Medical device trade shows for finding distributors.

The shows, by date

Dates and venues from each organiser's website, checked on 25 October 2026. Confirm again before you book travel.

Walk the show or exhibit?

Walk it the first time. The work happens in booked meetings, not on a stand. Exhibit when three things are true: the device is registered or close to it in the region, you have something worth demonstrating, and you can fill most stand hours with booked meetings. A national pavilion from your export agency cuts the cost and brings visitors to you. The MEDICA or Arab Health comparison covers both shows in detail.

Before the show

1. Choose the markets first. Know which three markets you want from this show. The free Market Finder ranks your top three for your device.
2. Shortlist from the registries, by host country and discipline. The Index lists 875 independent distributors in Germany, 1,322 in Brazil and 438 in Singapore, and 476 independent dental distributors on the dental page (Bastion Hale Distributor Index, build of 25 October 2026). For the Gulf, start with Saudi Arabia and the UAE; UAE coverage is still thin, so treat its count as a floor.
3. Book meetings four to six weeks ahead. Busy distributors fill their show calendars early.
4. Send a one-page brief with the request: the device, its registration status in their market, who you want to hold the registration, the support you give, a margin range and what you expect in year one.

At the show: questions that qualify

• Which principals do you carry in this segment, and which is the largest?
• How many sales people, clinical specialists and service engineers would work on our line?
• Who holds the registrations for your principals? Have you transferred one?
• Which accounts and tenders do you win today?
• Which principal left most recently, and why?
• Do you carry anything that competes with us?

Check each name against the registry before the meeting ends. A stand is not a licence.

After the show

Follow up within a week, with your notes and one next step. Score each candidate on the selection scorecard, registry half first, then the answers you collected. Keep three per market, take a reference from a principal each already represents, then move to due diligence and the agreement.

Exhibitor lists: official or paid?

Use the organiser's own exhibitor directory and app. They are free for visitors and current, and some offer matchmaking, such as MEDICA's Fair Match. Their terms often forbid copying the data into another database, so use them to plan visits. Be wary of emails offering to sell a show's attendee list: several exhibition organisers warn that these offers are scams. Ask the organiser before you pay anyone.

Worked example: a dental implant maker

A European maker of CE-marked dental implants wants Brazil, Singapore and the Gulf. The Index shows 149 independent distributors with dental devices on record in Brazil and 92 in Singapore, but only 3 in Saudi Arabia (build of 25 October 2026).

So the maker uses the registries where they are rich and the show where they are thin. It shortlists ten Brazilian and six Singapore distributors from the registries and books calls. It walks AEEDC Dubai in January to meet Gulf dental distributors and checks each one against the registry afterwards. It books meetings at IDS in March with shortlisted names that confirm they are going, and keeps Hospitalar in May as the fallback for Brazil. It does not exhibit until a Gulf registration is under way.

Common mistakes

• Booking the show before choosing the markets.
• Waiting at the stand for distributors to find you. The good ones are in booked meetings.
• Promising exclusivity at the show.
• Following up three weeks later, after they have met hundreds of other companies.