Messukeskus Helsinki, Expo and Convention Centre, promotes Finnish welfare by enabling effective face to face encounters at exhibitions, meetings, conferences and other events. Annually approximately a hundred exhibitions and 2,000 meetings and congresses are held at Messukeskus. 10,000 companies and over 1,1 million visitors take part in the events. The history of fairs and exhibitions in Finland dates back almost a hundred years. Out company, the Finnish Fair Corporation was founded on 19 October 1919 to promote Finnish trade and industry in a newly independent Finland. Exhibitions are the sixth most used marketing medium in Finland. Face to face encounters make the most impact, are the most social and create experiences like no other medium.