Over 3,270 trade visitors from Australia (all states), New Zealand, and Asia and as far afield as the UK attended the ODMA17 event in Sydney from July 7-9, which included 110 exhibitors, 150 Vision Summit delegates and 495 masterclass delegates.
The three days of ODMA17 were jam packed with an array of new interactive features, major networking events and strong educational content, including revamped masterclasses and spotlight seminars.
Kicking off the week’s events, as part of Frame Fashion Week, was the feature fashion parade in Martin Place in the city. Something for eyewear consumers to enjoy during their lunch break as well as streamed live on Facebook, the parades featured the fanciest frames on the market and new season collections from top eyewear brands.
Design Junction showcased high end international and Australian eyewear brands with exhibitors presenting their design capabilities and the very latest in optical fashion and innovation within the premier brands area of ODMA17. This was a great start for a new zone and included leading optical distributors Jono Hennessy Group, Healy Optical, General Optical, Mondoticca, Pelure, Nine Eyewear, Face Optics, Seen2see and Frost Eyewear Distribution.
Designed to deliver the latest developments in eyecare with a focus on quality, ODMA17’s Vision Summit saw the most exciting line up of international speakers in ODMA Fair Conference history.
From stem cell research updates to improving customer communication, the ODMA17 Vision Summit was extremely well received and attended and left no stone unturned in giving visitors the information they needed.
Robert Sparkes, Chairman of ODMA, commented: “For me, this is simply the best show to date. The high quality presentations and outstanding Summit speakers are second to none and I am incredibly pleased to be a part of such a world-class event.”
With regards to stand design at ODMA17, it is fair to say a new benchmark was set by many of the exhibitors. The ODMA17 Stand Award nominees were judged by an independent panel of senior representatives from the International Convention Centre, this included Helen Mantellato, Director Corporate Sales and Ruchi Ladkani, Business Development Manager.
The winners of the ODMA17 Stand Awards were confirmed as:
• De Rigo Vision Australia – Best Stand Over 54sqm
• Stepper Eyewear Australia – Best Stand 54sqm & Under
• Special Agent – Best Shell Scheme Stand 18sqm & Under
From the ODMA17 show floor, ODMA CEO, Finola Carey, commented, “To say we are pleased with our first Sydney event in six years is an understatement. We have had excellent feedback from our visitors and the positive vibe on the show floor is fantastic. Post-event, we look forward to assessing how we can evolve the offer, making it even more successful.”