There were parents as well as business people.

The Jingzheng Beijing Maternity, Baby and Kids' Goods exhibition brought a huge boost to a market that has still to make tentative steps towards growth. The fair at the China International Exhibition Center from 15 to 17 March featured more than 300 exhibitors, including big domestic and international brands like Pigeon, Goodbaby, NUK and Dr Brown in attendance.

In short, the event brought the finest domestic and international brands under one roof. Although the financial crisis has dealt a blow to the industry, it has not completely eroded consumer confidence to a sector that is set to grow fast.

Beiqin, which entered the China market earlier than most rivals, has promoted confidence in many Chinese consumers.

According to the exhibition organiser, the economic downturn has had little serious effect: babies must still be fed and clothed. Hence, contraction is anathema to the baby supplies market.

High tech baby products.

However, people are more careful and demanding when it comes to spending and will choose products that contain higher technology content or are more dependable.

The economic downturn is seen as being temporary because the industry is in its ascendant stage.

Since women born in the 1970s and 1980s are now of child-bearing age, China will enter another "birth peak" period which will go on for some time to come. China's fifth population census reveals that China has about 69 million children in the 0-3 age group, including over 10 million in the cities.

The exhibition organisers predicted that the "baby boom" which started in 2005 will reach its peak in 2033.

The coming rounds of "baby boom" will give a great boost to China's huge maternity, baby and kids' goods market amidst the tide of reform and opening up.

This will give birth to an industrial cluster catering to all aspects of life for expectant mothers and children, triggering a "gold rush" for the maternity, baby and kids' goods market.

Mind-stimulating toys.

Goodbaby for play vehicles.

One exhibitor said that baby goods fairs attract more visitors and exhibitors than ordinary fairs. This suggests that in spite of the serious impact of the global economic crisis, the distinctive characteristics of the maternity, baby and kids' goods market will remain intact.

"My daughter is five years old and I care about her more than anything else," said Ms Sun, a visitor. "Exhibitions like this one attract many exhibitors. Some leading domestic and foreign brands offer on-site lectures by health experts besides presenting their products. They're like big lecture halls and I can learn a lot from these events."

As a well-known domestic brand, Goodbaby's participation drew a lot of attention. A company official said the baby and children's goods industry is among the last to feel the pinch of the economic crisis. Although sales of Goodbaby's products have slowed, the situation in the first quarter was still satisfactory.

China has more brands than anywhere else in the world, said one visitor. After the financial crisis, many small- and medium-sized enterprises will face elimination and only the truly big brands will survive. So, Goodbaby is bracing itself for competition.

Suppliers need to step up development

Products to attract kids.

Stay-dry diapers for babies.

Regional wholesale markets for maternity, baby and kids' goods with annual turnovers of over Rmb3 billion have yet to emerge on the Chinese mainland. National retail chains are still in the early stage of expansion. None of the retail stores have yet grossed Rmb500 million so far.

How China's maternity, baby and kids' goods market can enter the "adolescence" stage as quickly as possible was a question put before the exhibition organisers.

Industry players who took part in the exhibition considered the unbalanced development between different cities to be a crucial factor. At present, leading retailers in first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai are keenly courted by venture investors.

Spurred by venture capital investment, these retailers are planning to expand chains beyond city or provincial boundaries and are poised to break the Rmb1 billion mark in turnover. The market is therefore developing at speed.

Guangdong future

Books for youngsters.

Consumers in the fairground.

Guangdong is an important province for the manufacturing of maternity, baby and kids' clothing, toys, and kids' play-type vehicles.

Although it's adjacent to Hong Kong and Macau with more city clusters ranking among the top tiers in GDP terms than any other provinces, its consumer market for these products is trailing.

The province has held several exhibitions for this industry in the past few years. However, since their organisers were from other provinces or sectors, they failed to provide the industry with useful information, a platform for co-operation and communication, and good services.

Effective interaction was lacking among investors, manufacturers, distributors and dealers, so failing to give the South China market a leg up.

With knowledge of the local maternity, baby and kids' supplies industry, the Guangdong Provincial Light Industry Association centralised the resources previously scattered in different events.

Interactive games at the exhibition.

A corner of the fairground.

The upshot is to host the 2009 Guangzhou International Maternity, Baby and Kids' Goods Exhibition next September, and install a provincial industry association. Both will provide a business service platform for attracting investment, showcasing new products and promoting understanding.

Many exhibitors started promoting the September Guangzhou event at the Beijing exhibition. Industry experts agreed that the Greater Pearl River Delta, with Guangzhou as its core, is still an important region for the production and consumption of maternity, baby and kids' goods sector.

from special correspondent Xu Lin, Beijing