Boot Düsseldorf and Kiel Week: partners for 29 years

Boot Düsseldorf and Kiel Week have been partners for 29 years. In 1993, the Düsseldorf trade fair organizers signed the partnership between boot Düsseldorf and Kiel Week under their then captain Claus Groth. Since then, the blue boot flags have flown every year on the Kiel Foerde and in the Olympic harbour in Schilksee during the world's largest sailing regatta. And Wolfram Diener, CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, is continuing the tradition of his predecessors with great enthusiasm. He will open Kiel Week 2022 on 18 June together with Kiel's mayor Dr Ulf Kämpfer, the city's president Hans-Werner Tovar and regatta director Dirk Ramhorst. Diener: "Our commitment to the regattas in Kiel, Lübeck, the North Sea Week and also the "Rund Um den Bodensee" regatta is a clear commitment to sailing. We are partners and friends and that makes us very proud. The Düsseldorf-Kiel Connection is even celebrating its 50th anniversary this year! Our unforgotten former CEO Kurt Schoop reached out to the Kiel Yacht Club as early as 1972 through his work as protocol officer for the Olympic sailing competitions."

In Kiel, the Düsseldorfers will be back this year with the boot.lounge, a popular "chill zone" for all active people. And sailing weather specialist Meeno Schrader will be presenting the daily weather forecasts for the regattas on behalf of boot. 

With a special tattoo campaign, boot is already getting people excited for the sea and the home port of the international water sports industry in Düsseldorf. All young and young-at-heart fans of boot can show this with the temporary, colourful tattoo "i love boot Düsseldorf". At Kiel Week, the adhesive tattoos will be available in the boot.lounge, the regatta office and in the Kiel Week Lounge. With a cool photo, posted with the #ilovebootDUS, all fans can take part twice a month in a raffle of boot fan packages with beach bags, thermo mugs or notepads. 

A new side of boot is told by the current campaign, which can be seen on a large scale for the first time in Schilksee. It shows what water sports enthusiasts can expect at boot. Here, the love of sailing, the enthusiasm for the water and the incredible feeling of freedom that athletes experience is a significant part of boot Düsseldorf. "Sailing is still the soul of water sports. Both in Kiel and at boot Düsseldorf there is this unique combination of sport and shared experience paired with successful business. The active people are at the start with body and soul. The same applies to the water sports industry on its way to Düsseldorf. It wants to meet people here who love the oceans and waters as much as they do, because this is the basic element of our community. The large-format illustration with our common passion ‘My (sailing) journey starts here!’ reflects this feeling. In this way we represent the three elementary pillars of boot: a love of water sports, a marketplace trade fair and a meeting place for the water sports scene," explains boot Project Director Petros Michelidakis.

The team in Düsseldorf is already planning for boot 2023 at full speed. Exhibitor registrations have started and are meeting with great interest on the part of manufacturers, dealers and associations. And boot is also fully present in the various social media channels. On Linkedin, Facebook and Instagram, it always has its finger on the pulse of the water sports scene with the latest articles from the industry and stories about exciting moments in sailing, boating, diving and surfing. The monthly podcast on www.boot.com also features entertaining talks with industry insiders on current topics and innovations. Michelidakis: "With these digital offers for our exhibitors and visitors, we are in the conversation and in the focus of the industry 365 days a year and can continuously increase the excitement there for the event in Düsseldorf. The highlight of the year is, of course, the trade fair from 21st to 29thJanuary 2023 in our exhibition halls."