Which American fitness equipment won big at Germany's FIBO trade show?

For the folks who run BILT by Agassi and Reyes, IHRSA 2013 was a great experience. It marked an opportunity for the new company to strut its stuff in its hometown — Las Vegas.

The small team thought its products were different from anything else on the market, and its suspicions were confirmed when it attended the FIBO fitness trade show in Cologne, Germany.

BILT by Agassi and Reyes won a FIBO Innovation Award for its Change of Direction machine, which incorporates strength training with lateral cardio movements for a more complete workout.

The company’s chief operating officer, Steve Hayes, said the trade show, which took place April 11-14, was “a little bit overwhelming.”

The last trade show BILT attended attracted around 9,000 attendees. FIBO, by contrast, boasted 96,700. Hayes said his small staff didn’t have much time to walk the show’s 10 convention rooms (each as big as Mandalay Bay’s main hall), but managed to check out a few things.

FIBO set new records in the number of exhibiting companies and occupied exhibition surface, said Hans-Joachim Erbel, CEO of FIBO organizer Reed Exhibitions in a news release. The leading trade show had 670 companies from 30 nations on a total area of 100,000 square meters in 2013; in 2012, 612 companies exhibited in 78,000 square meters.

“Within five years, FIBO visitor numbers have almost doubled,” FIBO Director Olaf Tomscheit said in a news release. Tomscheit has been at the helm for nearly 8 years and soon will be replaced as director by Ralph Scholz.

The show differs from others BILT has been to because it’s not just equipment-focused. Much like Club Industry, it encompasses everything to do with fitness from supplements to clothing to equipment to accessories.

“FIBO as a worldwide leading trade show for fitness and health is also well known in the U.S.A. I’m really impressed by the size and the quality of this show,” Andre Agassi of BILT by Agassi and Reyes said in a news release “All leading enterprises of the fitness industry are represented here. It is a great opportunity to present our new product line BILT by Agassi and Reyes.”

Hayes said that the company is still trying to get its infrastructure to the point where it can accommodate bigger orders, but it did take on a few new distributors in the U.K., Germany and Switzerland.

Next year’s FIBO will take place from April 3-6, 2014 at the Cologne Exhibition Centre. For more information, visit www.fibo.de.

“Save your money for next year because you will just be amazed,” Hayes said. “It’s truly a well run show.”

FIBO Innovation Award Winners 2013
Change of Direction Machine by BILT by Agassi and Reyes: Innovation in Training Equipment Category

The Postural Line by LMT Deutschland AG: Innovation in Health Category

The Whole Body Circuit by Stilum Fitness: Innovation in the Communication and Design Category