The upswing of the D¨¹sseldorf trio of shoe trade fairs drawing to a close on Sunday ¨C GDS/GLS and global shoes & accessories 14 from 16 March ¨C has continued. The three days of the trade fair were characterised by a busy, satisfied mood, good turnover, avid interest in the presented trends and, above all, packed stands.

Compared to the previous year's event the number of visitors was up by approximately three percent ¨C with 34,000 visitors just under half of whom came from abroad from 76 countries plus the 1,382 exhibitors once again the trade fair destination D¨¹sseldorf became the centre of the international footwear industry last weekend.

In a representative survey nine out of ten trade visitors rated the three trade fairs as good to very good and were obviously in the mood for buying. By their own accounts buyers sizeably increased their ordering activities once again over last year's event.

Furthermore, they voiced particular satisfaction with the fashion on display, the topicality of the presented trends and the brands featured at the Dusseldorf Exhibition Centre.

85% of buyers acknowledged the extensive line-up of accompanying and information events including numerous fashion shows, expert roundtables and stand presentations. The areas "Lifestyle & Sports", "International Selection", "Exclusivity", "Young Fashion" including "Design Attack" and the noticeably enlarged "white cubes" generated the most interest from visitors.

Summing up results on the last day, Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, President and CEO of Messe Dusseldorf, said: "With GDS growing by 13% in terms of exhibitors and by 3% in terms of visitors we now know for sure: we are on the right and safe track. All major traders but also small and medium-sized retailers visited the fair grounds and have done good business."