“With Busworld Plaza we are launching a digital platform where bus manufacturers and suppliers can connect for business opportunities between Busworld exhibitions,” explains Vincent Dewaele, general manager of Busworld International.
“We had the impression that in the years without a Busworld exhibition, there was little interaction and activity between manufacturers, maintenance teams, buyers from bus builders, and salespeople from suppliers. That is why we created Busworld Plaza as an online forum where companies can post photos and technical data sheets of their products. We also include the personal e-mail addresses and phone numbers of buyers and sellers so they can contact each other directly,” says Dewaele.
“To be clear, Busworld Plaza is not a sales platform but a ‘community’ where we want to bring people from the bus industry together when they are looking for one product or the other. Through Busworld Plaza, you can search for products in a targeted and detailed way. Think, for example, of bus doors, steering wheels, or seats, and filtering by the countries in which the suppliers are active.”
Complementary to exhibitions
“Busworld Plaza is complementary to the Busworld exhibitions, which are still the most important meeting place for ‘live’ contacts. Through this concept, the platform also allows us to promote Busworld much more strongly among local suppliers. Until now, we had to rely on contacts made during international exhibitions. Now we can do this more effectively and directly, supported by our Busworld ambassadors in South America and our Busworld teams in Türkiye, India, and China. “Through the Busworld Plaza platform, we can also gauge interest in organizing a regional Busworld exhibition at a location and time that is relevant for that specific geographical market. Companies that were initially only present on Busworld Plaza may, thanks to interest in their products, also decide to take part in a Busworld exhibition that suits them.”