Vinitaly 2022, a fair increasingly oriented towards business, with 28% of foreign buyers

“The role of Italian fairs is increasingly linked to the numerical increase in the number of companies embarking on internationalization, especially SMEs. Vinitaly, in this edition more than ever before, focused on this aspect with a very positive result in favor of a sector morphologically characterized by small realities. We are now looking ahead to 2023, with an event that will be even more attentive to the logic of the market and to the service and guiding function of our fair in favor of a sector that we found enthusiastic about returning to Verona after 3 years”. Here is the outcome of Vinitaly 2022 by the President of Veronafiere, Maurizio Danese. A Vinitaly “anything but a foregone conclusion”, as defined by Veronafiere CEO Giovanni Mantovani. “We have given initial feedback after a long process of listening and sharing with companies in the sector, and created a plan that will gradually become fully operative within the next two years. Setting a record for the number of foreign buyers in such a difficult year in terms of the economic and geopolitical situation is anything but trivial and highlights all Veronafiere’s determination to pursue its objectives”.
A trade fair increasingly oriented towards business, with wine lovers in the medieval city as the natural stage for Vinitaly & the City, and a historic record for the incidence of foreign buyers in relation to total entries: 25,000 foreign operators (from 139 countries) represent 28% of the total number of operators arriving at the fair (88,000). And this is net of the very strong contraction - linked to the pandemic restrictions on international travel - of arrivals from China and Japan, as well as Russian buyers, of course. A contingent that weighed in for a total of 5,000 lost arrivals but that did not prevent the reshaping of the participatory structure of an event that, from a national point of view, also rebalanced the attendance of the Centre-South - on the rise - with that of the North.

In terms of foreign visitors, in the head-to-head between the United States and Germany, the former confirmed their leadership in the ranking of countries. The United Kingdom remained third, while Canada took over from China in fourth place, ahead of France. Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, the Czech Republic and Denmark follow. On the whole, the European continent performed well, accounting for over two thirds of the total number of foreign visitors. France, Switzerland, Belgium and Holland also performed well, with an increase in the number of operators compared with previous editions. The participation of Northern and Eastern European countries was also consolidated, with Finland, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Romania in the spotlight. Outside Europe, countries such as Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam are holding their own, while India is growing. Finally, although the absolute figures are small, the number of visitors from Oceania has halved, while those from Africa have more than doubled.

Focus - Vinitaly 2022 ... the voices of producers by Veronafiere

Michele Bernetti, Umani Ronchi
“It has been an exciting Vinitaly, the first real occasion after a long time to meet physically people we haven’t seen for three years. We had contacts with many international buyers: in fact, our company is mainly focused on foreign markets with 65% of our production destined for export. We met with all our European customers, a fair number from America and North America, while Asia was absent for obvious reasons. The number of buyers was perhaps smaller than in other years, but all the clients we met were high quality contacts. For us, therefore, it was a very positive edition”.

Diego Bosoni, General Manager Cantine Lunae
“It went well, we are happy. These days we have seen a series of visits from professionals and at the same time a great enthusiasm in wanting to start again and great attention towards new projects and territories to be discovered like ours. We have had several visits from foreign buyers, so I have also found this aspect satisfying. It’s clear that the part of the world conditioned by a series of events is missing, but overall, even considering this aspect, we are happy”.

Alessandro Cellai, enologist and managing director of Vallepicciola
“Vinitaly 2022 went beyond the most optimistic expectations: not that we had any doubts, because when Veronafiere organizes this event it has always lived up to expectations. We found an atmosphere of great enthusiasm, people who wanted to meet again under the common denominator of this extraordinary raw material that is wine, which conveys a great communion of intentions. The feedback from foreign buyers was also positive. We knew some countries were missing for obvious reasons, however, they were compensated by others”.

Andrea Farinetti, Fontanafredda
“Vinitaly 2022 went very well. The pandemic has taught us many things: one of them is time management, which in this edition was one of the most efficient parameters. Limited entries and quality attendance were good. We managed to optimize appointments with buyers and suppliers. A business fair has finally returned, with new opportunities and new acquaintances. It was also exciting to see international partners again: from the United States, Europe and Japan. We noticed more and more attention towards the real Italian treasures, that is all those wines not easily replicable. Made in Italy is doing well and must hold on to quality”.

Massimo Gianolli, president of La Collina dei Ciliegi
“I am happy with the steps that Veronafiere has taken and that Ice has taken because it has been a very positive edition. The ingredients that determined a great success for this edition are the desire to resume on the part of everyone, the desire to get back together - this is a fundamental ingredient - the quality of the visitors and the quality of the buyers. We had a great many Italian clients, a top quality horeca, as well as top quality private individuals and investors from the world of finance and many foreign visitors”.

Andrea Orsini Scataglini, Communication Director Marchesi Frescobaldi
“We experienced it very well, the Tuscany pavilion did its part, we had guests and we tried to keep to the rules. We had the people we wanted and, above all, we had the desire to feel the passion, the energy and the enthusiasm of a country that is reborn, that wants to be reborn and that wants to move forward. The importers came, we had them from both the United States and Europe, we saw a little less of the Asian side but expectations were very much met. Also because this time Vinitaly was the first international fair, other years it was anticipated by other fairs, this year it was the main one”.

Giuseppe Pagano, Azienda Agricola San Salvatore
“This year we really appreciated the two days reserved only for specialized operators and not general public. On the side of recovery and internationality post pandemic, we have recorded an excellent response. In particular, Germany was very present, but also the UK and USA. However, we felt the lack of the East, at least as far as we are concerned. However, we are confident, happy and convinced that this is the way forward. Verona and Vinitaly are and remain the flagships of Italian wine in the world”.

Riccardo Pasqua, CEO Pasqua Vigneti e Cantine
“It went very well, it was an extraordinary Vinitaly, it was really great emotion to come back here after three years. An agenda full of very important appointments, both with the trade and with Italian and international opinion leaders. Lots of Europe and America, we missed the Asians, but we are convinced that we will make up for it in the next edition. All in all, very good, a great Vinitaly with interesting meetings and consolidation of business already started and many new opportunities. We are satisfied and would like to thank everyone for their commitment in a return occasion that was not taken for granted. The 2022 edition lived up to our expectations, with a smoother organization also from a logistic point of view. An excellent Vinitaly 2022”.

Antonio Rallo, CEO Donnafugata
“We have waited a long time for this Vinitaly n. 54 and we have been absolutely rewarded. A great Vinitaly, since the first day, a lot of foreigners and a lot of Italian operators, restaurateurs and wine shop owners. Moreover, we had a great presence from abroad. So everything points to us that - despite the storms - this can be a good year”.

Luca Rigotti, President of Gruppo Mezzacorona
“It went beyond all expectations. It is undeniable that the problems of pandemic are still there, as well as some problems in moving from one state to another. Nevertheless, it was truly an interesting Vinitaly, the Vinitaly of the return after the general rehearsal in October. As far as visitors, contacts and business appointments are concerned, we can only express our satisfaction. Very good contacts at national and international level. We had contacts with buyers coming from various foreign countries, so the balance is positive also from this point of view”.

Lino Scaravonati, Gruppo Lunelli-Ferrari
“A Vinitaly with results even higher than expected. It was clear the operators of the world of wine wanted to meet each other, whether they are wine lovers or operators. It was certainly a satisfactory edition. For the best-known brands, such as Ferrari, there was a huge turnout, but in general, I really noticed a resumption of pre-pandemic contacts. Excellent attendance, great interest, resumption of relationships, consolidation of existing ones and opening of new ones, even on more recently acquired markets”.

Massimo Tuzzi, CEO of Terra Moretti Holding
“It went extraordinarily well, we are very very happy. We prepared the fair very well before arriving, so the appointments were scheduled and well managed. There was a good presence of foreigners, and I must say that after these two years - which have forced us to think differently and to appreciate in a different way the possibility of being together during work and therefore also during the fair - we have experienced Vinitaly 2022 in a more intense way and without taking for granted what we took for granted until 2019. This for me was very interesting and allowed us to experience the fair more intensely”.

Sergio Zingarelli, President of Rocca delle Macìe
“We were among the exhibitors at the Special Edition in October 2021, partly out of a spirit of solidarity and also out of a desire to restart. On that occasion, the result was better than expected. In this Vinitaly 2022, the numbers have changed a little, but we have seen many operators from abroad. Italian attendance was also good, in particular, it was a very important day. Certainly, there was less attendance than in past editions but with more quality. And this is what we need”.