserved in advance by 126 exhibitors. Visitors to the trade fair included around 150 international investors, attracted by signs of a pick-up in the Belgian market and the increasing breadth and depth of the associated seminar programme.

For the second year PropertyEU held the European Real Estate Policy and Benelux Investment Forum, which tracks the latest developments in the rapidly evolving real estate regulatory landscape at the heart of the EU.

The Forum also featured an overview by Brussels’ Mayor Freddy Thielemans on the city’s NEO retail development project.

Here are the video interviews from the European Real Estate Policy and Benelux Investment Forum.