The month of September is also approaching to a close. All our hopes to get a re-start date from the government of India are still hanging to the bait. With most of the industries getting back to action, the events and exhibitions industry is still unable to attract any attention of the policy makers. Despite having many industry associations in the MICE sector, the voice of our sector is not reaching the government (In-spite of the SOPs and framework, which have been developed and even submitted to the government).
Nevertheless, being industry media, we have been striving earnestly to keep the industry engaged and informed during these difficult times. The recently concluded IMS2.0 was a sincere initiative to reflect the strength and voice of our industry and to showcase our sector’s preparedness to open up effectively. The event concluded successfully with 1120 attendees joining during the course of two days from 52 countries! 14 power packed sessions featured over 95 global speakers who gave their valuable insights about issues most pertinent to the future of our industry. Recordings of all the sessions are now available on demand on the Exhibition Showcase’s official YouTube channel. In all the interactions with global peers, one thing that everyone accepted is that there is no substitute to physical shows while it will be important to embrace technology going forward. There will also be a need to impart new age skills to our workforce with focused impetus on digitalization, innovation and sustainability.
To inspire the industry, we are coming back on 5th December, 2020 with the 5th annual edition of Exhibition Excellence Awards and co-located Global MICE Icons awards ceremony. This is a mega initiative to recognize the achievements of the MICE industry and inspire them to stay committed and reach for greater heights in 2021.
On another positive development for the industry, the CARAVAN SALON (world’s largest RV trade show) which concluded on 6th September at the Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre, Germany, drew 107,000 mobile travel and leisure enthusiasts to the event’s 59th edition. Spanning 762,000 square feet, the show was the first major trade fair to take place in the western German city since the COVID-19 lockdown. Though the show was notably smaller than it was in 2019 — when 268,000 attendees and 645 exhibitors spanned 2.3 million square feet of indoor and outdoor expo space — Messe Düsseldorf officials still lauded the show as a success for the German and European trade fair industry. We hope to share many such developments more regularly!
Do read this insightful issue to get interesting updates from the world of business events and exhibitions. We have featured some informative interviews, news and articles and as always, I would love to hear your feedback on raghav@exhibitionshowcase.com.
Stay safe and happy reading!
