Call for greater industry commitment to Spoga+Gafa

Jochen Ludwig, head of purchasing at the German DIY group Obi, has sparked a debate at the German garden trade fair regarding the Spoga+Gafa event with a statement he made there. At the BHB Garden Summit – the gardening congress organised by the German DIY Association (BHB) as part of Spoga+Gafa – Ludwig made an urgent appeal to the industry to support the trade fair. “I can only appeal to our industry once again” – Ludwig had already addressed the industry with this plea at the same venue a year ago – “that we should all do our bit. If we carry on like this, the trade fair will cease to exist.” Jochen Ludwig is Chief Commercial Officer of Obi, Germany’s second-largest DIY store operator, and a member of the BHB’s executive board.

Ludwig noted that there were once again fewer exhibitors at Spoga+Gafa. Addressing the trade fair organisers at Koelnmesse, he criticised the revised hall…