An international wine and spirits trade fair slated for next month in Singapore is seen as a good opportunity for Vietnam to attract new customers and investors to its fast-growing wine business.

The inaugural ProWine ASIA 2016, organized by Messe Düsseldorf Asia (MDA) and Singapore Exhibition Services, will take place at the Singapore Expo from April 12 to 15, the organizers said in a press release.

ProWine ASIA 2016 has to date attracted strong international participation from both group pavilions and individual exhibitors across 20 countries and regions, including Australia, France, Germany, Italy, the UK and the U.S.

The event will bring to the show floor a wide array of wines and spirits from around the world, numerous business and networking opportunities and more than 300 master classes, workshops and seminars by experts on a variety of topics.

Specializing in holding trade fairs in Southeast Asia, MDA is the Asian subsidiary office of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH, the German firm responsible for organizing more than 20 of the world’s top exhibitions in various industries.

Singapore Exhibition Services is a member of Allworld Exhibitions Alliance, a global network with over 50 offices worldwide.

ProWine ASIA 2016 is modeled on the globally recognized wine and spirits trade fair ProWein in Germany, first organized by Messe Düsseldorf GmbH in 1994. It has since gained a reputation as the world’s leading trade fair for wines and spirits.

MDA said the Singapore event serves as a strategic bridge to “connect regional wine and spirits traders with international producers looking to invest in the burgeoning Southeast Asian market, including ‘newcomers’ to the international wine business.”

“Numerous positive signs point out the Southeast Asian wine and spirits market, in particular the fast-growing Vietnamese market, as ripe for market entry,” said MDA project director Beattrice J. Ho.

Ho said the event will bring international exhibiting companies into closer contact with buyers from across Vietnam and the rest of Southeast Asia, and build collaborative partnerships.

“These opportunities will also exist through our program of events that incorporate master-classes and seminars, as well as special tastings and presentations by exhibiting companies that are keen to leverage the unprecedented opportunities that Southeast Asia has to offer wine and spirits companies of all sizes,” she elaborated.

“With an increase in consumption of wine and spirits in our region, this event comes at a great time for Vietnam and countries in Southeast Asia... This will enable us to help industry players in the region meet sales demands and keep abreast of the latest industry trends and developments," Ting Siew Mui, project director of lifestyle events at Singapore Exhibition Services, said.

Bright prospects for Vietnam’s wine sector

The opportune staging of ProWine ASIA 2016 comes in tandem with the mounting global interest in Southeast Asia’s wine and spirits market, according to MDA.

A region of rapidly developing economies and home to 600 million people, Southeast Asia will see annual consumption of beer, wine, spirits and mixed drinks grow by almost 1.2 billion nine-liter cases by 2019, according to the International Wine & Spirit Research 2014-2019 report.

In the meantime, Vietnam is the Southeast Asian nation that has recorded the highest growth in beer and wine consumption, said Vu Thi Minh Hanh, deputy head of the Hanoi-based Health Strategy and Policy Institute.

Key factors that drive the growth of wine consumption in Vietnam include the country’s recovering economy, higher disposable income, and the increasing influence of Western culture, according to the expert.

According to a 2015 market report for Vietnam by Brussels-based spiritsEUROPE, the volume of EU spirits exports to Vietnam has increased by over 50 percent since 2009, and was worth €42 million (US$45.69 million) in 2014, a surge of 730 percent over the last decade.

The recent signing of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on December 2, 2015 will amplify Vietnam’s market potential in the European spirits and wine sectors.

“The full potential of the [Vietnamese] market has yet to be realized, fuelled by the country’s sustained economic growth and dynamic demographics,” the report notes.

A boom in Vietnam’s tourism industry in recent years has expanded its wine and spirits industry.

Starting from a very low level, the Vietnamese wine market has exploded, with hotels, restaurants, and retailers now offering a wide battery of wines from around the world, according to “Market Insight: Vietnam’s Wine Industry,” a report released by Vietnam Briefing in February 2015.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!