As portfolio director at Easyfairs, Margaret Dunn is the driving force behind the breakbulk event AntwerpXL. This year, the focus is on sustainability. “We plant a tree for every registration and the exhibitor with the most sustainable stand, gets a prize,” she says.
How did you get into the logistics world?
Margaret Dunn: “I studied languages and started my career in business journalism and later in a publishing company. Meanwhile, I have over 15 years of event experience, much of it in the areas of transport and sustainability.”
What are the fair’s USPs?
“AntwerpXL is an event like no other. Over three days, the event brings together the entire project cargo, breakbulk, roro and heavy lift industries. Antwerp is at the crossroads of major European transport corridors and offers easy access to markets in Europe and beyond. Every terminal in Antwerp has a multimodal connection with direct access to the European rail, feeder and barge networks.”
“We see AntwerpXL as an intimate event focused on networking. The event offers visitors time to have meaningful conversations with potential new partners. In doing so, we prioritise inviting project cargo owners from around the world from industries such as EPC, mining, renewable energy, offshore, power generation, wind power, machinery and so on more. To ensure that we bring together the entire supply chain of project cargo, breakbulk and heavy lift, there is no charge for visitors who register in advance of the event.”
“In addition, we have put together a high-level, two-day Main Deck conference programme covering topics such as the global breakbulk and project cargo outlook, how the industry will cope with the shrinking supply of MPP vessels, how geopolitical challenges affect the breakbulk supply chain and much more.”
What are the challenges for the exchange?
“Everyone is busy, so it is difficult to persuade people to attend industry events. However, since the pandemic, it is clear to everyone how important it is to meet people in person and participate in fairs like ours. At AntwerpXL, you can have several meetings in one day, which saves a lot of time compared to travelling around to meet individual customers. The project cargo industry is all about meeting people and building relationships, so networking is essential and what’s more, it’s great fun!”
A look to the future: will Antwerp XL continue to grow?
“Every year we work with more international partners to expand our reach worldwide. In the future, we want to continue this international growth and focus on further expanding the event to attract project cargo owners from all over the world. At Easyfairs, we also attach great importance to sustainability. Not only do we discuss this in the Main Deck conference programme, but we also do what we promise. We cooperate with the company Ecologi, which plants a tree for every registration. In addition, we are also offering free coffee for visitors coming to the event by public transport, we are awarding a prize for the exhibitor with the most sustainable stand and we are helping to raise money for local charity TEJO.”
Finally, what else can we wish you for this edition?
“We can’t wait to see all this year’s new initiatives come to life. For example, we have introduced a VIP champagne reception for project cargo owners, a fast networking zone and a collaboration zone for smaller companies. This is in addition to the Businessrun, the innovation zone, our late-night networking after-party and the tour of the port of Antwerp-Bruges. In short: so there are plenty of opportunities to network, generate valuable leads and have fun.”
“On the second day of the fair, we will also celebrate the winners of this year’s ’40 under 40′ competition. Our ’40 under 40′ recognises both those with the greatest potential to become industry leaders in the future and those who have already made great achievements. On day three, we also introduced a recruitment day. We know that attracting and retaining new talent to the breakbulk and project cargo sector remains an ongoing challenge. That is why we are collaborating with various institutions such as the University of Antwerp, Charlemagne College and Randstad to invite the brightest new recruits to the fair.”
Those interested in attending the event can register here.
