DUBAI— Domotex Middle East closed this year with another increase in the number of exhibitors and visitors. The three-day event attracted 280 exhibitors—up from 269 in 2007—and 6,430 trade visitors— compared to 6,326 last year.

Exhibitors came from 36 nations to participate in the Gulf region’s international flooring trade fair to present their latest products and innovations.

“In the third year of its existence, Domotex Middle East has definitively established itself as the leading event of its type in the Gulf region,” declared Stephan Kühne, managing board member at Deutsche Messe, the show’s owner. “The outstanding results have strengthened our resolve to expand our role in Dubai.”

Of the overall total of exhibitors, 243 came from abroad—proof of the highly international character of Domotex Middle East, which measured 12,000 square meters of display space.

Exhibitors from the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Saudi Arabia accounted for half of this space, while numerous other countries, including the U.S., Afghanistan, Belgium, China, Croatia and Germany, were represented with official group pavilions.

Wilbert Heijmans, exhibition director for Deutsche Messe’s Dubai branch, said the show’s growth was seen in all areas but “especially, hardwood, parquet and laminate, which are all experiencing growth in this region. That’s why the participation of the National Wood Flooring Association ( NWFA) was such a hit.”

Attendees came from 91 different nations. Apart from the United Arab Emirates (UAE)—with 53% of all visitors—the bulk of attendance came from other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations, i.e., Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi-Arabia, as well as from Iran, India, Pakistan, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Egypt.

Heijmans said visitors represented a broad range including wholesalers and retailers, decision-makers from the contract property business, planners, architects, interior designers, interior decorators, builders and their buyers, project developers and managers, plus floor-layers and installers.

“The growth in visitors came especially from surrounding countries, like Saudi Arabia and Oman,” he explained. “The challenge is to get more Middle East-wide visitors. The construction is also booming in Kuwait, Lebanon and Syria. We will aim at this growth for the next editions, since we managed to get very good attendance from the UAE and other GCC countries.”

The key display sectors consisted of hand-woven and machine-woven carpets, featuring 72 and 56 exhibitors respectively, plus parquet and other wood floors, with 60 exhibitors. The range of exhibits at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Center was rounded out by textile, resilient and laminate floor coverings, maintenance and application technologies as well as ceramic, natural stone and marble.

Exhibitors on the whole reported a successful event with 63% saying they concluded sales deals, while numerous companies wrote up sizable orders and generated a large number of leads during the three-day show.

Special supporting events, such as the Creative Flooring presentation, also served as visitor magnets, Heijmans noted. There, professional installers gave demonstrations of how combining different materials can lead to a completely new design.

The Designers Corner featured a series of seminars and presentations for designers and architects on the topic of innovative floor coverings. This event, he said, staged in co-operation with the American University in Dubai, met with an excellent visitor response.

The next Domotex Middle East takes place from May 12 to 14, 2009, in Dubai. For more information, contact Heijmans at Wilbert@messe-me.com.