Asturias Trade Fair: the region’s best and much more
The Feria de Muestras de Asturias, or Asturias Trade Fair, was originally conceived to showcase the region’s products. Its creators couldn’t possibly have imagined that the fair – held annually in Gijón – would go on to become one of the most important events on the Asturian calendar.
Asturias Trade Fair is much more than a shopfront or economic exchange forum; it is now a major social and cultural event. Each year, during two whole weeks in August and three full weekends, over 700,000 people descend upon the Recinto Ferial Luis Adaro. The size of this exhibition centre has contributed to the event’s success, as has the overlap with the city’s week-long main annual festivities: the Semana Grande de Gijón.
Asturias Trade Fair
The fair (known in its current form by the Spanish acronym FIDMA) started out in 1889 when the Exposición Regional de Comercio, or Regional Trade Fair, was held in Gijón. The event would later change its name in 1924 to the Feria de Muestras de Asturias, and the city’s exhibition centre is now named after Luis Adaro, one of the figures who first got the fair off the ground.
Adaro found the winning formula for the event: new developments and products are showcased in a place where participants can share business ideas. Moreover, he succeeded in creating a forum for discussing innovation and cultural promotion. A small ethnographic museum was even set up for the duration of the fair.
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The event has gradually evolved over the decades, firsts gaining regional recognition, followed by national status in the 1970s before becoming the International Trade Fair it is today.
Asturias Trade Fair, day by day
Because the fair runs for two full weeks, each day can focus on one particular business, social cause, location in Asturias, collective, or anything else that the organisation decides to shine a spotlight on.
Previous editions have dedicated entire days to such diverse causes as older people, trade, tourism, equality, young entrepreneurs, transport, freelancers, blood donors, sport and the environment.
Some towns/cities and autonomous communities also hold day-long promotions for their products and services, much like influential businesses such as banks, food producers, mining companies or those in specific production sectors.
Each day there are various presentations and events to promote the participating companies to the attendees. The array of different events on offer provides an additional allure to visitors.
Structure of the fair
Given the size of the exhibition centre, it’s impossible to make your way around the entire trade fair in just one day. Make sure you plan your visit carefully in advance if you’re short on time.
You can pick up an exhibitor catalogue at the entrance to the exhibition centre. Alternatively, visit the website of the Gijón Chamber of Commerce (the main event organiser) to view the catalogue online.
The exhibition centre is divided into eight pavilions (each is numbered and has an inner and outer zone). There is also a plaza where small exhibitors and local and international artisans from a huge variety of sectors sell their products: choose from crafts, fashion, hair and beauty products, as well as food, alcoholic beverages and ornamental items.
Of course, a social gathering such as this wouldn’t be complete without a children’s zone offering attractions and activities for young visitors to the fair as well as age-appropriate products for sale.
Asturias Trade Fair in numbers
An increasing number of companies from beyond Asturias want to promote their products and services at this huge event. More than 2,000 companies both large and small have exhibited at the event over recent years.
Demand for exhibition space at the fair is so high that more than 100 companies never made it off the waiting list for the 2018 edition. Those businesses that secured a spot got to exhibit in one of the 600 stands installed the length and breadth of the 160,000-m2 exhibition centre.
Visitor numbers to the most recent editions of the fair almost reached an all-time high; the record is currently over 717,000. The shuttle busses provided by the fair organisers help roughly 20,000 people to get around the event each year.
Information of interest
How to get there
- The Feria Internacional de Muestras de Asturias is held in the Recinto Ferial de Asturias Luis Adaro, an exhibition centre located 3.5 km from Gijón Town Hall in the Cimadevilla area of the city. The nearest bus stop is at the Palacio de los Deportes (L1 and L4).
Admission
- See the official website for information on general admission charges and special discounts.