+ Successful re-launch in difficult times
+ Annual event until drupa 2024

The fourth edition of PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION, organized by the Fachverband Medienproduktion (f:mp.) and Messe Düsseldorf, attracted about 800 participants on the two trade fair days at the Congress Center in Düsseldorf, Germany. The event was again the meeting place for media production professionals and decision-makers from industry, trade, marketing agencies and IT. In addition to exciting exhibits, visitors were able to learn about future-oriented content on the potential of digital printing applications, automated workflows, creative finishing and sustainable packaging solutions.

The 64 exhibiting companies included numerous international key players such as antalis, Canon, ESKO, FKS, Gräfe Veredlungsgruppe, Horizon, hp, INAPA, KODAK, Koehler Paper, KONICA MINOLTA, KURZ, LANDA, locr, mondi, Obility, OKI and WerkII. 24 of the companies (38%) were first-time exhibitors.

Due to COVID, the congress trade fair was smaller compared to the previous event in 2019 (94 exhibitors/1,287 participants) and with 800 net square meters, the exhibition space was also smaller (1,360 net square meters in 2019). Despite all the pandemic-related restrictions, around 800 international participants from the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) and Benelux (Belgium, Netherland and Luxembourg) attended the convention.

The organizers are very pleased with the results of the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION: “We are very happy about this result and the successful re-launch in the still ongoing covid crisis,” stated Rüdiger Maaß, Managing Director of f:mp. “We are confident that we will be able to realize our full potential again in 2022. About 40 companies that cancelled for 2021 due to COVID have already promised their participation for 2022.”

“With its eight theme worlds and impressive conference and workshop program, the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION has once again proven that it is an important content hub for the industry,” added Sabine Geldermann, Director Print Technologies Messe Düsseldorf. "This is where active, highly relevant knowledge transfer takes place and the current and future trends of the industry are highlighted.”

The PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION was divided into eight theme worlds: Interior/Exterior Design, Brand & Product, Value Added Printing, Postpress, Label & Packaging, Printed Electronics, Dialogue Marketing and Sustainable Media Production. The theme worlds examined innovations, trends and visions in marketing realization, marketing automation and content marketing - across all touchpoints of the customer journey.

In four parallel lecture series with a total of 48 presentations and workshops, the focus was on sustainable media production, marketing automation/programmatic printing, value added printing and dialogue marketing.

The special format "Highlight Guide" presented staged campaigns and best cases that were implemented in partnerships between exhibitors and brand owners.

The PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION will be held annually until drupa 2024: the fifth edition is scheduled for June 22 – 23, 2022, the 6th edition in 2023 (the exact date has not yet been set). The PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION will then be integrated into the drupa trade fair to be held from May 28 – June 7, 2024, in Düsseldorf, Germany.

For further information on visiting or exhibiting at the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION or drupa 2024, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America; Telephone: (312) 781-5180; E-mail: [email protected]; Visit www.drupa.com,  https://tdm-e.f-mp.de/ and www.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/mdnachicago 

For hotel and travel information, contact TTI Travel, Inc. at (866) 674-3476; Fax: (212) 674-3477; E-mail: [email protected]; www.ttitravel.net