The 73-year-old International Textile Machinery Association (ITMA) trade show, launched in 1951, first held its Asian iteration in 2001, titled ITMA Asia.

Organised by the European Committee of Textile Machinery Manufacturers (CEMATEX), the event offered an avenue to expand the then-50-year-old ITMA’s reach into the rapidly growing Asian market – and particularly China – while offering a platform for international textile machinery manufacturers to showcase their latest technologies to key and emergent Asian textile and apparel hubs.

The success of its Asian iteration led to a merger with another staple Chinese event: the China International Textile Machinery Exhibition (CITME). CITME is a significant Chinese and Asian trade show, first established in 1988, that fast became a key platform for the local market – and its merging with ITMA Asia in 2008 was an attractive collaboration that would draw attendees from all corners of the global textile and apparel industry.

Now a major trade fair for the industry,  ITMA Asia + CITME returns to the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai on 14-18 October 2024.