The 36th edition of METSTRADE, the world’s leading trade show for leisure marina equipment, recorded its highest ever attendance. METSTRADE hosted close to 1,600 exhibitors across 12 halls at RAI Amsterdam from Nov. 19-21, seeing 21,824 visits from 19,779 unique visitors spanning 134 nationalities. This marks record-breaking attendance for the leisure marine equipment trading show, with an overall increase in 10% and 6%, respectively, when compared to 2023. Visitor data and feedback from exhibitors confirmed the audience was accurately targeted. The Superyacht Forum, held under METSTRADE’s management for the first time, was also sold out and hosted 700 delegates. “Attending METSTRADE is inspiring, productive and educational. You see great examples of innovations in the world of technology, safety, electronics, electrics and the many other facets of our industry that are improving the customer experience. I was particularly inspired this year by the show content that was focused on connecting with new audiences – something that is so important to the marine leisure sector,” said Joe Lynch, CEO of the International Council of Marine Industry Associations (ICOMIA). METSTRADE is run in association with ICOMIA. “It is also motivating when you see the industry gather in one place. There are different challenges wherever we work in the world. METSTRADE provides the opportunity to unite and make the industry better for everybody by collaborating, communicating and committing to work together,” Lynch said. Speaking at the close of this year’s show, Niels Klarenbeek, METSTRADE’s director, announced that the show plans to expand into hall 8 in 2025, adding around 10,000 square meters of space. “This will enable us to eliminate the current waiting list for The Superyacht Pavilion, provide options for exhibitors seeking more stand space and open a circular route around METSTRADE halls to improve the visitor experience. There are further exciting initiatives in the pipeline that we will unveil in coming months,” Klarenbeek said.