Preview: Spoga Horse Spring 2019

Cologne (GER), January 12, 2019 – Spoga Horse Spring will be attracting exhibitors, dealers and experts from the international equestrian sport industry to Cologne again from 2 to 4 February 2019. Around 170 exhibitors from 24 countries will be presenting their wide offer of equestrian sport items for the coming season in Hall 8 of Koelnmesse. In addition to tangible products a diversified event programme with numerous activities awaits the trade visitors.

One highlight of the event programme is the spoga horse academy at stand E 050 in Hall 8. In cooperation with ehorses, Europe’s leading online equine market, lectures and workshops will be offered daily that covering manifold themes offer true added value for the specialised trade. One of the major focuses of the event programme is the theme digitalisation, which is also gaining increasing significance within the equestrian sport industry. In this way, ehorses is offering lectures on themes focusing on the marketing and online trade, in the scope of which in addition to marketing measures, shop systems will also be presented and discussed. Furthermore, Nicole Espey from the German Association of the Sports Goods Industry e.V. (BSI) will hold a lecture on the theme “Megatrend digitalisation – the opportunities and challenges” at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. Dealers from the equestrian sport industry will thus be well-armed for the digital future. In lectures and discussions they will be given tips and information that support them with the important step towards digitalisation.

The themes safety and protection measures remain relevant, here the spoga horse academy provides information on the latest developments and regulations. Bastian Tielmann, spokesman of the BSI, explains in his daily lecture at 10:30 a.m. what equestrian sport dealers should take into account regarding the EU PPE directive. Furthermore, at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday and 2:00 p.m. on Monday Peter Halldin will be demonstrating accident protection measures. J. M. Mertens will be giving tips on selling and sales discussions at 11:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. At 2:30 p.m. on Saturday and at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Caterina Steffen will explain how the youngsters can be introduced to the creature horse in future.

In addition to the lectures, the specialised dealers can register for personal consulting appointments online in the run-up to the trade fair via the trade fair homepage. The team from ehorses and J.M. Mertens are offering free consulting for the stationary trade – on topics ranging from direct mailing to merchandise management.

Besides the training programme, the latest equestrian fashion will be displayed live on the fashion walk. Here, the models will present the new collections of the manufacturers in a fashion show – daily at 12:00 noon and 3:30 p.m. In the scope of the Premiere’s Club, the manufacturers will exhibit their new products for the 2019/2090 autumn/winter season to the trade audience in a special exhibition.

Many riders have further animal companions. The latest equipment for dogs will be presented in the Dogs special event, which can be visited from Saturday to Monday in the spoga horse Lounge. Furthermore, the online portal HorseFuturePanel carried out a survey on the buying behaviour of riders in relation to dogs’ items on behalf of spoga horse. The results will be presented in the spoga horse academy at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday and at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday and Monday.

Networking in a relaxed atmosphere: Exhibitors, trade visitors and journalists will meet up at the happy hour on Sunday from 6:00 p.m. onwards in the Konrad-Adenauer-Saal in the Congress Centre North. Live music and good food will provide the best opportunity for networking, discussions and establishing contacts.
 

The HIPPO Dealer Award powered by spoga horse will be awarded at 2:30 p.m. on the fashion walk on the Sunday of the trade fair. From the 43 entries submitted, the selected winners will receive a prize in the categories Best Specialised Dealer, Best Online Shop, Best Opening, Best Shopfitting, Best Trade, Best Full-Range Stockist and Smallest Specialised Shop. The award, which was originally founded as the HIPPO Dealer Award in 2007, has in the meantime attained a high standing on the market and allows the dealers to present themselves as an award-winning specialised shop.

Spoga Horse Spring Press Release – www.spogahorse.com –

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