ProWein 2025 organisers bullish despite fall in visitors
Approximately 42,000 professionals from 128 countries travelled to Düsseldorf for the 2025 edition of ProWein, including influential buyers from the US, Japan, South Korea and China. Yet its closet rival, Wine Paris, welcomed 52,622 visitors this year, while its floorspace had ballooned by 80% compared to 2024 – a growing bête noire for organisers Messe Düsseldorf GmbH .
“In difficult sales times, ProWein shows it is the industry’s go-to trade fair where producers can successfully plan their business year. ProWein’s long-standing international profile and expertise is impressive proof of this and underpins its outstanding position in the highly competitive global trade fair market,” said Marius Berlemann, CEO, Messe Düsseldorf.
Nevertheless, ProWein's visitor numbers had noticeably declined for the third year in a row: the 2024 edition recorded an attendance rate of 45,082, compared to 49,304 visitors in 2023.
Both fairs, however, placed a strong emphasis on spirits in 2025, with the 'ProSpirits' exhibition at ProWein hosting 500 businesses from 53 countries. Meanwhile, the London Wine Fair in May will showcase an inaugural section dedicated to artisan gin, rum, vodka and whisky entitled 'Signature Serve'. This suggests that non-wine beverages will play a role of increasing importance, as Europe's key trade exhibitions compete for global audience share.
According to Messe Düsseldorf: “ProWein is also the innovation driver in the no/low segment. Three years ago, it successfully launched the special show ProWein Zero. This year, 40 international exhibitors and a large tasting zone organised by MUNDUS VINI presented the variety of this fast-growing segment.
“This year, ProWein also put the topic of food and wine pairing in the spotlight. For example, the gastro-lounge ‘urban gastronomy by #asktoni’ was dedicated to this topic with the three top restaurateurs, Alina Meissner-Bebrout, Björn Freitag and Bobby Bräuer, featuring, among others. Other star chefs and food experts created extraordinary menu compositions as part of the varied supporting programme, picking up on the perfect food and wine pairings in various enjoyable formats.”
But despite this bullish appraisal, it is clear that Wine Paris, buoyed by fantastic feedback from the trade, and is becoming an essential date in the diary for many wine professionals in the UK.
“We have been attending Wine Paris since 2021 and the fair has gone from strength to strength,” said Matthew Hennings, MD at Hennings Wine.
“It is a very well organised and managed exhibition, with a plethora of exciting producers from different regions, although France and Italy are obviously its key USPs. It is also the place to do business with Bordeaux negociants. The only real advantage that ProWein offers is New World variety – the German fair still attracts more winemakers from the southern Hemisphere, and is very strong on attendance from Australia, South America and South Africa.”
The next edition of ProWein Düsseldorf will be held from 15 to 17 March 2026.
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