The international fair dedicated to stone materials has restarted in presence and with positive numbers. Maurizio Danese, president, and Giovanni Mantovani, general manager of Veronafiere, talk about the new format that combined business, architecture and design

Over 30,000 operators, 48% of whom from abroad, representing 120 nations: these are the numbers of Marmomac 2021, which closed after four days of business, events and training at the Verona Fair. A result that confirms the leading international exhibition for the entire natural stone supply chain, in the first face-to-face appointment after the stop imposed by the pandemic. At Veronafiere, importers, contractors, architects and designers from all over the world met 756 exhibiting companies, of which 329 foreigners from 39 countries in the 9 exhibition halls, for a total of 60 thousand net square meters, including the external areas with blocks, slabs and large processing machines.

"This edition of Marmomac has won a challenge whose outcome was not at all obvious: maintaining the high profile of internationality and satisfaction of the operators that has always characterized the event" commented Maurizio Danese, president of Veronafiere. “From this we can draw two considerations. First, that the show has an attractive capacity for the stone sector capable of overcoming even the difficulties still linked to the pandemic. Second, we have proof that major international exhibitions can be organized in person and in total safety, guaranteeing important business and relationship opportunities and reaffirming the fundamental role of trade fairs in promoting industrial supply chains ".

Giovanni Mantovani, general manager of Veronafiere, added: “A result that goes far beyond expectations: 30,000 qualified visitors from 120 countries are an important figure in this historical moment, with confirmation from strategic markets for stone such as North America, Russia, Brazil, Northern Europe and the United Kingdom, North African countries and the Middle East. In the pavilions we breathed emotion and optimism. All the operators and companies we spoke to appreciated the return in the presence of Marmomac and this new format that combines business with even more design, architecture, events, enhancing natural stone with a precise identity at an international level, both on a commercial level. than cultural ". The investments to select and host foreign delegations of top buyers in Verona, both among architects and importers of blocks, slabs and technologies, also contributed to the internationality of the edition. This is thanks to an incoming program that saw Veronafiere, ICE Agenzia and Confindustria Marmomacchine collaborate.

Lots of news. Starting with the communication campaign for the return in the presence of Marmomac, with the payoff Welcome Back to Verona. For the first time in the history of the exhibition, in fact, stone approaches the faces of women and men of the natural stone community with the aim of associating the characteristics of strength and resistance of marble with the courage and resilience with which operators and companies they have faced this period of uncertainty and difficulty. Furthermore, Marmomac has launched national research on the experience and perception of marble by reference groups, both professionals in the sector and less experienced consumers: the results will be communicated in February and will become a marketing intelligence tool available. of companies.

The Marmomac Talks debuted, meetings, lectures and workshops to keep the debate on the stone sector alive and current through the intervention of professionals and experts. In three areas set up in strategic points of pavilions 2, 7 and 12, they allowed participants to move easily and distribute themselves without creating crowds.

Success with public and visitors also for The Italian Stone Theater - Time in Stone. The leitmotif of the installations in halls 11 and 12 was Time, an intangible component that distinguishes natural stone from artificial products. The works dealt with themes of design and architecture, art and university experimentation, also involving important furniture brands. 5 exhibitions that can be visited: In Our Time (a reflection by Raffaello Galiotto and Vincenzo Pavan on the use of stone today, through a series of unpublished experimental projects, created by important designers and produced by teams of Italian companies in the stone sector ), Time in Stone. Paths of Art (curated by Raffaello Galiotto and now in its third edition, has investigated the theme of the use of numerical control machines in the artistic processing of stone), Brand & Stone 3.0 (a project of partnership and synergy between two worlds, that of stone and that of design, with the concept of Danilo di Michele and curated by Giorgio Canale), Tavoli d'Autore (a heterogeneous collection of tables designed for catering: a contemporary and updated table, also reformulated according to the needs of the pandemic reality,curated by ADI - Veneto Trentino Alto Adige Delegation, concept and coordination Paolo Criveller, Luca Facchini, Silvia Sandini, Carlo Trevisani); Young Stone Project (curated by Raffaello Galiotto and Vincenzo Pavan, in collaboration between Marmomac and some important universities, art academies, professional schools, institutions).

The Icon Award is back this year, a prize established in 2016 with the aim of selecting the work that, due to its aesthetic impact and symbolic value, will become the image of the event's communication campaign the following year. Starting from this edition, the jury will no longer vote for the winning work, but the public who was able to vote directly at the fair on multimedia totems, on smartphones with qrCode or through sharing on social networks, using hashtags that allow you to track the post.

This year was the last edition to take place from Wednesday to Saturday. From 2022, in fact, the decision to organize the show with a new midweek location, from Tuesday to Friday scheduled from 27 to 30 September 2022, was shared with the companies.