This week Bulawayo is a hive of activity. Always headlined by notable leaders from across the continent, the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) is one important event that most business leaders look forward to.
For more than six decades, the ZITF has been a fixture on Zimbabwe’s economic calendar. It has outlived political cycles, economic turbulence, and shifting global trade patterns. That longevity speaks to the enduring logic behind its creation which is to provide a platform where commerce, policy, and international engagement intersect.
Yet in today’s world, where countries compete beyond resources but on reputation, ZITF must be understood differently as no longer just a trade fair but rather one of Zimbabwe’s most visible nation branding assets.
At its core, ZITF was designed to reduce barriers between buyers and sellers. It created a physical marketplace where firms could showcase capability and governments could signal policy direction. In many ways, it functioned as Zimbabwe’s earliest form of economic story-telling.
Today, that storytelling role has become even more critical. Investors do not engage with countries in the abstract. They respond to signals. They interpret efficiency, organisation, professionalism, and follow through. ZITF compresses all of this into a few days. It becomes, in effect, a live demonstration of how Zimbabwe works.
This is where public policy and branding converge. Policy provides the substance. Marketing shapes the narrative. Branding is the cumulative perception that remains after the experience. One of the persistent challenges with ZITF is how success is defined. Too often, the conversation is anchored on attendance numbers and exhibitor counts. Bigger is assumed to mean better. But this assumption does not hold under scrutiny.
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Research within Zimbabwe’s own exhibition industry has pointed out that reliance on attendance as a primary measure of success is both limiting and misleading. As Nomathemba Ndlovu observes in her doctoral work: Beyond Proxy Measures of Post-Event Evaluation: Measuring Attendee Satisfaction In The Zimbabwean Exhibition Industry, such proxy measures “provide an untested basis for gauging the long-term sustainability” of exhibitions.
That insight carries weight not only because of its academic rigour, but because of its authorship. Ndlovu is not an external observer. She previously served as general manager of the ZITF Company. She understands both the theory and the operational reality of exhibitions in Zimbabwe. Her critique is therefore not abstract, but solidly grounded.
Attendance tells us who showed up. It tells us nothing about what they experienced, what they concluded, or whether they will return. From a branding perspective, that is a critical blind spot.
Modern exhibition thinking is clear on the point that value is created through experience, not presence.
Ndlovu’s research reinforces this by showing that attendee satisfaction is shaped by specific, tangible factors such as booth management, layout, and the efficiency of registration processes.
What this means in practical terms is that the credibility of Zimbabwe’s brand at ZITF is built in the details. More importantly, her work confirms that satisfaction influences behaviour. Attendees who have a positive experience are more likely to return and to recommend the event to others. In marketing terms, this is the transition from awareness to advocacy and this is where nation branding gains real traction.
As of today, ZITF’s strength is its legacy. Its weakness is the risk of becoming comfortable within that legacy. There are three areas where this is most evident. First is repetition. Regular participants often encounter similar formats year after year. This creates what industry research describes as exhibition fatigue. When the experience does not evolve, engagement declines.
Second is feedback. There is limited evidence of structured, data driven post event evaluation. Without this, the same issues persist. Ndlovu notes that without moving beyond proxy measures, organisers are left without a reliable basis for improving future events.
ZITF and the business of nation branding: Why scale isn’t enough
Third is conversion. ZITF generates visibility, but the link between visibility and measurable economic outcomes remains weakly articulated. Deals are discussed, but not systematically tracked. For a platform of this importance, that is a missed opportunity.
If ZITF is to play a meaningful role in Zimbabwe’s economic future, it must be repositioned from an event to a strategy. This is easier said than done. What is required is a shift in mindset. Success should be measured not by how many people attend, but by the quality of engagement and the outcomes generated. Exhibitor participation should be curated around sectors where Zimbabwe has a clear competitive advantage. The core offering should be very clear. Yes, as at any fair we can find pheripheral exhibitors and participants, but this type of an international affair should be anchored by strategic exhibitors. As a country the ZITF should show the world what we have to offer in terms of sectoral strengths. The ZITF should be one of the key events that creates local and export opportunities for our industries while positioning the country strategically as a viable investment destination. Anything else outside of this is peripheral.
Investor journeys should be deliberately designed, from arrival to deal facilitation. This is where marketing discipline must inform policy execution. Brand Zimbabwe cannot be built through messaging alone. It must be experienced. ZITF is one of the few platforms where that experience can be orchestrated at scale.
Ultimately, the future of ZITF is a leadership question. What role should it play in Zimbabwe’s development story? If it remains a calendar event, it may continue to deliver incremental value. If it is treated as a strategic instrument, it can shape perception, attract capital, and reinforce credibility. Zimbabwe does not need incremental value at this point, it requires quantum leap and transformational value. The difference lies in intentionality coupled with strategy reframing.
ZITF is too important to be reduced to numbers. Its true value lies in its ability to convene, to signal, and to shape perception. That is the essence of nation branding. It sits at the intersection of policy, leadership, and marketing. The evidence, including insights from practitioners such as Nomathemba Ndlovu, is clear. Exhibitions succeed not because they are large, but because they are meaningful, well executed, and outcome driven.
Honestly Zimbabwe does not need a bigger ZITF. It needs a more deliberate one. One that understands that every interaction is a message, and every message contributes to the brand the country projects to the world.
Mambure is a business leader and public policy scholar. He is a chartered marketer and fellow of the CIM (UK)and holds an MBA, Master in Public Policy and Government and an MSc in Marketing. — dnmambure@gmail.com