Its inspiration and pioneer was Nikolaos Germanos, who opened the doors of the first exhibition in the exercise field of the 3rd Army Corps, or otherwise the Areos field at the time.
Thessaloniki she wears her holiday clothes and becomes the center of the world. The biggest event of the city, the International Exhibitionget started!
Her story begins on October 1926.
Inspirer and pioneer of Nikolaos Germanoswho opens the doors of the first exhibition in the exercise field of the 3rd Army Corps or otherwise the Ares field at the time.
However, the eyes in that maiden exhibition are stolen by the small Swiss house of “Nestle” which houses a cow. Visitors to the fair form huge queues to get the free milk that Nestlé was handing out to children. Another innovation marks the opening of the international exhibition, the operation of the first radio station in Greece. It’s the season when beer lovers can enjoy an ice-cold glass of “FIX” for the price of one drachma while listening to the radio.
1928 is also the first time that a Greek prime minister visits the TIF: the Cretan Eleftherios Venizelos makes a stop in Thessaloniki, on his way back from Belgrade and a long European trip.
The 14th TEF of 1939 was the last to be held on the Field of Mars. The 40’s war breaks out and many of the exhibitors don’t even have time to get their stuff. The Exhibition will remain closed for a full 10 years.
The 1957 exhibition is linked to an invention that marked the everyday life of the Greeks. The first coffee frappe made by Dimitris Vakondiou reaches the lips of the people of Thessaloniki and all visitors to the city. Meanwhile, the sausage sandwich, forerunner of the hot dog, started in Thessaloniki and became the most popular appetizer for dark beer.
In 1958, big names of the song such as Tsitsanis, Kazantzidis and Marinella brought the guests of the TIF to the tables, and a local tradition began: the nocturnal “raid” on the bouzoukis. In the same year, the emblematic “Palais de Sport” was built, where top names not only in Greece, but also on a global level give great concerts and performances.
The 1960 exhibition will go down in history for two reasons. Then the institution of the now internationally famous Thessaloniki Film Festival was founded, while at the opening of the 25th TIF, the first experimental television station in Greece was installed and operated by PPC.
In 1962 the Song Festival moved from Athens to Thessaloniki, and developed into a hotbed of great talents, such as Jenny Vanou who competed in the first festival, but also into a leading institution of the city. Then a man who was to be inextricably linked with the Festival makes his first appearance: the late Alkis Steas, presents the institution with his own characteristic style and becomes the face of the festival until 1980.
Since then, the Thessaloniki International Fair has acquired a more political character, but will remain in history as the great celebration of innovation and culture.
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With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
