LIGNA with new event dates from 2027

 Wednesday, December 6, 2023

LIGNA – the world’s leading trade fair for woodworking and wood processing has decided to set a new strategic course in terms of event dates. It will leave the usual event period over Ascension Day and from 2027 onwards will continue to be held in the odd-numbered years but detached from the public holiday in spring in Hanover, Germany. This strategy is probably going to be implemented for the first time in the history of LIGNA event.

This was a joint decision by the LIGNA organizers, Deutsche Messe AG and VDMA Woodworking Machinery after intensive discussions. LIGNA 2027 will be held in Hannover from Monday, May 10 to Friday, May 14, and LIGNA 2029 from Monday, May 14 to Friday, May 18. The date of LIGNA 2025 over Ascension Day from Monday, May 26 to Friday, May 30 remains unchanged.

Stephanie Wagner, Head of LIGNA, Deutsche Messe AG: “The decisive factor for LIGNA’s rescheduling from 2027 is the change in visitor behavior on Ascension Day and the following Friday as a bridge day.” A look at LIGNA’s history shows that the trade fair was originally deliberately scheduled for Ascension Day week. The visitor focus on the public holiday was particularly on the skilled trades sector. “The leisure behavior of visitors has changed significantly in recent years. Thursday as a national public holiday and the following Friday as a bridge day are very popular as an extended vacation weekend, particularly by German visitors from the skilled trades sector, but also from the industry. Our visitor analyses clearly confirm this.

LIGNA dates 2025 to 2029 at a glance:

LIGNA 2025: Monday, May 26 to Friday, May 30 in Hanover (unchanged)
LIGNA 2027: Monday, May 10 to Friday, May 14 in Hanover (new)
LIGNA 2029: Monday, May 14 to Friday, May 18 in Hanover (new)

As the world’s leading trade fair for the woodworking and wood processing industry, we want to present our exhibiting companies with a high quality and quantity of national and international visitors on all five days of the fair – from all visitor target groups. From our perspective, this will only be possible if LIGNA leaves the Ascension week in future,” explains Wagner.

VDMA Woodworking Machinery considers a new event period for LIGNA from 2027 onwards to be of fundamental importance. Dr. Bernhard Dirr, Managing Director VDMA Woodworking Machinery, Frankfurt am Main: “Efficiency is the key to a successful trade fair these days, and that applies to exhibitors and visitors alike. Time at a trade fair is valuable and needs to be used optimally. This is best achieved when the number of visitors is spread as evenly as possible over all days. This is exactly what the new LIGNA date ensures.”

Making even greater use of international visitor synergies with interzum in Cologne When rescheduling a world-leading trade fair such as LIGNA, many different aspects and complex interrelationships have to be evaluated and taken into account. Especially with regard to the international LIGNA visitors from overseas, the proximity of dates to interzum in Cologne is a factor.

Stephanie Wagner: “We are scheduling LIGNA 2027 before interzum. From 2029, LIGNA will then run parallel to interzum. By taking this step, we will enable all visitors to visit both trade fairs in a balanced and time-efficient manner and thus contribute to the average length of stay of an international visitor at European trade fairs, which according to our analyses is around 2.5 days.”

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Tags: Deutsche Messe AG, ligna, VDMA Woodworking Machinery, woodworking event, woodworking industry