Vinitaly 2016, the record-breaking fair

Verona, as every year, has become the capital of wine – and not exclusively Italian wine.

It earned this title not only due to the presence at Vinitaly of the highest state officials, from President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella – who inaugurated the event on Sunday, April 10 – to Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. But above all for the numbers reached this year, as well as for the quality of the operators who participated.

The 2016 show, which marked the 50th edition, saw the record of 100,000 square meters of exhibition space surpassed. This figure makes Vinitaly the world's largest trade fair by surface area, with more than 4,100 exhibitors from over 30 countries. No fewer than 130,000 operators visited Vinitaly – figures that reflect growth both in the number of buyers and in deals concluded.
Of the total visitors to the event, 50,000 were international (40% of the total), coming from around 140 countries. There were 28,000 accredited 'top buyers', a 23% increase over last year's edition. Leading the rankings are the United States (+25%), Germany (+11%), Great Britain (+18%), France (+29%), Canada (+30%), China (+130%), Japan (+21%), the Nordic countries (+8%), the Netherlands (+24%), and Russia (+18%).
Among the notable attendees, Jack Ma cannot go unmentioned – the Chinese billionaire whose Alibaba sales portal raises hopes for a business-driven rediscovery of the Chinese market. The businessman recently purchased 25 million bottles, yet only 6% of those resold are Italian. It appears his intention is to significantly increase that percentage, bringing it up to 60% of the total. (Alibaba, the only true rival to Amazon, about whose recent wine sector shake-up we recently reported: Amazon and its revolution in the world of wine.)
All in all, the signs appear very positive for a world-class event whose full impact will, in any case, only become clear in the months ahead.