Read an excerpt from the interview below.

Anne-Cathrin Boehl: Dear Jochen Koeckler, you were re-elected as chairman for another three years at the most recent FKM shareholders’ meeting at the end of 2025. What are the priorities for your next term of office?

Jochen Koeckler: Over the next three years, we want to further strengthen the FKM as a reliable industry standard and make our work even more transparent. One focus will be on improving the comparability of our key figures – this should increase their acceptance and further improve their informative value. (…)

Anne-Cathrin Boehl: The FKM will celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2026. Why is the FKM still important today?

Jochen Koeckler: In order to remain competitive internationally, there needs to be trust in trade fairs and the communication of certified trade fair figures—this is where FKM remains indispensable. For 60 years, it has ensured transparency and built trust. As an independent body, it provides verified data on which exhibitors and visitors can base their decisions (…).

The full interview can be found in the current issue of AUMA Compact (German only).

Der Beitrag “Our certified key figures provide guidance and build trust.” erschien zuerst auf FKM.

From the outset, it was clear that transparency and credibility were key. The newly founded FKM therefore decided to have these standards audited. Competition between trade fairs was fierce, figures were often embellished and the confidence of the exhibiting industry was correspondingly low. The FKM ensured that audited data once again offered reliability. Prof. Dr Erwin Pougin was the first auditor.

The FKM officially began its work in 1966 and audited 22 trade fairs in its first year – an internationally recognised signal for greater fairness and clarity in the trade fair business. Today, 60 years later, this claim is more relevant than ever.

With 33 members and over 200 trade fairs registered for auditing, FKM continues to ensure that exhibitors and trade fair visitors can make decisions about their participation in trade fairs based on transparent and reliable figures.
The auditing firm EY (Ernst & Young) has been conducting these audits for around 30 years. Two decades ago, it took over the company from Erwin Pougin, the auditor from the early days of FKM.

Der Beitrag 60 years of FKM – six decades of trust in trade fair data erschien zuerst auf FKM.