As global economies look for opportunities to rebuild business in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, exhibition organizers and associations from around the world are joining together to form a coalition dedicated to bringing critical live event platforms back to market, with safety at the foundation of the approach. While industries look for opportunities to recover following devastating economic hardship, the exhibitions industry says it is dedicated to supporting commerce and connection by providing safe environments to network and do business.
This coalition, led by the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, UFI, organizer of Global Exhibitions Day, the Society of Independent Show Organizers and exhibitions organizers Clarion Events, Emerald, Informa Markets, Reed Exhibitions, Comexposium, Diversified Communications, and Tarsus, are joining forces as their customers are signaling a desire to return to live event experiences.
While this expansive global group is collaborating for the first time, many of the leading exhibition organizers have been finding meaningful ways to collaborate and combine resources for the benefit of the global communities they serve.
Many show organizers and associations joined forces in 2020 to create and support the All Secure Guidelines, a rigorous set of globally adopted and medically vetted health and safety measures designed to create a consistent and diligent approach to visitor health at all global trade shows in 2021 and beyond. Aligned to this, UFI developed and released a Global Framework for the successful reopening of trade shows, addressing advocacy bodies and institutions and backed by members of the coalition and the wider industry.
Coalition members have hosted successful trade shows across many industries including, yachting, fashion and beauty, travel, hospitality and jewelry. Examples are Palm Beach International Boat Show, Surf Expo and Jewelers International Showcase, all in Florida, along with shows internationally in China, India and Japan, under the All Secure guidelines.
At the events hosted this year, attendees have seen open-concept booths, widened aisles, hand sanitizing units, safety ambassadors, as well as mandatory mask-wearing and temperature screening. Three co-located fashion events, Magic Pop-Up, WWIN and Offprice, saw collaboration in Orlando, Florida, between Informa Markets, Clarion and Tarsus to execute their events using the All Secure Guidelines. On-site rapid testing of all participants proved the effectiveness of the safety plans with no infection spread.
“Events will help play a fundamental role in driving economic recovery across the globe,” says Russell Wilcox, CEO, Clarion Events. “Pre-pandemic, the exhibition sector drove over 432 billion pounds ($593 billion) of business sales globally by providing a platform for trade and investment. Our industry is committed, willing and able to deliver safe and successful exhibitions, driving game-changing opportunities for our customers, innovation, economic growth and jobs.”
This coalition is the culmination of industry-wide collaboration around the world. One example is the recently formed Exhibitions and Conferences Alliance. Comprising eight industry associations, the advocacy coalition is dedicated to the recovery and advancement of face-to-face business events in the following ways:
- representing the common interests of the U.S. exhibitions and conferences industry to legislators;
- promoting the impact of the sector; and
- working with partners globally to maintain a favorable operating environment within the U.S.
Under the ECA umbrella, Go Live Together is a campaign started by Freeman to advocate for reopening business events safely through one unified voice. The campaign brought together over 2,700 members representing associations and companies from across the business events ecosystem. A second campaign, Exhibitions Mean Business, engages policymakers, business professionals and educators to raise awareness of the value face-to-face events bring to local, national and global economies.
"The exhibitions industry has a tremendous impact on local, state and federal economies, creating a significant multiplier effect,” Hervé Sedky, president and CEO, Emerald, says, “Small and mid-size businesses in particular are heavily reliant on trade shows to drive their business by launching new products, generating leads, and entering new geographies. As the exhibitions industry is a foundational element of how business gets done, our commitment is to progressively and strategically secure our future viability while ensuring our industry partners' and customers' continued growth and resilience.”
The coalition claims that feedback from a wide variety of industries spanning across several regions consistently shows that communities are eager for a return to in-person experiences. For all the organizers and associations, customer sentiment drives the majority of their decision making.
In 2021, the sixth annual Global Exhibitions Day will take place June 2. It recognizes the important role that trade exhibitions play in driving economies throughout the world. In the lead up to this year’s day of celebration for the industry, the coalition wants to show that in-person opportunities for connection and business can happen safely and successfully, with collaboration, consistency and customer experience at the heart of the approach.
