Technical report on the economic role of the Toulouse International Fair for Glevents – Toulouse Evènements Métropole MEETT[Rapport sur le rôle économique de la Foire internationale de Toulouse pour Glevents – Toulouse Evènements Métropole MEETT]

Through a collaborative scientific project with Toulouse Evénement (GL events) and the MEETT, we have produced a technical report aimed at showing for France's third largest city, the economic and social role of the Toulouse International Fair since 1928. The objective of this report is to underline the economic, social and cultural role of the city of Toulouse and to produce a retrospective by mobilizing all the archival sources of the metropolis but also of economic actors and private associations to produce an exhibition and a catalog raisonné of the history and the geography of the Toulouse fair. Various interventions and presentations of scientific research work and popularization of research are at work. The contemporary fair was inaugurated at Cours Dillon in temporary equipment in 1928 by its first President, Mr Marcel Roguet , declaring on this occasion "Toulouse, already an intellectual capital, wants to be an economic capital; our fair will help him do that". On Sunday October 14, 1928, under the impetus of Mr Félix Durel , a senior civil servant, Mr Delfort , vice-president of the regional committee for foreign trade and Mr Etienne Billières , mayor of Toulouse, the 1st Toulouse Fair was inaugurated during the 1930s. , the event is gaining credibility and legitimacy at the national level and offers, among other things, demonstrations for the aeronautical industry, inherited from the First World War. In 1932, the POTEZ 36 monoplane aircraft was presented at the fair. This is a symbol; this device is considered to be the one that gave birth to tourist aviation. In 1938, beyond Cours Dillon, the Prairie des Filtres offered a pleasant setting for the meeting of economic players, there were no less than 700 exhibitors and more than 200,000 visitors, a record. In addition, the fair aims to be an event open to consumers through marketing and sales techniques that are becoming more professional. We are witnessing the beginning of business and leisure tourism with a fair as a framework and place of life for all Toulouse residents, but also for visitors from all over France. As such, the geographer Daniel Faucher indicated in 1929 in an article in the scientific journal Géocarrefour that this event was "a public consecration; it created an atmosphere of sympathy around it". It was then that, under the impetus of Yvan Lacassagne, the Fair settled permanently on land granted by the municipality, namely the island of Ramier, making it possible to reconcile the proximity of the new facilities with the city center. and its suburbs, but also to give visitors a rural and natural setting through contact with the Garonne. From 1952, the fair complex was designated as the new "Parc des Expositions de Toulouse". That same year, Yvan Lacassagne became Chairman of the Board of Directors of SNFERT and inaugurated the brand-new Hall of Languedoc, the objective of which is to respond to and support the economic growth of the post-war boom period. This resulted in the construction in 1952-1953 of the entrance porticos and the administrative building. This architecture symbolizes the renewal of the fair and the new ambitions in economic matters. The Toulouse International Fair is becoming a medium for reminding Toulouse residents of the effects ¬of globalization and European construction. This is becoming a good means for local authorities to define objectives and mobilize the players in the region. We must prepare for 1992 and the enlarged EEC with Spain, Portugal and Greece as new countries entering the common market. Moreover, with the modernization of reception facilities and major investments in the field of telecommunications and services offered to visitors-exhibitors, the show is part of the competition through the economic players present. The purchase of the 1988 exhibitors' catalog directly echoes the expansion of the common market: "to win the 1992 competition". Moreover, there were approximately more than 300,000 visitors for the years 1988 and 1989. The Toulouse fair, as for all fairs in the world, plays a unifying role and raises awareness of the production capacities of a vast territory through the through its regional capital radiating across France and the world. The Foire de Toulouse and the communication department of the regional metropolis have always had the concern of highlighting the know-how of the region and in particular of the industrial and aeronautical sector. Moreover, Toulouse also exhibited at the Chongqing International Fair in 1988 (the largest Chinese city with 32 million inhabitants in 2023), from fair to fair, a long chain of correspondence of values and destiny is made day… From a social and consumer perspective, the Toulouse International Fair is an enriched portrait of Toulouse society based on the needs of professionals and households. It is an event in itself that Toulouse residents are waiting for, a place to discover the latest achievements or technological advances such as in the consumer hi-fi of the 1980s (radio, transistors, CD player and television) or building - real estate with a network of well-established local businesses. In 2023, for the 90th edition, 102,000 visitors visited the Foire Internationale de Toulouse for 10 days, which ended last night on Sunday April 23 at the MEETT. A record not reached for 10 years. The Foire Internationale de Toulouse was full of visitors for 10 days at the MEETT for its 90th edition. If the innumerable products and services of nearly 500 exhibitors undeniably contribute to this affluence never reached for 10 years, the organizers wanted to bring a festive and entertaining dimension to the first economic event in the region. What pleased the visitors. "This visitor ship found on a site like that of the MEETT is a real satisfaction. A true anti-inflation challenge, we are delighted that the Fair has enabled visitors to realize a project, have a good time with friends or family and make favourite purchases. Appointment is made for the next Fair, in the spring of 2024, with even more novelties! explains Olivier Cahuzac, director of trade fairs at Toulouse Evénements. Snub to the ambient gloom, the gastronomic offer, the countless finds, the sports and fun activities, the attraction of the Ferris Wheel and the variety of musical atmospheres (notably thanks to the complicity of Jazz In Marciac, etc.) gave the MEETT a festive air. Spread over 10 days, the crowd was particularly dense during the two weekends. The three nights were also acclaimed, including a clear success on opening day marked by a memorable fireworks display. The three free days have reinforced the popularity of this general public, family and festive event, appreciated by all. The MEETT will build its own identity through ultra-modern, sustainable equipment at the heart of the temple of aeronautics as part of the new ambitions of the third largest city in France.