Date: 12.04.2002 Unanimous vote by shareholders' meeting and supervisory board

The appointment of Wilhelm Giese as Messe Duesseldorf President and CEO early this year left the position of Managing Director in Shows Division 1 vacant. At a meeting on 11 April 2002 shareholders and the supervisory board unanimously elected Wilhelm Niedergöker new Managing Director of Messe Duesseldorf with effect from 1 June 2002.

From 1978 Mr. Niedergöker was Marketing Manager and Marketing Director both at Duesseldorfer Messegesellschaft mbH - NOWEA (now Messe Duesseldorf GmbH) and at Internationale Messemarketing GmbH (now Messe Duesseldorf International), a fully owned NOWEA subsidiary. In 1985 he moved to KölnMesse (Cologne Trade Fair) initially as department head and from 1989 as Managing Director Marketing.

The shareholders' meeting, supervisory board and managing board of Messe Duesseldorf joined in welcoming Wilhelm Niedergöker as an outstanding trade fair professional to Messe Duesseldorf.

In his new role Mr. Niedergöker will primarily be responsible for leisure, lifestyle and fashion shows, as well as a host of capital goods fairs. In addition he will also spearhead the further development of Duesseldorf's show spectrum including strategic expansion of the company's international sweep. Joachim Erwin, Chairman of the Messe Duesseldorf GmbH supervisory board commented: "I have every confidence that in Wilhelm Niedergöker we have acquired one of Germany's foremost show experts." Mr. Niedergöker, 53, is married and has two children.

At the same session Erhard Wienkamp, Project Director with Messe Duesseldorf since 1993, and responsible for the flagship events K and interpack, was appointed Division Director. In his new role that includes expanding operations abroad Mr. Wienkamp will directly report to CEO Wilhelm Giese. Concurrently he will take responsibility for plastics fairs as Project Director. Erhard Wienkamp is 44 and married with two children.
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