Billed as ‘a genuinely international bike and alternative mobility show’, the organisers of the Italian Bike Festival are gearing up for the show’s fifth edition.
The 2022 Italian Bike Festival (IBF) is set to take place from September 9-11, 2022. It is aiming to extend its international reach.
The show’s growth since its first outing in 2018 prompted the IBF to move to a new internationally-renowned venue, the Misano World Circuit, home to a slew of world class sporting events.
The team from Taking Off, the company organising the Italian Bike Festival, has run through the main milestones achieved by the show and the goals for the future. Preliminary data for the 2022 edition highlight the show’s growth to date.
Launched in 2018 as an event aimed solely at consumers, the festival’s visibility has grown with visitor numbers booming and the trade side evolving too. A total of 20,000 visitors attended the first edition, but this year it is expected the IBF will attract an even higher number than the 30,000 bike fans that went through the turnstiles last year.
“Our event has a major impact on the local area, a fact attested to in a report compiled by Trademark Italia for the Osservatorio sul Turismo dell’Emilia-Romagna,” said Fabrizio Ravasio at IBF organiser, Taking Off.
“That research reveals that the 2021 Italian Bike Festival had an economic impact of €5.13 million in the local area, a third of which was spent on hospitality such as hotels, B&Bs and apartments.”
In addition, the IBF has also gained a reputation as a meeting place for industry operators, becoming something of a B2B event.
Francesco Ferrario of Taking Off noted “In the first edition, we had a hundred or so exhibitors that trusted us, but now we already have over 400 Italian and foreign brands confirmed for this fifth outing.
“This growth trend is a testament to the role the IBF has carved out in the bike world, presenting itself as a touchstone for those in the business and professionals for whom it really has become unmissable.”
This year the show will feature over 80,000 square metres of space at the Misano World Circuit, 50,000 sqm of which will be given over to stands and displays with the remaining 30,000 dedicated to the tests and side events planned.
