MIDEST, the global show for all industrial subcontracting know-how, took place from 17th to 20th November at the Paris Nord Villepinte Exhibition Centre; but this year it was very far from being business as usual. It was a show charged with emotion following the horrifying attacks and their consequences that had plunged Paris into mourning on the weekend preceding its opening. There was a searing pain that all shared, visitors and exhibitors alike, but, equally, the unbowed resilience of everyone present is reflected in the attendance figures published here, as always, in the final press release.

Out of the 1,603 exhibitors who had booked only some fifty, including around forty international exhibitors, did not occupy their stands. The cautious stance adopted by their governments or managements was fully understandable. On the visitor front, there was a 17% drop in numbers. Whilst certainly significant, initial feedback suggests that this was not as severe as it might at first seem in the light of a very high quality customer profile.

Exhibitors and visitors from around the world

his year, MIDEST’s exhibitors were drawn from 39 countries.
Although France remains the most highly represented country, accounting for over 62% of the exhibitors, the show also featured a strong international presence made up of 572 companies active in all the major sectors of industrial subcontracting.

A total of 34,070 professionals from 68 countries planning specific projects attended the event and 15% of them came from outside France.