Enhanced business results and extroversion
Confirming its role as a significant exhibition event for the bakery and pastry sector in Southeastern Europe, the 12th “Artozyma” left a strong commercial footprint. The TIF-HELEXPO event, which was held at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition & Congress Center from 28 February to 2 March, functioned as a catalyst for business agreements (B2B), capitalizing on the expansion of its international reach and satisfying all participating exhibitors.
100% increase in international trade visitors
The 12th International Exhibition for Bakery, Confectionery, Equipment and Products “Artozyma” stood out for the further strengthening of its extroverted character. In particular, this year’s event recorded an increase of 100% in trade visitors from abroad. Overall, attendance remained at the same high levels as the successful 2024 event, a fact that satisfied all exhibitors, who proceeded with substantial B2B contacts.
Trade visitors attended the exhibition from Greece and 29 countries abroad, recording a 26% increase in the number of countries of origin compared to the 23 countries of Artozyma 2024. More specifically, trade visitors travelled to Thessaloniki from: the USA, China, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Austria, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Albania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Serbia, Romania, Cyprus, Kosovo, Montenegro, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Lithuania, Moldova and Turkey.
The increased commercial interest of the 12th Artozyma was accompanied by a multidimensional programme of parallel events. At its core was “Baking Together – Mediterranean Edition”, where national bakery teams from Greece, Italy and Portugal, in the presence of leading professionals from the international Richemont Club network, collaborated in an innovative non-competitive framework for the promotion of Mediterranean bakery.
At the same time, high-end pastry dominated the upgraded “Pastry Lab 2026”, which was implemented in collaboration with the Chefs’ Club of Greece Pastry Section, hosting specialized masterclasses and top names, such as the award-winning Portuguese pastry chef Américo Dos Santos, from the restaurant Belcanto.
Modern dietary requirements of the HORECA sector were covered by the special thematic section on “Gluten Free” bakery products, while in the field of technological training, “The Expert Lab” of the Panhellenic Union of Food Technologists stood out, featuring a scientific conference and practical workshops. The dynamics of the event were further enhanced by the organization of the international competition “Southern Europe Culinary Challenge 2026” by the Chefs’ Association of Greece, with 300 participations from 15 countries, as well as by the presentation of the historical album marking the 175 years of the Confectioners’ Guild of Thessaloniki, actions that added significant value to the overall exhibition experience.
