Belgian DIY fair successful

The broad and varied selection of products offered at “DIY” was organised by product category, which was a help for buyers planning their visit to the five halls of the fair. More than 190 companies presented their products, which covered the following areas: home decor, electrical, tools, timber and building materials, hardware, sanitary installations and garden. The three days of the fair saw 4 300 trade visitors registering, though there was a drop in attendance on the Sunday. The fair organisers are still not clear whether this was due to the bad weather complete with black ice and snow, or the changed market structure, i.e. the increasingly smaller number of independent traders. Optimism was displayed by both suppliers and traders, which is not surprising in view of the development of the branch in the year 2000. The chains succeeded in bringing the year to a close with a sales increase of 4.4 per cent altogether. The number of foreign visitors representing large DIY retail chains has risen, particularly coming from the Netherlands. According to the fair organisers, the interest they show in “DIY” at Kortrijk is the result of the lack of any similar initiative in Holland. Next year Kortrijk will again be the venue for “DIY”, which will be open for business between 20 and 22 January. More than 190 exhibitors  and 4 300 trade visitors were present at "DIY" in Kortrijk