On April 21st, Alibaba.com made a huge presence at Hannover Messe 2008 and the Global Business Forum (GBF) in Hannover, Germany.

Jointly hosted by Deutsche Messe AG, local global and b2fair, the GBF was an important arena for foreign trade issues at Hannover Messe. Alibaba.com Senior Director of International Business Development and Marketing Brian Wong was there to present a keynote speech, participate in discussions and promote the “export to the world, export to China” message.

In his speech, Mr Wong spoke to attendees about how Alibaba.com aimed to help global trade by acting as “a window to the world for SMEs”. He also participated in a roundtable discussion with other thought leaders such as Françoise Le Bail, the SME Envoy of the European Commission and Deputy General of DG Enterprise and Industry, and Andreas Gruchow, Member of the Board at Deutsche Messe AG. Mr. Wong also addressed some 300 guests at an evening reception co-hosted by Alibaba.com and pan-European matchmaking organisation b2fair, where he highlighted the opportunity that European SMEs now have to reach new global markets:

“SMEs are the backbone of the EU economic engine, with over 23 million of them constituting close to 50 percent of EU’s GDP. However, only 8 percent of them are presently involved in international trade. Through both public-private partnerships with government trade promotion organizations (TPOs) and private-private partnerships with entities such as tradeshow organizers and other media companies, Alibaba is empowering SMEs to reach new international markets not previously accessible through traditional channels”

Overall, the tradeshow was a success for Alibaba.com, with numerous activities sparking attendees’ interest. Alibaba.com’s booth at the GBF was constantly surrounded, as people came to visit Alibaba.com’s webpage, sign up for memberships and meet with Alibaba.com’s Marketing and Business Development staff.

Over the 5 day event, the Alibaba.com team promoted Gold Suppliers and the platform services:

• Over 475 direct registration forms were signed
• Over 2,000 promotional bags were distributed