The inaugural five-day "Parfam 2011" exhibition, which concluded at the Expo Centre Sharjah last week, surpassed all expectations, with a minimum of over 6,000 visitors attending the show, said the organisers.

The event was inaugurated by Ahmed Mohamed Al Midfa, chairman of Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Expo Centre Sharjah.

The expo provided an opportunity for a broad range of exhibitors to showcase their fragrances, to members of the trade and the public respectively.

“Parfam 2011 welcomed 6,000 visitors as well as a huge cross-over from the 25,000 visitors at the Perfect Wedding show which ran concurrently. These two shows jointly covered over 9,000 sq ft,” said Saif Al Midfa, director general, Expo Centre Sharjah.

“Given the culture of fragrances here in the Middle East, it was a natural ‘bolt-on’ event. Due to the overwhelming success of Parfam 2011, we fully expect it to grow significantly next year – 80 per cent of exhibitors have already confirmed for 2012,” added Al Midfa.

Businesses from China, India and the UK exhibited at Parfam 2011, including some of the most recognisable brand names across the region from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain, such as Ajmal, Rasasi, Al Waleed, Al Fayiz and Asghar Ali.

"Ajmal Perfumes was at the expo not only from the retail perspective but also to highlight its position as a leading company in the regional and international fragrance industry," said Abdulla A. Ajmal, deputy general manager of Ajmal Perfumes.

"The event not only provided the high level of branding we required but also gave us networking opportunities to expand our business," he added.

The internationally-affiliated Fragrance Foundation Arabia (FFA), which is committed to growing the industry throughout the Middle East, is a leading supporter of the event.

"Parfam as a launch event has surpassed initial expectations as not only a retail event but also a great initiative for ME fragrance industry. As FFA we anticipate it to become a major fragrance industry event of the year across all sectors of industry," said Shahzad Haider, chairman of the Fragrance Foundation Arabia.-TradeArabia News Service