While planning their marketing policies in the current – and challenging – situation, many companies tend to ask the Shakespearean question about participation in exhibitions and conferences: to exhibit or not to exhibit? Does it make sense for a company to incur costs associated with materials, moral and physical efforts, and working hours of employees involved in exhibitions? However, before this important decision is made, you will have to assess how your participation in – or abstention from – important exhibitions affects your business. An attempt to save today may discredit your business tomorrow. The annual spring-time construction exhibition KazBuild Spring 2009 held in Almaty, and the special project, WinTecExpo Kazakhstan, to be held on 3-6 March in three pavilions of the Atakent Exhibition Centre, will traditionally present reputable international brands of the construction industry and local enterprises and related industries. The national stand of Bavaria with 15 German companies will be presented for the first time. The previous years’ experience allows to state that about 60 per cent of the exhibitors are regulars. This can be explained with quite objective reasons. Absence of a company or brand from the exhibition will provide competitors with an opportunity to draw conclusions about your financial status and – more importantly – about your competitive strength and market positions. The conversation between potential customers and competitors may be as follows: “I have no idea about where this company may be. It might be experiencing serious financial problems and cannot afford participation in the exhibition. But don’t worry we are here and we are ready to meet all of your needs”. Participation in exhibitions therefore becomes an effective competition tool in a crisis environment. The history tells that a crisis is the best time for change within companies, when they face a vast field allowing to realise different opportunities. If you find those opportunities and use them to your advantage, you may well end up as a winner. Most companies, once they survived the economic recession, succeeded in using this “gold” period by undertaking actions to carry out their anti-crisis solutions. This allowed them to not only survive through those hard times but get the maximum benefit from it, and obtain an advantage in their struggle with competitors; some companies even became market leaders. The capacity of Kazakhstan’s construction market is based on the last year’s statistics. According to the Committee for Construction and Housing Utilities, the volume of construction works in Kazakhstan in 2008 was 1,833.5 billion tenge (or US$ 15.1 billion). A total of 6,832,000 square metres of housing was commissioned by companies, organisations and population during the reporting period. Facts of the exhibitions: 140 booth expositions of KazBuild Spring 2009 will feature about 200 companies from 16 countries, or some 900 trademarks and brands. The exhibition will present the following companies: MAKEL, StroyKomplekt Group, Kostanai DVT, SplitStone - Asia, Tsentr Krepyozhnykh Materialov, Bostik SA, Henkel Bautechnik Kazakhstan, Sorgente, GAUDI, Tikkurila, ElectroComplect, Aquatherm, Best Union, Blue Ocean Kazakhstan Ltd, Bosch-Thermotechnik Kazakhstan, Chevron, EGE-Herkul, Intex Holding, Aquagrand Imperia Vody, FantAsia, Rehau, Ideal Stone, INSI, Orsk Metalwork Plant, Penoplex, Werzalit GmbH, Opple Lighting, etc. The 1,400 square metre exhibition area of WinTec Expo Kazakhstan will bring together 25 stand expositions devoted to Windows, Doors and Façades. The exhibiting companies include: ALUGAL (Kazakhstan/Turkey), Doorhan (Kazakhstan/Russia), Galaksi (Kazakhstan/Turkey), Galwin, Pakpen (Turkey), Profine (Germany), SLS (Kazakhstan), VEKA (Germany), LG Chem (South Korea), Kaban Makina (Turkey), and others. The unfailing organisers of KazBuild Spring 2009 and WinTec Expo Kazakhstan are Iteca, a domestic exhibition company, and its international partners: ITE Group Plc (UK), GIMA (Germany), EUF A.S. (Turkey), and Invernizzi International Sales S.r.l. (Italy), supported by the Committee for Construction and Housing Utilities of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Kazakhstan and Almaty City Akimat (Administration). Welcome to KazBuild Spring 2009 in Almaty on 3-6 March! Generate creative ideas and make the right decisions! For exhibiting or visiting the exhibition please contact the organisers at +7 727 2583434. More information about the events is available on www.kazbuild.kz.