Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the exhibition industry in China and to report on an exploratory study of 306 exhibitors and visitors to a trade exhibition in Guangzhou, China, which examined decision-making factors that influence the visitors and exhibitors in exhibition-participation. Design/methodology/approach - The research took a quantitative approach by conducting a survey at the Guangzhou International Beauty & Cosmetic Import-Export Expo in late March 2008. A total of 306 valid responses were obtained. Descriptive analysis and factor analysis were conducted using SPSS 12.0. Findings - Study findings indicate five categories of factors that influence exhibition-participation. Promising second-tier cities as exhibition destinations are also identified and discussed. Originality/value - A contribution of the study is exploring whether participants attach importance to destination attributes when they consider attending an exhibition. It also investigated, for the first time, exhibitors' and visitors' preferences for 15 second-tier cities in China as exhibition destinations.