Nearly twenty French companies are taking part in Hispack 2024

With the participation of around twenty companies, France is increasing its presence at Hispack, one of Europe’s leading trade fairs for the packaging industry, which is being held from 7 to 10 May at Fira de Barcelona. After Spain, Turkey, Italy, China and Germany, France will be the sixth country with the most exhibitors at this year’s edition and is also expected to be among the top three in terms of the number of visitors.

This time, the number of French exhibitors is up on last year’s edition, held in 2022, when only ten firms took part. The sectors of packaging machinery and accessories; bottling equipment; and process technology, as well as automation and robotics are the most represented with names such as AK Trading Comtech – Hibar, Control – Sensei, Ixapack, Mecapack, Serac Sas, BFR Systems, Sidel Blowing & Services, Zalkin and Novacom. There is also a significant presence of manufacturers of raw materials, industrial packaging and primary packaging, including Evenplast Sas, Groupe Archimbaud, Hoyer Special Logistics France, L’Hexagone, Reborn Plastics and Tournaire. The complete list can be consulted here

At the same time, France is one of the top three countries in terms of the number of international visitors to Hispack. After Portugal and Italy, French professionals are the most likely to travel to Barcelona to see the competitive offer of Spanish manufacturers and distributors of materials and machinery for processing and packaging, which stands out for its flexibility, quality and after-sales service.

In the last edition held in 2022, and still marked by the pandemic, nearly 200 French professionals attended the Spanish fair, a figure that is expected to increase this year as France usually represents around 10% of the international public that visits Hispack. In this respect, it is worth remembering the importance of the French market for Hispack, as it is the leading European destination for Spanish packaging technology exports.

Hispack, the key to the Spanish market

For international companies, the best way to discover the business opportunities offered by the Spanish market and to come into contact with companies using packaging, process and logistics technology, as well as packaging materials and solutions, is to attend Hispack. It has been the leading trade fair for the sector in Spain for more than 40 years and one of the most important in the European trade fair calendar for the packaging industry. This year, more than 800 exhibitors from 28 countries and 1,250 brands will be represented at Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Via exhibition centre. More than 27,000 professionals are expected to attend, 10% of them international.

Sixty per cent of Hispack’s offering corresponds to equipment and machinery for processing, packaging, bottling, packaging manufacturing, coding, labelling and marking, automation, robotics and logistics. The remaining 40% of exhibitors, meanwhile, present raw materials and materials for packaging, containers and packaging, and POS elements for various industrial and consumer sectors, as well as for distribution, e-commerce and retail.

Likewise, 70% of Hispack’s offer is Spanish and the remaining 30% is international. Turkey is the foreign country with the most exhibitors (81), followed by Italy (39), China (31), Germany (23), France (16), the Netherlands (9), Portugal (9) and the United Kingdom (6). The list of exhibitors also includes companies from Poland, Belgium, USA, Egypt, Greece, Morocco, Algeria, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Slovenia, Finland, Malaysia, Mexico, Japan, Latvia, Taiwan, San Marino and Singapore.

Hispack director Xavier Pascual underlines: “The opportunities of the Spanish market and its continuous growth rates are the main attractions for international companies participating in Hispack, as well as the connection of the fair with Latin America and the Mediterranean countries due to their cultural and geographical proximity respectively”.

Almost 90% of Hispack visitors come from Spain. In the international section, Portugal is the country that brought the most professionals in 2022, followed by Italy, France, Germany, Morocco, Turkey, Chile, Mexico, Colombia and the United Kingdom.

As a new feature, in order to promote business meetings with professionals from potential markets with specific investment projects, Hispack is focusing its programme of guest buyers on Mexico, Poland, Morocco and Tunisia, four countries of interest for Spanish exports. In parallel, Hispack will present Japan as a market opportunity for the European packaging industry. In this sense, it will host the visit of a Japanese delegation and will dedicate 9 May to showcasing success stories and promoting networking between European and Japanese companies with a view to activating channels for information exchange and international cooperation.

IBC, meeting point for international visitors

To improve the visitor experience for international visitors, Hispack will set up the International Business Centre (IBC) in Hall 3 of the exhibition centre as a reception point with specific services and its own agenda of activities.

At the IBC, international visitors will be able to receive personalised advice on the most suitable Spanish suppliers to develop their projects; attend conferences on potential markets and the presentation of success stories from both Spanish manufacturers (Why Spanish Solutions) and international manufacturers (Best in class); hold interviews with exhibitors; participate in a business meeting (Brokerage Event) with quick meetings to find suppliers, collaborators or exchange experiences; and go on thematic guided tours of the fair, among other proposals.

Barcelona, March 2024

María Dolores Herranz
Tel. +34 93 233 25 41
mdherranz@firabarcelona.com