The organisers also claim that the first day of the show witnessed around 6,600 visitors, taking the total count for two days to 16,400 visitors. The last year edition of the show recorded a footfall of nearly 20,000 visitors through the three days. Several exhibitors informed PrintWeek that they have received several serious enquiries and bookings at the show.

According to few exhibitors, the idea of shifting the event dates to Saturday to Monday instead of the routineFriday to Sunday style seems to have paid off. Gaurav Juneja, director, MEX exhibitions, organisers of the show, said, “The footfall we received today at the show is a proof that the show has been well received and embraced by the industry. The wide-format printing and signage market in Delhi NCR is huge. The print service providers of the region have shown keen interest in experimenting with technologies and new substrates to add value to their offerings.”

Commenting on the show, Vijay Kandari, sales head, Negi Sign Systems & Supplies said, “Media Expo Delhi has always delivered in terms of the number of visitors. We have received several serious enquiries which we are in the final leg of closing.”

Exporters, manufacturers and suppliers of wide-format printing machines for outdoor signage, Mattrix Digitech Solutions, claimed to have sold five machines on the last two days. “We have sold two Mattrix Konica LK 32 machines to customers in Jaipur and Delhi,” said Amit Goswami, CEO, Mattrix Digitech Solutions.

Strategic Printing Solutions’ director, Sarabjit Singh Bedi too seemed happy with the footfall. The company launched the upgraded version of its Shark eco-solvent printer in India. “The machine was first launched at Fespa London. Most of the machines in its price range print grey-scale on binary modes but this machine can print on true grey-scale using Caldera RIP using four level grey scale 3,5,15 and 30 picolitre. So you can print a wide range of materials on it,” explained Bedi. The company has sold around 185 Shark 1 solvent printers since their launch in 2010. Bedi also added that existing customer will be offered an opportunity to upgrade their Shark 1 machine to the new Shark 2.

Macart Equipment displayed an upgraded model of its Pico Jet Proton Plus and launched Printstation digital solvent wide-format printing machines for the first time in Delhi. Atul Gandhi, director, Macart Equipment said, “This has been a fantastic year for Macart. We are overbooked and therefore trying to increase our production capacity by starting a new manufacturing unit. Apart from the Rupee devaluation, the slump in the demand for Chinese machines has been a great growth driver for us.”

Among the wide-format printers, Sahil Graphics was the only offset machine manufacturer to exhibit at the show.  The Delhi-based manufacturer of offset printing machines and bag printing machines is showing live demo of its mini-offset machine for printing D-cut non-woven bags at the show. “This is our first time at Media Expo and we have received overwhelming response at the show. The year 2012-13 has been reasonably good for us as we have been growing despite the slowdown in the industry,” said Shafiq Ahmed, director, Sahil Graphics.

Another first time exhibitor, Shiva Texyarn is one of the few exhibitors from the textile substrates segment at the Media Expo Delhi. The Coimbatore-based company was started in the year 1985 to cater to the textile sector. Today, it has diversified itself into spinning, coating and allied sectors of the business. In 2012, the company also introduced textile substrates for printing.  The company displayed its two products Intensipix and Q-Print at the show. Intensipix is an acid-free textured digital inkjet canvas for printing, while Q-Print is an eco-friendly textile media that is compatible with several printing technologies. The company manufactures these products at its Coimbatore plant.

The final and third day of the show is expected to draw large number of business visitors. Basing on the two-day footfall the show has registered, the overall visitor county may easily surpass 20,000 visitors.