Satisfied buyers and contracts with a value in individual cases of as much as five million euros marked the successful start of the ITB Buyers’ Circle. Some 500 leading buyers representing small and medium-sized companies as well as some of the major groups in the worldwide travel industry made use of the services provided by the first ITB Buyers’ Circle at ITB Berlin 2012. According to a recent survey 85 per cent of participants valued this opportunity to obtain free admission to this event and 82 per cent were satisfied with the arrangement granting them access to the Exhibition Grounds from 9 a.m. onwards. Buyers also responded positively to the travel service provided by Deutsche Bahn with its Event-Ticket, and to the free W-LAN access at the ITB Buyers’ Circle Lounge.

ITB Berlin was used by 92 per cent of buyers to assist them in finalising contracts or to sign deals during the fair itself. For 23 per cent the contracts had a value in the range from 200,000 to one million euros, while 19 per cent were able to prepare or sign contracts worth between one and five million euros. David Ruetz, Head of ITB Berlin, is very satisfied with the launch of the first ITB Buyers Circle: “The new platform met with an excellent response among leading buyers. According to our survey, the strength of the network, the many useful services and the way in which it helps to disseminate the latest knowledge about the industry have convinced 90 per cent of participants to return next year. These are some of the very good reasons for us to continue with the ITB Buyers’ Circle in 2013.”