Although the survey has not yet been completed, the expectation is that the event will have exceeded R$400 million in business over the two days of the fair, at Serra Park. “In conversations with exhibitors and in people’s faces, we had confirmation that the event exceeded expectations,” said Eduardo Zorzanello, CEO of Festuris.
Pre-event numbers already indicated that this would be the biggest edition of all 35 years: growth of 23% compared to last year; 27 thousand m² of built area; 400 stands and 2,700 brands gathered; 7 content stages; 40 international destinations; 15 thousand participants, 600 communication professionals, including 26 journalists from the international press; and more than 100 hosted buyers, from Uruguay, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Mexico, Dominican Republic, United States, Portugal and Spain.
“Each year the responsibility of delivering an event with qualified exhibitors and buyers increases. Many participants approached us and, with affection, said they were satisfied. We are very happy with this feedback”, adds the founder and CEO of the event, Marta Rossi. The 36th edition takes place from November 7th to 10th, 2024.
Women transform lives
Women took over the 35th edition of the Gramado International Tourism Fair on Saturday morning (11/11), at the Festuris Meeting. The women's marathon started with Tiziana Ludwig, director of the Ludwig & Poloni Institute, continued with Simone Pereira, CEO of Hotel Marajó, passed by presenter and content producer Patty Leone and ended with the founder of Iara Turismo, better known as Tia Iara.
With the theme Positive Leadership: New Leader for a New Era, Tiziana cited the theory developed by the American professor and writer, Martin Seligman, Positive Psychology. According to the author, the study is based on three pillars: emotions, engagement and relationships. “The idea is to seek happiness through well-being, experiences of contentment and keeping in mind that life has meaning and is worth it”, pondered Tiziana.
But the women's team had more members to take the stage. Patty Leone talked about her journey as a content producer. She is an uncompromising advocate for the production and dissemination of products via the Internet. “Share information, invest in qualification. A good idea is not enough, you need to put it into practice, be persistent”, she insisted.
In the same vein, Simone Pereira recalled her 19 years of experience leading tourism on Marajó Island, in the far north of Brazil, with the panel Mulheres Fortes do Norte. “I entered the tourism sector to transform moments into affectionate memories”, she assured. “Transformation is a decision and an act of courage”, defined Simone, who ended by quoting a phrase from former US president, Theodore Roosevelt: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. ”.
And to close the women's team, Tia Iara took the theme Aos 80 Sem Parar to the audience. Entrepreneurship in Tourism with Energy and Optimism at the Best Age. One of the pioneers of tourism in Rio Grande do Sul, at the age of 83, the founder of Iara Turismo walked through its past, highlighted the present but, above all, showed that the future is right there.
With the panel How Four Super-Premium Agencies Are Dealing With the Training of Their Travel Designer Consultants - Case Radix, the CEO of Travel Designer, Ricardo Souto Ferreira spoke especially about the training and training of the workforce through the Radix Plan. “The course offers three classes for professional development: basic Travel Designer, Intermediate and Incentive Travel”, he detailed. “But without a doubt, Radix is evolving throughout Brazil.”