50 years of NürnbergMesse: The foundation stone was laid by two strong guest organisers

NürnbergMesse celebrates its 50th anniversary. In the 1970s, it was the Spielwarenmesse that promoted the idea of a new exhibition centre in Nuremberg. AFAG trade fairs have also played an important role in the development of the exhibition centre to this day.

Written by Maximilian Hensel

Black and white photo: Crowd at a tasting event, woman in traditional costume serving samples at NürnbergMesse.

The first event in the new Nuremberg Exhibition Centre was the ‘internationale Spielwarenmesse 1973’ - just one year before the ‘Nürnberger Messe- und Ausstellungsgesellschaft mbH’ was officially entered in the commercial register. With over 1,500 exhibitors from 34 countries and around 25,500 trade fair visitors, the trade fair was a significant milestone and a real stress test for the new exhibition centre.

The growing Spielwarenmesse, which welcomed more international guests every year, was the driving factor behind the decision to develop a new exhibition centre in Nuremberg. After the opening of the exhibition centre, the continuous demand for more exhibition space and better facilities contributed significantly to the further development and expansion of the exhibition grounds.

Banner of the "Deutsche Spielwaren-Fachmesse" on a building in Nuremberg. — From 1951, the ‘Deutsche Spielwaren-Fachmesse’ was held in the Wieseler Haus by Nuremberg's Stadtpark.

Global industry meeting

Today, the Spielwarenmesse is a global industry gathering for the toy industry and a central event in the Nuremberg trade fair calendar. The long-standing partnership with NürnbergMesse was extended for the opening of the 70th Spielwarenmesse in 2019. In the NürnbergMesse anniversary book, Ernst Kick, former CEO of Spielwarenmesse eG, emphasises: ‘We always had a good, cooperative relationship when it came to supporting us, organising the Spielwarenmesse professionally and also providing the corresponding infrastructure.’

A group of people walking together at the Nuremberg Toy Fair — Federal Minister of Economics Ludwig Erhard visiting the Deutschen Spielwaren-Fachmesse in 1961.

Colourful diversity and innovation

Consumenta is being held for the 70th time this year. Under the name ‘Die Einkaufstasche’, the consumer fair first attracted the people of Nuremberg to the new exhibition centre in 1974. To this day, the people of Nuremberg associate the exhibition centre and Nuremberg with Consumenta, which attracts around 120,000 visitors every year.

Its organiser, AFAG Messen und Ausstellungen GmbH, even provided one of the first Managing Directors, Heiko Könicke, in the early years of the Nuremberg exhibition industry: ‘NürnbergMesse has always been one of the anchors for the future in the city and metropolitan region. It was logical and necessary for us to grow in terms of personnel, but also as an exhibition centre, because our indirect effects in the regional economy have created a lot of new jobs.’

NürnbergMesse and AFAG still work closely together today. AFAG organises over a dozen events in Nuremberg - including Consumenta and various trade fairs. The topics range from consumer goods to technical innovations. With Interlift, another leading trade fair will be launched in Nuremberg in October 2025. AFAG has thus been contributing to a broad range of trade fairs in the exhibition programme for 50 years.

A group of women smiling and holding gifts at a fair. — ‘Die Einkaufstasche’ has been inspiring people since 1956. To this day, it is organised by AFAG as Consumenta and attracts thousands of visitors.

Economic and cultural significance

For five decades, the events organised by AFAG and Spielwarenmesse eG have been important growth drivers for Nuremberg as an exhibition venue. Numerous sectors such as the hotel and catering industry, transport companies and retailers benefit from the trade fair as an economic factor. According to an ifo study, events in Nuremberg trigger economic purchasing power effects totalling over EUR 2 billion every year.

Detailed interviews with Ernst Kick, former CEO of Spielwarenmesse eG, and Heiko Könicke, former Managing Director of NMA and AFAG, can be found in the NürnbergMesse anniversary book ‘Messe.Stadt.Nürnberg’.

Author

Maximilian Hensel

Online-Redaktion // Press Officer Corporate Communications