MUNICH— Opti, the international trade show for optics and design, based here, was held from Jan. 9 to 11, 2015 at the Fairground Messe Munchen, and has reported its final attendance figures.

Organizers, GHM Gesellschaft fur Handwerksmessen mbH (GHM), report that 25,850 trade and professional visitors attended the show this year, with the majority of them (88.3 percent) coming from the 27 nations of the European Union. According to an independent visitor survey, they placed orders for products worth over €178 million. However, organizers stressed that “the trade show was not only crucial for purchasing decisions.” Information on new products from the show’s 525 exhibitors, a preview of the future of vision with "Smart Glasses," and the new "Walk of Frame" were all large draws over the course of the three days, GHM said.

Overall, according to the independent survey, the trade show was given top ratings of "very good to excellent" by 95.5 percent of the visitors, and when asked about the success of the event, 92.2 percent of exhibitors stated that the trade show was "very good to excellent" for them.

"Opti is characterized by creativity, reliability, stability and continuous development, as well as healthy growth with respect to visitors and exhibitors,” said Dieter Dohr, chairman of the management board of GHM. “Above all, the basis of Opti is quality. This is only possible because the industry is 100 percent behind its trade show in Munich. These advantages spread fast and the industry knows that the networking and contact opportunities provided by Opti are unparalleled. This is also evidenced by the large number of first-time visitors."

According to the survey, in 2015 the trade show participants found the "comprehensiveness and breadth of offerings" (91.2 percent) and "presence of market leaders" (90.8 percent) to be the most meaningful in their personal evaluation of the trade show.

The Opti-Forum in Hall C2 was popular, with 92.9 percent of the visitors giving it top marks for the variety and information content of the 34 lectures. Resonating particularly well with visitors were the lectures on "Smart Glasses" and "Augmented Reality," which paralleled the trade show's theme, "The Future of Vision," organizers said.

GHM also confirmed the dates for the next three Opti trade shows; in 2016 the show will be held from Jan. 15 to 17, Opti 2017 from Jan. 27 to 29, and Opti 2018 from Jan. 12 to 14.