What do magic sponges, Jacky from “Club Dorothée”, anti-gluten apple flour, street art and South-West poultry have in common? The Bordeaux Fair, which still manages to mix all these worlds, from the good old commercial event (sofas, swimming pools, sellers-demonstrators of clever objects, etc.) to the Bordeaux geek festival (a special year…
What do magic sponges, Jacky from “Club Dorothée”, anti-gluten apple flour, street art and South-West poultry have in common? The Bordeaux Fair, which still manages to mix all these worlds, from the good old commercial event (sofas, swimming pools, sellers-demonstrators of clever objects, etc.) to the Bordeaux geek festival (a special 1990s, with Jacky coming embody this era of nostalgic pop culture), including the Salon de l’agriculture de Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the Gustave trophy for inventors, the Robot cup junior and – new this year – a Colors Festival dedicated to urban art. This is how the 101 lookse edition of the Fair, all about its annual challenge to renew the genre while many others have disappeared from the radars all over France.
With nearly 4 million euros in turnover and 200,000 visitors in 2023, the Bordeaux model has regained color at the end of the Covid years, as a response to the need to see and touch what we buy. Or the success of this “special” assembly, in turn “traditional, nostalgic, family, friendly and avant-garde”, as says Stéphane Kintzig, the general director of Bordeaux events and more (Beam), organizer of this great fun bazaar , designed to captivate crowds and bring together generations for nine days.
“Imagine the Fair of 1930, 1980 or 2020, it was never really the same thing, but it always remained in tune with the public”
“Imagine the Fair of 1930, 1980 or 2020, it was never really the same, but it always remained in tune with the public. » A “feel good event”, also says Aymeric Peneau, responsible for general public events at Beam. “It is around this right balance between the history of the Fair and what is happening today that we build. »
Giant closet clearance
The classic fair: 800 exhibitors who come to do business on 150,000 m² organized into four “universes” – housing, art of living, gastronomy and mobility. The spirit of the times: the challenges of second-hand goods and “upcycling” through a giant wardrobe clearance, a choice of cars, bicycles and electric scooters, a sports village where you can learn to “move for thirty minutes per day” or even the regional innovations of the Gustave trophy (like Eiffel), including this famous apple flour, an application to relieve back pain or a system of decomposed salad to reassure autistic people.
It’s also a concert by Périgourdin Tibz (author of “Nations”, a 2017 hit, among other collaborations with Slimane, Jenifer and Les Enfoirés) and the crazy blind test by Philippe Maurice. And again, this large exhibition of 25 street artists over 1,500 m², the fluorescent of certain works of which will be revealed in the darkness. A few steps from the cows and hay of “the largest farm in Nouvelle-Aquitaine”, from one world to another.
The Bordeaux Fair, from May 18 to 26 at the Bordeaux-Lac exhibition center, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. (10:30 p.m. on Friday May 24). Complete program and tickets on foiredebordeaux.com. Presale until May 17: 5 euros. During the Fair: 9 euros.
