Interview with EICMA President Antonello Montante

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Motorcycle fair in Milan

EICMA 2021


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Interview with EICMA President Antonello Montante

Interview with EICMA President Antonello Montante
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Interview with EICMA President Antonello Montante

Interview with EICMA President Antonello Montante
Formula for success and future plans of the Milan motorcycle fair

The number of visitors to the EICMA motorcycle fair in Milan has been increasing for years. There is a sophisticated strategy behind this, as the President of EICMA S.p.a., Antonello Montante, reveals in an interview with MOTORRAD.

Michael Pfeiffer

07.12.2017

The EICMA grows and grows while many other fairs are shrinking. What makes EICMA so successful?

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Interview with EICMA President Antonello Montante

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Formula for success and future plans for the Milan motorcycle fair

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The secret of EICMA’s success is that we can no longer speak of a simple trade fair. Today this fair is a real event in every respect. It’s a melting pot of current and ongoing offerings. Their programs range from fashion to design, from big cinema to motors, from international competitions to acrobatic shows, from training to security. The EICMA is an excellent showcase and also the oldest trade fair in the world of two-wheelers. But we really don’t want to be satisfied with that. The records that we celebrated with the 75th edition made them the best of the last few decades, from all angles: That ranges from the number of exhibitors to the exhibition space occupied, to the number of specialist and of course regular visitors . We know about the challenges of recent years and the successes we have achieved. But we are also sure that we can meet the demands of the near future.

Do you want to export your strategy to other areas or maybe even to other countries??

Look, the EICMA is really a model that should be exported, a treasure and a capital for Europe and the world. It is a reference for companies and large corporations as well as a respected interlocutor for institutions. Thanks to the planned strategy, the EICMA is moving in unison with the industry, which is leading the way. We play a decisive but cautious role in this. We work with most of the accredited companies and international organizations on a daily basis. For 2019 we expect that we will be able to offer our exhibitors new services and support them in their work on an international level. The NIAF, the National Italian American Foundation, invited us to their most important event in Washington, where Italian top achievements are celebrated every year. This is a project that aims to show the world what products Italy is capable of. For me, this invitation proves our presence abroad and how successful the EICMA’s path towards an international orientation has become.

We actually observed that almost every motorcycle manufacturer in the world exhibited at EICMA this year. With which offers exactly are you attracting these exhibitors?

The merits of the international fair lie in its history, in its know-how of over 100 years. This is also attractive for the motorcycle industry worldwide. While other economic sectors have lost their attractiveness, the two-wheeler sector has been able to confirm its excellent values. There are entrepreneurs and managers at work who use the trade fair to present their knowledge and skills to the whole world. They act as ambassadors who know what to do, who are able to successfully serve markets thanks to promotions or brands. With our hard work we were able to win the trust of all those manufacturers who are now using EICMA as a world stage to present their new products. Brands that stand for excellence, without which it would be impossible to guarantee the success of the event and for whom we offer commitment and care, support, visibility and contact options 365 days a year. Our vision is a new model of trading platform that offers new growth opportunities for all companies, from the small to the big names in the industry. A situation that enables all kinds of connections and networks at all levels. By that I mean networking that turns a simple trade fair into an international rendezvous, where ideas and innovative solutions are born. These will only become noticeable in the next few years, but they will change our understanding and our experience of mobility on two wheels. This is not just networking between people and companies, but also between ideas and projects.

We are now also seeing an increasing number of bicycle exhibitors. Will this increase even further at the fair, and how important is the electrically powered two-wheeler sector for EICMA?

The market figures and the clear presence of the electric bicycle industry at EICMA show how the demand for two-wheelers is increasing worldwide. The manufacturers of traditional bicycles will participate in large numbers and thus become members of the large EICMA family again. Our 103 year history is a value in itself. But our intention is to give the international trade fair tools to cope with the constant and sometimes sudden changes. This year we are very happy to see how what last year seemed like a risk and what we invested a lot in, has now received excellent feedback from both visitors and exhibitors. The market and the industry are giving clear signs that the e-bike is not a passing trend, but a constantly growing phenomenon with ever increasing sales figures.

Do you intend to hold EICMA in Germany as well??

Our trade fair is subject to constant evolution. But the vision and the international claim allow us to achieve extraordinary results, clear and stable, to this day. This enables our long-term strategy that I have outlined with management and the members and manufacturers of the industry. We believe in that and are working in this direction. The 75th edition welcomed 1713 exhibitors from over 40 countries. I only mention the Hollywood star Keanu Reeves, who chose EICMA to present his new motorcycle, or the singer Francesco Gabbani, who hosts the MTV Awards 2017, or the multiple swimming world champion and Olympian Federica Pellegrini. In this year’s event, we outdid ourselves, also with offers in the city, with the Motorbike Week, where we celebrated the common theme of culture and passion for two-wheelers with over 150 events. We started working with companies that became ambassadors for two-wheelers. The common denominator is innovation, elegance and beauty. The partnership with the department store chain Rinascente as a symbol of elegance and with Harrods, the largest department store in Europe, are tangible proof of how EICMA is connected to the world. For the first time we also achieved a collaboration in Berlin with the famous KaDeWe: This icon represents the concept of luxury and culture. What I would like to say: We are always open to discussions and ready to be inspired by new collaborations with new partners.

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