What Came First, the Trade Fair or the City?
Leipzig is its trade fair and its trade fair is Leipzig. The city has embodied this concept for centuries. Thanks to its innovative spirit and ideal geographic location, Leipzig is the cradle of the global trade fair business. More than in any other commercial metropolis, the people of Leipzig identify with their trade fair. Leipzig was a meeting place for traders and merchants as early as the Middle Ages. But more than that: Trade determined the way the city developed from the start. The trade routes Via Regia, linking Paris in the west to Nowgorod in the Ural Mountains in the east, and Via Imperii, between Bergen in Norway in the north and Rome in the south, crossed in Libzi, a small town of Slavic origin. Here, merchants from far and wide traded their goods at the local markets as long as 1,000 years ago. In 1165, the town was granted its town charter and market privileges, and this date is still celebrated as Leipzig’s founding year. The trade fair is mentioned more and more from the 15th century onwards. The German word for trade fair, “Messe”, also came from here, originally referring to the custom practised by foreign merchants of attending a church service, or Mass, on their arrival. Afterwards, the hustle and bustle of buying and selling began on Leipzig’s market square.
Leipzig is its trade fair and its trade fair is Leipzig. The city has embodied this concept for centuries. Thanks to its innovative spirit and ideal geographic location, Leipzig is the cradle of the global trade fair business. More than in any other commercial metropolis, the people of Leipzig identify with their trade fair. Leipzig was a meeting place for traders and merchants as early as the Middle Ages. But more than that: Trade determined the way the city developed from the start. The trade routes Via Regia, linking Paris in the west to Nowgorod in the Ural Mountains in the east, and Via Imperii, between Bergen in Norway in the north and Rome in the south, crossed in Libzi, a small town of Slavic origin. Here, merchants from far and wide traded their goods at the local markets as long as 1,000 years ago. In 1165, the town was granted its town charter and market privileges, and this date is still celebrated as Leipzig’s founding year. The trade fair is mentioned more and more from the 15th century onwards. The German word for trade fair, “Messe”, also came from here, originally referring to the custom practised by foreign merchants of attending a church service, or Mass, on their arrival. Afterwards, the hustle and bustle of buying and selling began on Leipzig’s market square.
The Sample Fair – A Leipzig Invention
At the time of the industrial revolution in the
mid-19th century, the trade fair in Leipzig, where goods were sold in large volumes, was running out of space. Facilitated by the invention of the railway, more and more merchants flocked to the Saxon city with their wares. At the same time, the rise of mass and large-batch production meant they no longer needed to bring their whole range of products to the trade fair. As a result, firms increasingly started showing samples of their products. In 1870, over 100 exhibitors came to the sample fair in Leipzig; by 1885 the number had grown to 348. The breakthrough came around 1900: By now, Leipzig trade fair was held twice a year, in spring and autumn. The concept of a sample fair began enjoying triumphal success around the world. After Leipzig, similar fairs were launched in London in 1915 and in Lyon, Bordeaux, Frankfurt am Main and Lausanne in 1916. As more and more samples were presented and the number of exhibitors and new products grew, the trade fair again needed more space. In 1893, the city of Leipzig awarded a contract to build a large trading hall. As early as 1894, the first autumn sample fair took place in the new building, and the “city trading house” was officially inaugurated in 1896. Five years later, in 1901, the first trade fair centre in the world was completed. By the mid-1930s, some 30 buildings had been erected. The autumn fair in 1919 attracted as many as 9,500 exhibitors and almost 120,000 visitors, including 10,000 from abroad. Capacity in Leipzig’s city centre was now stretched to the limit. Between 1920 and 1928, 17 exhibition halls with a total of 130,000 m² of exhibition space were built on premises outside the city near the Battle of the Nations Monument.
From 1919 to 1923, Leipzig trade fair was represented by its own foreign agencies in 66 countries. The city was now not only the “mother of all trade fairs”, as Edouard Herriot, Mayor of Lyon, said in praise of the sample fair, but also a “world trade fair” par excellence.
mid-19th century, the trade fair in Leipzig, where goods were sold in large volumes, was running out of space. Facilitated by the invention of the railway, more and more merchants flocked to the Saxon city with their wares. At the same time, the rise of mass and large-batch production meant they no longer needed to bring their whole range of products to the trade fair. As a result, firms increasingly started showing samples of their products. In 1870, over 100 exhibitors came to the sample fair in Leipzig; by 1885 the number had grown to 348. The breakthrough came around 1900: By now, Leipzig trade fair was held twice a year, in spring and autumn. The concept of a sample fair began enjoying triumphal success around the world. After Leipzig, similar fairs were launched in London in 1915 and in Lyon, Bordeaux, Frankfurt am Main and Lausanne in 1916. As more and more samples were presented and the number of exhibitors and new products grew, the trade fair again needed more space. In 1893, the city of Leipzig awarded a contract to build a large trading hall. As early as 1894, the first autumn sample fair took place in the new building, and the “city trading house” was officially inaugurated in 1896. Five years later, in 1901, the first trade fair centre in the world was completed. By the mid-1930s, some 30 buildings had been erected. The autumn fair in 1919 attracted as many as 9,500 exhibitors and almost 120,000 visitors, including 10,000 from abroad. Capacity in Leipzig’s city centre was now stretched to the limit. Between 1920 and 1928, 17 exhibition halls with a total of 130,000 m² of exhibition space were built on premises outside the city near the Battle of the Nations Monument.
From 1919 to 1923, Leipzig trade fair was represented by its own foreign agencies in 66 countries. The city was now not only the “mother of all trade fairs”, as Edouard Herriot, Mayor of Lyon, said in praise of the sample fair, but also a “world trade fair” par excellence.
Dark Hours
The world economic crisis of 1929 hit the trade fair in Leipzig hard. In 1932, 100,000 people were unemployed. Whereas the 1929 spring fair had drawn 165,000 visitors and more than 10,000 exhibitors, by 1932 it had dwindled to just 107,000 visitors and little more than 6,400 exhibitors. During the Nazi era, Leipzig trade fair degenerated to a propaganda venue for the Nazis. The nationalisation of the economy and the expropriation and persecution of Jewish merchants scared off foreign guests. By the time the Second World War broke out in 1939, Leipzig was no longer an international meeting point. From 1942 onwards, the trade fair in Leipzig was discontinued due to the war and the buildings were used as assembly plants for weapons. On 4 December 1943, allied bombs destroyed 75 percent of the exhibition grounds. The war ended in Leipzig on 19 April 1945, when American army combat units liberated the city.
The world economic crisis of 1929 hit the trade fair in Leipzig hard. In 1932, 100,000 people were unemployed. Whereas the 1929 spring fair had drawn 165,000 visitors and more than 10,000 exhibitors, by 1932 it had dwindled to just 107,000 visitors and little more than 6,400 exhibitors. During the Nazi era, Leipzig trade fair degenerated to a propaganda venue for the Nazis. The nationalisation of the economy and the expropriation and persecution of Jewish merchants scared off foreign guests. By the time the Second World War broke out in 1939, Leipzig was no longer an international meeting point. From 1942 onwards, the trade fair in Leipzig was discontinued due to the war and the buildings were used as assembly plants for weapons. On 4 December 1943, allied bombs destroyed 75 percent of the exhibition grounds. The war ended in Leipzig on 19 April 1945, when American army combat units liberated the city.
Trading Post for East-West Relations
Back during the world economic crisis, many companies had been
saved from bankruptcy when Soviet Russia ordered machines in Leipzig on a
grand scale during its industrialization campaign in the late 1920s. In
1926, an exhibition hall was built specifically for the Soviet Union
for these East-West transactions. After the end of the Second World War
in 1950, the Soviet Pavilion was erected in a style reminiscent of the
Stalinist architecture predominant in Moscow at the time, with its
pointed roof and red star. Despite the considerable damage wrought
during the war, the first Leipzig post-war trade fair was held on 8 May
1946, the first anniversary of the capitulation of German armed forces.
It went down in history as the first peace trade fair, drawing
exhibitors from all four occupied zones (including 12,500 West German
exhibitors) as well as firms from the Soviet Union, the only foreign
country present. After the Second World War, Leipzig trade fair
underwent a radical change. Following the division of Germany and the
integration of East Germany into the Eastern European socialist economic
area, Leipzig became the most important trade fair in the East. The
Eastern Bloc used it to demonstrate its economic power. The slogan at
the time, “Leipzig – Window to the World”, indicates how political
leaders in East Germany viewed Leipzig trade fair as an important aspect
of the country’s image to the rest of the world. At the same time,
renowned Western European, and in particular West German, companies came
here to cultivate business contacts in the East. Finally, Leipzig trade
fair also played an important role during the Cold War and the period
of détente from the 1970s as a bridge for personal and economic
relations between East and West.
Change Through Rapprochement
Every year in spring and autumn, Leipzig was transformed into a
vibrant metropolis. Planes from all over the world landed on the small
airfield at the edge of town. Tens of thousands of visitors from both
sides of the Iron Curtain headed to the socialist country: business men,
government officials, heads of state and journalists. Throngs of
exhibitors came from West German cities in particular. Every March and
September, for a few days, the streets of this town with its
half-a-million inhabitants were filled with the babble of different
languages. Alongside the East German Trabant and Wartburg car makes,
Mercedes, Chevrolets and BMWs cruised through town. Business and
pleasure were inseparable for a short time. A special cultural programme
was organised to accompany the trade fair, offering entertainment to
foreign exhibitors and visitors staying in the city. In the evenings,
people flocked not only to the bars, but also to the Gewandhaus concert
hall, the opera, theatre and cabaret. And wherever they went, they
forged contacts. The many inns and cafés benefited most: Daily events
ensured that these establishments were filled to bursting. But there was
one problem: There were not enough hotel beds. Everything was booked
up, even in neighbouring towns. Students were accustomed to vacating
their rooms in the student dormitories during trade fair time. Private
accommodation was in high demand. Children’s bedrooms were turned into
guest rooms. Renting was a matter of trust: After all, guests were given
a key to the front door! The gulf between supply and demand, desire and
reality, grew from year to year. It is no coincidence that the Monday
Demonstrations started in Leipzig during the autumn trade fair in 1989.
The trade fairs were an international meeting point, offering
tantalising glimpses of the world outside. Soon afterwards, the East
German regime collapsed and in 1990, the two German states were
reunified. As a technological symbol of this political development that
ended the separation of Germany, in the late 1980s the traditional East
German car makes Trabant and Wartburg were fitted with West German
engines from Volkswagen.
Leipzig Carries On
Within a year of this political turning point, Leipzig trade fair had lost the monopoly it had held in socialist East Germany. Under new political and economic auspices, the objectives of the trade fair were redefined. If Leipzig was to maintain its position in a reunified Germany, it would have to invest in a new exhibition centre and a new exhibition programme. In September 1990, the autumn fair opened its doors for the last time. The idea of moving to a new location was born in April 1991. After the German government agreed to contribute to its funding in August 1991, the organisers decided to build a new exhibition and congress centre on the northern edge of the city. Not long after, Leipzig’s city council also gave the project the go-ahead. The cornerstone was laid in August 1993, and the new Leipzig trade fair was inaugurated just two-and-a-half years later, on 12 April 1996. The new exhibition and congress centre sets standards on all counts. Events like Auto Mobil International, Baufach and Leipzig Book Fair turned a new page in the history of Leipzig trade fair. The concept of specialist trade fairs presented by Leipziger Messe GmbH, the organising company founded by the Free State of Saxony and the city of Leipzig, took account of the changes in market conditions in a new, united Europe. Thirteen new foreign agencies were opened in ten countries in Central and Eastern Europe. With its impressive glass pavilion and five spacious exhibition halls, the 680-million-euro exhibition centre is today not only a meeting place for exhibitors and visitors to specialist trade fairs, but also a venue for concerts and sporting events. With its sophisticated logistics and impressive glass and steel architecture, it is one of the most modern in Europe. Leipzig Congress Centre, which is attached to the trade fair, has already made a name for itself as a top conference venue for international congresses and events.
Customized Trade Fairs
With a range of trade fairs for
the automotive and construction industries, the environment and energy,
logistics, information technology, fashion and lifestyle, bookmaking and
literature, health, medicine and consumer goods, Leipzig is once again a
major forum for retailers, industry, consumers and citizens. Under new
social conditions, the trade fair is building on its traditional
strengths as a meeting place for international business partners. More
than 30 specialist and public trade fairs draw over a million visitors
to Leipzig every year. Leipziger Messe intends to consolidate its
position in the national and international trade fair market by
collaborating with other exhibition centres to overcome the new
challenges in the international trade fair business. The old trade fair
buildings in the city centre, with their long history, are today used
for other purposes. But once a year, at the annual book fair, downtown
throngs again with visitors. Readings are held in cafés, in book stores
and even in the city hall, almost like in the old days.
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