source: http://blog.yoyoor.com/

The 104th China Import and Export Fair, popularly known as the Canton Fair, begins this October. Held twice per year, the Canton Fair has been a bi-annual event since 1957. This makes the fair almost as old as modern China, which considering all the changes that have occurred in China since then is a pretty significant feat.

What makes the fair successful enough to have such a long history? It is considered to be the trade fair in China with the largest assortment of products and the highest attendance. They say it’s also the fair where the largest numbers of business deals are made, but I think this is most likely because of the largest assortment of products and highest attendance stats.



But while the Canton Fair once helped to globalize China, globalization seems to be slowly evolving beyond the traditional trade show. Many in the global sourcing business do not seem to attach as much importance to the Canton Fair as they once did a few years ago, especially those who are based permanently in China and often find the show to be a superfluous hassle. The reasons for the Canton Fair’s potential decrease in popularity have their logical reasons: the export scene is becoming depressed, with the emphasis being on more custom-made products than commodities; Guangdong is losing its position as the window of China’s export world, and China’s position as the world’s sourcing leader is also being eroded.

Of course, technology is the biggest culprit. With the communications system we have today, there is no need to have a scheduled trade fair in one physical location. Just look at Yiwu— they have a trade fair almost year-round, and have literally built a city around their marketplace. 50 years ago, all buyers were in one place— at the Canton Fair. Now, all buyers are still in one place— on-line. There is no need to fly to Guangzhou, business cards in hand, looking for a product to source when you can contact these suppliers on-line. I wonder how the “most deals made in China” Canton Fair statistic compares to the “number of deals” made on Alibaba.com and its competitors. And even if you do not use Alibaba.com, they will be at the fair handing out trade show magazines with full contact information and product photos of hundreds of suppliers in your industry for you to check out after your visit.

With these threats, the fair has to find a way to adapt to survive. Canton Fair fans can take heart knowing that the show has been successfully adapting for decades. For 2008, they are holding the fair over a 3+ week period based on industry. This is a good idea, as it eliminates the mob scene and thus eliminates some of the “hassle” part mentioned above. With attendees spread out into separate 4-day periods, you might even be able to find a decent hotel room when you go (not). This should prove to be a popular decision for most buyers, especially those in niche industries, but it might be inconvenient for China’s many global trade companies who want to attend.

The real trick to adding a modern punch to the Canton Fair is to use all this new technology to the fair’s advantage. At this year’s International Textile Expo in Shaoxing, expo organizers have teamed up with Yoyoor, Inc. to provide free smartphone rental for overseas attendees. Conference attendees can utilize the phones to make and receive international calls and take advantage of Yoyoor’s live bilingual Call Center to resolve any translation issues or other inquiries. Yoyoor will also send daily text messages with the day’s schedule and important activities, in addition to setting up a hotline for fair information.

This sort of integration of technology suddenly makes attending the fair seem like a more productive idea. It would not be complicated for the Canton Fair to attempt something similar. Even simpler additions, maybe GPS navigation around the grounds to find booths, would make the event sound more attractive. And I hope those grounds have wireless internet access by now, too.

Fortunately, even if some aspects of the fair are lagging behind technologically, there are also plenty of buyers and suppliers who have maintained fairly traditional procedures. No matter how much technology allows buyers to search for suppliers, there still has not been anything to substitute seeing what you’re going to buy in person. Business between buyers and suppliers will always be on a large scale, and meeting the people you will be doing business with, while seeing the products you will be buying up close, are crucial. This will always be an advantage of the Canton Fair (and any other trade show), and is a significant enough advantage to give the Canton Fair life for many years to come.