The next edition of the Palma Boat Show will grow by 15%

The Director General of Commerce and Enterprise, Lourdes Cardona, had a meeting this morning with the Organizing Committee of the Palma Boat Show to evaluate the last edition, the first collaboration between the public and private sectors, and to discuss the novelties that are planned for next year.

The event, which celebrated its 30th edition this year and is considered to be the number one national show and third most important at the European level, was a great success, thus securing its continuity. "The change of the format has been a success and it has strengthened the whole industry as well as the local businesses with a connection to the nautical sector and other complimentary services", Lourdes Cardona pointed out.

The show has the most competitive pricing in Europe. The exhibitors pay considerably less than in other European fairs of the same category, the reason being that it is managed by the public sector and is not seen as a business venture. The aim is to offer a show open to all segments of the public and to support the nautical sector of the islands so that it can generate activity. At the same time, a great effort is made to make the event finance itself. Not having closed the accounts of the 30th edition of the show yet, the Council of Economy and Competitiveness expects moderate results. The department directed by Joaquin García together with the rest of the organization have agreed to invest these funds in the promotion of the next year´s event.

The last show had 136 exhibitors from 320 companies. The extension of the port will allow an increase of the show by about 15% next year. The moorings are redistributed to allow more space for the large yachts.

There were 42 superyachts this year, and next year the organizers expect to have more. At the moment, Palma is the European show with most large sailing yachts. When it comes to smaller yachts, the last edition counted with 87 boats, while the next year´s total is estimated to increase to 110 vessels, as one more dock is going to be available.

The Organizing Committee consists of the Director General of Commerce and Enterprise, Lourdes Cardona, the Director General of the Ports and Airports, Antoni Deudero, the Director of the Palma Boat Show, Chema Sans, the Manager of IDI, Joan Bibiloni, the Town Hall of Palma, representatives of nautical associations and the Chamber of Commerce.