Jan Kubata comes from the spa town of Karlovy Vary and graduated from J. E. Purkyně University. He
has worked in state administration and local government, besides other positions, as the Mayor of Ústí
nad Labem and as a member of parliament. Since 2014, he has promoted foreign trade and worked as
a CzechTrade representative in the USA. He is transferring this wealth of experience to the exhibition
industry. Since 1 October 2023, he has headed Veletrhy Brno, a.s. (BVV Trade Fairs Brno).
In October 2023, you became the CEO of the company, which is the largest trade fair administration in Central Europe. With what priorities and visions do you want to develop the exhibition centre?
Brno trade fairs have a substantial basis in standard events, such as the International Engineering Fair, Techagro, IDET, etc. In addition to these events, we want to actively bring modern and desirable projects focused on technology incubation, startup environments, gaming, etc., to the area. I will not go into full details, but we have been working on these activities since day one, and I believe that our exhibitors and visitors will be satisfied when we introduce them.
What topics do you see as potential for your future trade fair events?
Each sector we focus on at our trade fairs is characterised by a certain thematic development. Our task is to react to these changes in cooperation with our professional partners and to integrate them into the content of the event. Significant shifts across industries are taking place, particularly in the areas of modern technology and digitalisation. An example of this gradual development is the new Smart Farm project, which will become part of Techagro for the first time in 2024 and offers the potential to reach entirely new companies in the field of innovative solutions for agriculture.
You have worked in a government trade promotion agency. What opportunities does the exhibition centre offer for developing Czech companies‘ foreign trade?
The exhibition centre is part of the Czech export mix. During our international trade fairs, it is possible to meet a large number of representatives of countries within their official participation, through private foreign companies. The agenda of the CzechTrade agency is very well linked to the activities carried out by the Brno Trade Fairs.
The mutual trade and success of Czech companies in the USA has its specifics. What opportunities do you see in this market, and how can your company help?
It is no secret that I worked in the U.S. for seven years, and probably no one will deny that the U.S. is absolutely one of the world’s technological leaders. This is also the direction we want to focus on, and we will try to link our activities with the export promotion activities of U.S. companies as the U.S. Department of Commerce does. Our efforts will be to bring U.S. companies to our trade shows.
The key event at the Brno Exhibition Centre is the MSV International Engineering Fair. What are you preparing for the 2024 edition?
A number of discussions about the next edition have already taken place with expert partners at the IEF 2023. We plan to focus on topics relevant to the current industry and, thus, should not be missing at the engineering fair. One of the objectives will be to show how new technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality or 3D printing are penetrating traditional engineering fields, whether machining, forming, welding or plastics. The specialised events held in even-numbered years in conjunction with the International Engineering Fair will also help achieve this. We will also strive to build on the high international participation of companies and find ways to expand it further. We also want to focus more on the start-up scene, especially in connection with innovative digital solutions. We will gradually introduce all the innovations and partial adjustments for exhibitors and visitors during our year-long communication campaign for the MSV.
Thank you for the interview.
