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associated with the Festes de la Mercè and the
Cavalcade of the Magi.
Once again, the Gran Via venue became the
nighttime venue for Sónar, the Barcelona
Advanced Music and Multimedia Art Festival,
organised by Advanced Music. The Festival
attracted a total audience of around 85,000
people, of whom approximately half attended the
nighttime sessions held between June 14 and
16. The daytime sessions, exhibitions and other
activities such as Sónar Kids were held at the
CCCB, the Macba, CaixaForum and the Auditori.
Sónar, a successful combination of avant-
garde art and experimentation with electronic
music, has become one of the benchmark
festivals worldwide. Besides attracting an
international audience, it has gone beyond our
frontiers to hold editions in London, New York,
Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Seoul, Frankfurt,
Chicago and Tokyo.
Harley Days and the TV3Marathon
Barcelona Harley Days, a highly popular event,
has become thoroughly accepted in the city and
the most important meeting for Harley Davidson
owners and enthusiasts in Europe. The latest
meeting, held in July, brought together around
18,000 Harleys from different parts of the
continent and the world, many of which took part
in the traditional 13-km-long procession of ban-
ners through the streets of Barcelona.
Enthusiasts were able to enjoy the facilities on
Avinguda de Maria Cristina, guided itineraries,
the Custom Bike Show, exhibitions of the latest
models, simulators, classical and customised
bikes, the Carpa Experience and numerous
music and recreational activities.
In December 2011, Hall 1 in the Montjuïc pre-
cinct, ceded by the Fira de Barcelona, became
the main telephone exchange for the TV3
Marathon, which on this occasion set out to raise
funds for research into regenerative medicine
and organ and tissue transplants.
ATTHESERVICE
OFTRADE
FAIRACTIVITY
Throughout 2011, the intense commercial activ-
ity of the Fira de Barcelona focused on the prox-
imity marketing strategy, offering the exhibiting
firms integral services adapted to the market
situation and the current recession context.
Over 4,800 visits were made to potential exhibi-
tors, which meant a notable increase as regards
2010. The number of telephone contacts also
grew, reaching the figure of 20,200, as well as
on-line promotions, which led to an increase in
the number of exhibitors.
It must be pointed out that these commercial
relations, developed by teams with specific
training, resulted in a major increase in the
effectiveness of the visits, up to 39%, six points
higher than in 2010.
The Fira teams concentrated much of their offer
on ‘packs’, designed specifically for each show
(space, construction of the stand, furniture, ser-
vices, access to the Internet, parking, etcetera)
through the ServiFira Project. In this context, it
must be noted that 57% of participating exhibi-
tors chose this modality, and that 30% requested
the GastroFira catering services.
Furthermore, new products were commercial-
ised, which meant a value increase for the client,
such as on-line promotion and sponsoring.
Toolswithwhich to foster trade contacts
With the aim of fomenting communication
between visitors and exhibitors, thereby increas-
ing business opportunities (what is known as
‘business match’), the Fira developed a new
platform which adopted social network practices
in order to maximise participation in an event.
From visitors’ point of view this platformmade it
possible to draw up and optimise beforehand a
personal agenda for the period when each show
was held since, in accordance with the profile of
each visitor, the tool is able to suggest exhibitors
of potential interest to whommeeting proposals
may be made during the event. Furthermore, it
provided the possibility to register for the differ-
ent activities organised by exhibitors.
From the exhibitor’s point of view, it provided
the opportunity to contact potentially interested
visitors and consult the meetings agenda before
the event began. It also served as a marketing
platform oriented towards visitors to invite them
to participate in demonstrations and activities.
New catering venues
GastroFira put six new catering venues into
operation at pavilions 5 and 7 of the Gran Via
venue, two of which were managed by Gastro-
Fira itself and the remaining four by firms in
the sector.
Throughout 2011 intense activity was developed
with the rendering of restaurant and catering
services for the major international shows, such
as the Mobile World Congress, ITMA and EIBTM,
among others, where the needs of organisers,
exhibitors and visitors required culinary proposal
adapted to a variety of dietary and cultural
prerequisites.
Likewise, GastroFira contributed to the organi-
sation of Barcelona Degusta, specifically in
coordination of the Ágoras and Aules del Gust
programmes and other gastronomic activities.
On the other hand, efforts continued when it
came to offering maximum quality and absolute
food hygiene guarantee through the introduction
of a range of totally recyclable or biodegradable
single-use items.
During the year over 80,000 coffee breaks,
25,000 aperitifs and cocktails, 42,000 working
menus, 2,500 picnics and 78,000 catering prod-
ucts were served directly to the stands.
Human Resources,
an organisational change
In 2011, the main goal of the Human Resources
Department was consolidation of the organisa-
tional changes resulting from the introduction of
the ‘New Value Proposal’ or revision of the Fair’s
Strategic Plan agreed to in 2010. The purpose of
these changes was to adapt as far as possible to
demands on the part of the market and clients,
with commitment to re-engineering processes,
personalised management of exhibitors and
visitors, and internationalisation. Commitment
on the part of the entire organisation and internal
communication were crucial to these processes.
Adoption of these measures made it possible
to increase the number of people engaged in
direct contact with clients, be they organisers,
exhibitors or visitors. To achieve this, it proved
necessary to redefine places and tasks to adapt
them to the new objectives, to promote internally
and select externally people with a commercial
profile, and to train staff members in the execu-
tion of their new functions. It must be noted that
204 people attended training courses, with an
average of 2.1 days each.
On the other hand, the trade fair institution con-
tinued to invest in labour risk prevention: once
again the number of accidents dropped.
At the end of the year, the permanent Fira de
Barcelona staff stood at 267 people.
Sustainability, commitment, CSR
Throughout the year, the Fira de Barcelona main-
tained its commitment to the environment and
to sustainability as part of its Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) policy.
Since 2011 the trade fair institution’s exhibitor
services dossier has included the possibility
to acquire ecological stands and accessories,
together with the ‘carbon footprint’ calculation
and redress service, which identifies the sources
of greenhouse-effect gas emission inherent to
any activity.
The Fira transferred the over 1,100 tons of
waste (paper and cardboard, glass, cans,
cartons and so on), generated at events, to
recovery plants for the production of recycled
material. Part of the waste matter may be
reutilised thanks to an innovative management
model that makes it possible to transform
such rubbish into solid recovered fuel (SRF) for
processes with high energy demand, such as
cement manufacture or electricity generation,
and as a substitute for fossil fuels, which emit
greenhouse-effect gases.
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