Interview Michael Jänecke

Oliver Schmidt: In a few days, after the pandemic and the resulting one-year postponement, your trade fairs, Techtextil and Texprocess, will finally start again. There is certainly a lot of relief and joy there for you. What is the situation like? How satisfied are you? What is going well, what is going less well, and what expectations do you have of the trade fairs, the exhibitors and the visitors?

Michael Jänecke: We are very pleased that Techtextil and Texprocess can finally take place again this year after a Corona-related break of three years. The relevance of the trade shows for the industry is reflected in the more than 1,300 registered exhibitors from 53 countries who will present their products and technologies to a global audience. The industry continues to face economic and social challenges such as shortages of raw materials, long delivery times, cost increases and even a lack of personnel. It is therefore particularly important that we use Techtextil and Texprocess to create a platform for personal exchange in order to work together on solutions and initiate new developments. Visitors can once again make face-to-face contact with exhibitors, establish business relationships and also benefit from the extensive supporting program, such as the free Techtextil and Texprocess Forum.

This time - planned as a one-off event - a Heimtextil Summer Special with around 950 exhibitors from 49 countries will also be taking place? Will this be a separate event or where and how do you expect links and synergies?

For the first time, the three leading trade fairs will be held in parallel. As a trade fair for home and contract textiles, the Heimtextil Summer Special has its own focus. Nevertheless, there are numerous synergies with Techtextil and Texprocess, as the textiles, technologies and processing methods on show are also used in the home textiles sector. It is a unique opportunity to see these three trade fairs at the same time in the same place and to present the textile value chains to the visitors*. Exhibitors benefit from cross-selling opportunities and can establish business relationships in entirely new constellations.

As the world's leading trade fairs, all three trade fairs also stand for innovation above all. The development time has been extended this time due to the pandemic and exhibitors have had three years to develop something new. How much innovation will we see?

Many companies have used the last three years for research and development. The resulting new materials, products and technologies will ideally be presented to the international trade audience at our trade shows. We therefore expect to see a wide variety of new products and strong innovation at the trade shows.

We are delighted to be able to support new and further developments in the field of technical textiles and textile processing, or to make them visible, with the Techtextil or Texprocess Innovation Award. The winners, selected by two international juries of experts, will be honored at a public awards ceremony on June 21, 2022, and presented on all four days of the show in Hall 9.1 (Techtextil) and Hall 9.0 (Texprocess). Once again this year, groundbreaking innovations were submitted that show how much future potential there is in the textile industry. The winners will be officially announced on June 20.

The focus topic of the trade shows is sustainability, already a focal point of the last edition in 2019. You aim to make sustainability in products even more visible to visitors. How are you implementing this?

As in 2019, exhibitors with sustainable products and technologies will be identified for visitors* as part of Sustainability@Techtextil and Sustainability@Texprocess. New this year is that exhibitors could submit both already certified and as yet uncertified sustainable products for review by an independent international jury. In this way, we are supporting exhibitors with sustainable approaches and making it easier for visitors to find them. In addition to a label on the stand, the relevant exhibitors are listed in a separate brochure and can be found in the online exhibitor search and the Techtextil or Texprocess app.

The Techtextil Forum and the Texprocess Forum will once again be part of the event. Why have both become an integral part of the trade fairs? What do exhibitors and visitors appreciate about the formats?

The Techtextil and Texprocess Forum bring together international industry representatives and interested visitors to exchange information and ideas on various industry topics. For many years, the format has established itself as an important meeting place for experts. It provides insights and inspiration on a wide range of topics, stimulates new ways of thinking and promotes discussions. The Techtextil Forum in Hall 9.1 offers presentations such as "Circular economy in the textile industry. A Position Statement," "Development of 3D-printed Composite Elements for Personal Stab Protection Clothing," or "Making a Mark with Textiles. Recycling solutions for membranes for use in architecture." The patron of the Techtextil Forum is once again EURATEX - The European Apparel and Textile Confederation. At the Texprocess Forum in Hall 9.0, the audience can expect expert presentations on topics such as Impact 4.0 / Future of Industry 4.0, Quality Management of the Future, Supply Chain Management, Digital Product Development and Sustainability Management. As in 2019, the Texprocess Forum program will be organized by DTB - Dialog Textil-Bekleidung e.V. and VDMA TFL.

Both forums are free of charge. The presentations will be simultaneously translated DE/EN or EN/DE. After the Techtextil Forum and Texprocess Forum, the presentations will also be made available "on demand" on the Techtextil and Texprocess Digital Extension platform.

The expansion of the more technical trade shows to include an invigorating fashion element, which you launched in 2015 with the "Innovative Apparel Show," will be even more sophisticated this time with the Frankfurt Fashion Show taking place in Frankfurt at the same time. How can the visitor participate in this? How can he integrate it into his schedule?

This year, the concentrated textile power is on display in Frankfurt. Techtextil, Texprocess and the Heimtextil Summer Special await trade visitors at the exhibition center. Messe Frankfurt's offerings will be supplemented by the D2C (Direct to Consumer) Neonyt Lab from June 24 to 26. In addition, numerous public events are planned for Frankfurt Fashion Week, organized by the City of Frankfurt. Visitors* will thus be able to take part in a variety of events in one place.

At Techtextil, too, the special show "Performance Textiles in Fashion" will present unusual and innovative garments in Hall 9.1. This will highlight the properties and possible applications of rather technical textiles in the Fashion application area.

A special highlight at Texprocess this year is the Denim Future Lab. This is a completely new and very exciting element, as the denim sub-sector has shown itself to be particularly innovative and open-minded in recent years. What is your intention here for visitors?

With the Denim Future Lab in Hall 8.0, we are putting the spotlight on the promising denim industry and highlighting new or sustainable production and processing methods along many stages of the processing chain. The large denim sector can make a massive contribution to the sustainable development of the textile industry. With this special exhibition we want to show the many possibilities.

Innovative and progressive companies such as Jeanologia, Ugolini, Wiser Tech, Brongo and IEN Industrie S.p.A. will present trends such as eco-bleaching, eco-dyeing, upcycling solutions or individual design and finishing of luxury denim. The Speakers Corner of the Denim Future Lab offers the opportunity to exchange experiences with experts and invites to discussions. Supported by the Transformer Foundation and the exhibitors, the free Speakers Corner will discuss topics such as greenwashing, chemicals in the production process, and cotton and other fibers.

So what about the threat of COVID-19? Is that still an issue? Is there anything visitors need to be aware of?

Fortunately, the events can currently take place without capacity and admission restrictions and thus without proof of vaccination. Hygiene measures such as online ticketing, fresh air supply, generous hall planning and intensive cleaning processes are still being implemented.

What have we forgotten about the trade shows that you would like to mention?

We are pleased to be able to offer Techtextil and Texprocess for the first time additionally digitally as Digital Extension. Exhibitors extend their presence at the fair digitally, present themselves virtually and offer formats such as web sessions or round tables. Visitors can experience the trade fair offerings digitally and make contacts in 1-to-1 video conversations or chats. Messe Frankfurt formats such as conferences or panel discussions are extended virtually and can be accessed on demand afterwards. The Digital Extension of Techtextil and Texprocess will be available to visitors free of charge from June 13 to July 8.

And with the Job Exchange, we offer exhibitors the opportunity to advertise vacancies free of charge. We know from many conversations that specialist personnel are urgently needed. This is done via a website and we would be delighted if as many exhibitors as possible took advantage of this offer.

I can hardly wait for Techtextil and Texprocess to finally open their doors again and for us to welcome our customers from all over the world once more. The past three years have shown how important it is to have face-to-face exchanges in one place. After many virtual meetings, I am very much looking forward to finally having face-to-face discussions again, meeting familiar and new faces and talking face-to-face about challenges and potential. And of course to the unique trade fair atmosphere.

Finally, perhaps the most important question. Why should anyone reading this interview visit the trade fairs?

That's quite clear: Because nowhere else do you get such a comprehensive and at the same time in-depth market insight as at Techtextil and Texprocess. Because nowhere else do so many exhibitors from all application areas and product groups come together, and because nowhere else can you better meet experts and make contacts.