ExpoÓptica 2024 grows steadily for the second consecutive edition and attracts 29,4% more professional visitors
Organised by IFEMA MADRID from 12 to 14 April, the 34th edition of the fair is showing very positive results with figures that reach 8,350 professional visitors and 130 participating companies, an increase of 30%. Sharing a venue and dates with the OPTOM and A.N.A. congresses enhanced the synergies among sector professionals.
The 34th edition of the leading optics, optometry and audiology exhibition on the Iberian Peninsula, organised by IFEMA MADRID from 12 to 14 April, ExpoÓptica and ExpoAudio, concluded successfully with impressive exhibitor and visitor numbers. 8,350 professionals attended the three-day event, an increase of more than 29,4% over the last edition of 2022, which set the pace for this exponential growth. These trade visitor numbers in 2024 are slightly higher than in 2018, reflecting the recovery of the sectors.
In addition, the show has seen an increase in business participation. Nearly 130 companies presented their innovations in Hall 10, representing an increase of 30%, bringing together leading optical fashion brands, manufacturers, distributors, training centres and suppliers such as specialised software developers and equipment for hearing centres and opticians' shops.
International representation has also increased at ExpoÓptica and ExpoAudio 2024, with an 18.9% increase in the participation of foreign companies from seven countries, which represents a step forward in the objective of positioning the event as an unmissable meeting point globally for all those involved in optics and audiology.
Important representatives from all segments of optics and audiology
The event in Hall 10 hosted about 130 leading sector companies including benchmark optical fashion brands, manufacturers, distributors, training centres and suppliers such as developers of specialised software and equipment for hearing and optical centres.
Audiology, with its own area for the second time, made up 12.5% of the show. It was a place for professionals to find out all the latest in hearing aids and hearing aid technology such as rechargeable hearing aids with background noise cancelling, Bluetooth connectivity, sound localisation and voice recognition.
In the thriving specialised Optical Fashion area, which accounts for 40.6% of the event, leading national and international firms presented their spring-summer collections and trends that combine visual health and styling.
In optics and optometry, equipment and instrumentation assets played an important role accounting for 13.3% of companies, which presented major innovations for improving diagnostic techniques and integration of these equipment with, for example, artificial intelligence. Contact lenses, on the other hand, represented almost 11% of the total. We have seen innovations such as Orto-K lenses, known as “pyjama lenses”, and prescription lens centring systems based on the visual axis and the centre of eye rotation. In addition, ExpoÓptica featured almost 6% of lens manufacturers.
Finally, and crucially for the correct management of optical and hearing centres, about 8% of software developers that work specifically to meet the needs of opticians and audiologists were there, and 6.25% of services to the sector.
The OPTOM Congress and Congress of the A.N.A. and packed forums
The OPTOM 2024 Congress and the Annual Congress of the National Association of Audioprotesists (A.N.A) were held to coincide with the trade show, bringing a large number of visitors to the venue and enhancing synergies between professionals of the sector and participating brands, as well as generating business.
Also, from Friday, 12 to Sunday, 14 April, the fair organised an extensive programme of lectures and round table discussions in the ExpoAudio and ExpoÓptica Forums sponsored by Theme Software. It was full house in both forums, with visitors attending talks and discussions between experts on the main issues, challenges and opportunities for both sectors, as well as presentations of innovations by the exhibitors.
Growth in the digital sphere
In addition, the growth in professional visitors who attended the event at IFEMA MADRID was reflected in the digital ecosystem. The reach of all content amounted to more than 79.6K impressions and 6.5K interactions and the community on all social networks amounted to more than 9,000 users. The official hashtags of the event, #ExpoÓptica2024 and #ExpoAudio24, were included in 193 publications, and generated more than 1.6M potential impressions.