Absolute openness and a total absence of political barriers

I always believed that exhibitions were an atavism — a relic of the past.
With the rise of the Internet, there seemed to be no reason to either showcase anything at such events or to attend them. Unless it’s a honey fair or a cheese festival where you can actually taste the products, it all felt a bit outdated.

Turns out I was wrong — everything has its own purpose and meaning.
Last year, we supported a Russian company’s participation in the international exhibition “INTERSEC,” dedicated to innovations and solutions in the field of security. That very event completely changed my perception of exhibitions.
Not touching on the downsides — in my opinion, there’s only one, which is the cost for participants (for visitors, entry is usually free) — everything else comes with a long list of advantages.

The UAE regularly hosts millions of conferences, summits, shopping festivals, high-profile international sports tournaments with major prize pools, and international exhibitions on all sorts of topics.
The most popular venues are definitely in Dubai (DWTC, DEC) and Abu Dhabi (ADNEC), with Sharjah’s Expo Centre being slightly less prominent. Other Emirates also hold events, but they tend to be more local in nature.

Exhibitions gather truly massive audiences. And beyond the casual visitor traffic, they provide real value to every participant — their target audience. Most visitors are somehow connected to the industry the exhibition focuses on or are involved in adjacent fields.

For participants, the goal is of course to promote their products or services, and to gain valuable contacts among potential leads they can follow up with after the event.
And for visitors, it’s a chance to discover something new, see it with their own eyes, touch it, and ask questions directly to the manufacturer or seller.
Typically, each company sends their best people to represent them — specialists who are capable of presenting the product at the highest level and addressing any technical or other questions. That matters.

By the way, one of my personal takeaways from INTERSEC last year was the absolute openness and total absence of political barriers — among organizers, participants, and visitors alike.