The organisers of FIBO 2016 have hailed its “exceptional position” in the health and fitness industry after the event’s latest instalment smashed a slew of records.

Last week’s FIBO 2016 trade show drew a total of 153,000 visitors to the event in Cologne, Germany, including 83,000 trade attendees from more than 100 nations.

Organiser Reed Exhibitions Deutschland said the world’s largest trade show saw an an exhibitor increase of 32 per cent, a floor space expansion of 23 per cent and a 12 per cent visitor boost in 2016. A total of 960 exhibitors presented the latest health and fitness industry trends and innovations across an area of 160,000sq m (1,722,226sq ft).

Some of the hottest trends centred around technical innovations, digital offerings and personalised training units. This year’s FIBO saw an entire hall dedicated to EMS (electrical muscle stimulation), with the FIBO visitor survey revealing that nearly one in six trade visitors had plans to invest in this area.

Meanwhile, functional training, group fitness choices, plus strength and cardio training all remained popular areas of investment. Almost half of FIBO trade visitors came to Cologne with concrete investment plans; one in seven said they were planning investments of more than €200,000 (US$229,000, £160,000); and seven per cent planned to spend more than €500,000 (US$572,000, £400,000).

As ever, the show kicked off with the European Health & Fitness Forum (EHFF) on 6 April, with industry thought leaders gathering for a jam-packed day of discussion and educational sessions. The results of European Health & Fitness Market Study 2016 revealed the sector was worth €26.7bn in 2015, up from €25.2bn in 2014, representing a 4.9 per cent increase in terms of revenue. Meanwhile, average membership growth in 2015 was 3.9 per cent – 3.4 per cent for the top 10 countries – with the markets in the UK, Germany, Russia and France leading the way.

Check out the June issue of Health Club Management magazine for a four-page feature rounding up the latest products unveiled at FIBO 2016.