BMW To Slash Frankfurt Auto Show Presence

BMW will significantly scale back its presence at next year’s Frankfurt Motor Show as it shifts focus towards trade fairs and technology events around the world.

German publication Handelsblatt asserts that BMW will cut its Frankfurt Motor Show budget in 2019 from roughly €25 million euros ($30 million) to between €5 million and €6 million ($6.1 million to $7.3 million). These costs cut will see BMW’s Frankfurt display reduced from roughly 11,000 square meters to just 3000 square meters.

In the past, BMW has used Frankfurt as a place to showcase all of its current models. In 2019, however, its display will focus exclusively on premieres and all-new vehicles.

Could this be the start of a movement where automakers start attending fewer auto shows?

BMW is also said to be preparing similar cost cuts for its future appearances at the Geneva Motor Show.

The Munich automaker recently announced that it will ditch the Detroit Auto Show 2019 entirely, just like Mercedes-Benz.

These moves mark a dramatic change in the industry where auto shows are becoming less important and attention is instead being turned towards technology events like CES. Additionally, brands know they can now use social media outlets to attract new customers and no longer need to make auto show appearances if they have no important models to introduce.