April 2021

Rs. 125

April 2021 Vol 8 Issue 09 Voice of Asia’s Exhibition & Convention Industry

“Reputations are built in hard times” In Conversation With Phil Chung, CEO of IICC Operating Company

Nanu Binu Recalls Meroform's Journey of 21 Glorious Years

Sivakumar Venugopal Group Director & Member of the Management Board, NürnbergMesse India leads us through the upward trajectory of the woodworking and furniture manufacturing sector, while also throwing light on their plans to grow in line with this ever-booming industry.

Editor’s desk The present times are turning out to be a nightmare for India. The pandemic is sweeping through India at a pace that has staggered the world. Daily case numbers have exploded since early March: the government reported 352,991 new infections nationally on 25th April.

Just months earlier, antibody data had suggested that many people in cities such as Delhi and Chennai had already been infected, leading some researchers to conclude that the worst of the pandemic was over in the country. Sadly, this was not to be!

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PSU BUZZ

However, amidst this nerve wrecking time, one thing which has stood out is the humanity for one another. People are helping out each other through whatever ways possible. Our industry associations have also come forward to extend support to the fraternity in various ways.

EEMA set up help lines in north, east, west to enable guidance, doctor consultation, connect for hospital beds, information about medicines, and home sets-ups etc. The event industry association has also deployed resources in NCR to give real time updates on the availability of oxygen for refilling. The Indian Exhibition Industry Association has created a live verified registry of COVID winners who would like to volunteer donation of Plasma anywhere in India. IESA plans to make Covid help Centres across India. IESA has called its members to act as volunteers across different cities to help arrange oxygen cylinders, medicines and other Covid related supplies. We salute these efforts by our industry associations.

Exhibition Showcase pays its deepest condolences to the families of our industry brave hearts who lost their battles to COVID. As a humble service of tribute, we feature condolence messages on our industry whatsapp groups, social media etc. I hope and pray that the coming month of May sees some respite and this curve settles down. It will also be imperative that everyone gets vaccinated at the earliest.

In this issue, we bring to you some insightful stories from across the world. I hope you enjoy reading our in-depth interviews. Despite these tough times, Exhibition Showcase has been steadfast in serving the industry with full commitment. If you would like to share any feedback then please write to me at raghav@exhibitionshowcase.com.

Stay safe!

Best Regards

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WHAT’S INSIDE Pg. 08-09

World Map

8-9

Headlines From Across The World

Pg. 11-14 11

ITC Windsor, Bengaluru, First Hotel In The World To Achieve LEED Zero Carbon Certification

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Minister MSME Shri Nitin Gadkari Assured EEMA To Address Matter In Fast-Track Mode In The Long-Awaited Meeting On 7th April, 2021

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Informa Releases 2021 Outlook, Heralding Return Of F2F Globally

Pg. 16-25

Interviews

16-17

Exclusive Conversation With Phil Chung, CEO of IICC Operating Company (KINEXIN), General Director of KINTEX

18-21

Exhibition Showcase Talks To Sivakumar Venugopal Group Director & Member of the Management Board, NürnbergMesse India

22-25

In Conversation With Nanu Binu Founder Director, Meroform India & Founder President, IESA

Pg. 26-28

Event Tech

26

Platforms To Skies

27-28

DigiTech ASEAN Thailand 2021– Connecting With The Global Tech And Digital Community

Pg. 29-33

Insights

29

A Message From UFI President

30-31

How Has COVID-19 Changed The Events Industry?

32-33

The Italian Fairs Towards Re-Opening After A Year Of Emergency

Pg. 34-57

Global News

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Exhibition Highlights China's Scenic Splendor

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2021 Will See The Rise Of Hybrid Events

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Dubai Shares Model For Recovery Of International Business Events Sector

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Abu Dhabi International Book Fair To Be Held At ADNEC From 23-29 May

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Tokyo Motor Show Cancelled As Japan Faces Another State Of Emergency

USA SISO - Society of Independent Show Organisers CEO Summit (12-15 April) brought together over 200 of exhibition industry’s leaders back together in-person, to discuss and deliberate about the future of exhibition industry. Douglas Emslie (Chairman, SISO) announced the launch of the Asia CEO Summit in October in Singapore as a partnership between SISO, AEO Association of Event Organisers & SACEOS Singapore. The plan is to have international independent organizers meet with Asian organizers. This is a great step and positive development for the Asian exhibition industry.

Canada

Brazil

The Canadian Produce Marketing Association held its 95th Convention and Trade Show, Fresh Week - the largest fresh produce event in the country - April 12-16, attracting almost 2,900 attendees from 42 countries, even as a virtual event. CPMA also carried on its tradition of supporting its community by raising funds for Food Banks Canada. At the end of the show, CPMA exhibitors and attendees raised $16, 604.75, surpassing the target goal of $15,000.

PERSE, a central government emergency support plan for the events industry, was approved by the government in Brazil during March.

This programme became the first of its kind in the region, as it covers the whole country through its centralised approach, differing from programmes in other countries with a city-oriented reach. PERSE provides payment terms for debts, special lines of credit, non-payment of certain social contributions, among others.

Japan Organizers for ISM Cologne, the world's largest trade fair for sweets and snacks, are launching a new event in Japan next year. Set for April 13-15, 2022 at the Tokyo Big Sight, ISM Japan will serve as the information, communication and networking hub for the confectionery and snacks industries in the region.

Singapore Malaysia

Thailand

MyCEB launches strategic plan, with a focus on business and international sporting events.

Malaysia has rolled out a 10-year plan which government and industry players hope will better prepare the country for digitalisation and innovation, while simultaneously creating some 25,000 jobs by 2030. The SMP is anchored on three main pillars: optimisation, foresight and competitiveness.

Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) and 22 organisations signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to jointly upgrade disease control and hygiene measures for MICE industry in 10 MICE cities nationwide. The targets include MICE-related organisations such as venues, event organisers, hotels, transport providers, restaurants, retail establishments, and department stores.

Singapore overtook New Zealand to lead this month's Bloomberg Covid Resilience Ranking, which measures the best and worst places to be during the Covid-19 pandemic. The country brought locally transmitted cases down to near zero thanks to border curbs and a strict quarantine programme, allowing citizens to largely go about their everyday lives, even attending concerts and going on cruises. Singapore has also already administered enough vaccines to cover about a fifth of its population.

News Buzz

April 2021

ITC Windsor, Bengaluru, First Hotel In The World To Achieve LEED Zero Carbon Certification TC Hotels, the world’s largest chain of hotels with the maximum number of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum certified properties, has been accorded yet another distinction by the USGBC (United States Green Building Council), making ITC Windsor, Bengaluru the first hotel in the world to achieve the LEED Zero Carbon Certification.

mitigating climate-related risks and halting resource depletion is critical in achieving a sustainable and regenerative future for all. At ITC Hotels, we understand the value of going beyond efficiency and have showcased extraordinary sustainability leadership by enhancing the renewable energy footprint, energy efficiency and mitigation of greenhouse gases emission.”

ITC Windsor is powered by its own wind turbine generators and uses innovative energy efficient technologies such as electrical boiler, induction burners and other renewable energy.

The hotel is a stellar example of how hospitality can make a positive global impact by committing to sustainability and achieving net zero carbon status.

ITC Hotels has pioneered several ground-breaking initiatives on environment, hotel ecosystem, health, and well-being. From LEED platinum rating, to being one of the first chains to eliminate single use plastic free products, deployment of radiation harmonisers across the chain, farm to fork low carbon footprint cuisine, clean air and more.

Nakul Anand, Executive Director, ITC said: “The ITC Hotels growth story is a story about sustainability. We strongly believe that any effort to save the planet ultimately equals to saving ourselves.

Elevating the role of buildings in

“At USGBC we believe net zero is a powerful target that will move the entire industry forward. It influences the rest of the industry to aim even higher and achieving LEED Zero certification demonstrates these goals are attainable,”

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said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO, USGBC. "Given the climaterelated risks we are facing and the central role buildings play in climate mitigation, ITC Windsor’s LEED Zero certification for carbon demonstrates visionary leadership because it contributes toward a regenerative future and represents a commitment to making the world a better place. By prioritising net zero carbon, ITC Windsor is pioneering a new way forward for the industry as a whole,” he added.

For more than two decades, LEED has provided a framework for creating high performance green buildings and spaces and is an internationally recognised symbol of excellence. Building on that work, the US Green Building Council has developed LEED Zero, a complement to LEED that verifies the achievement of net zero goals. LEED Zero represents a new level of achievement in green building that is not just attainable but is the goal of LEED certified projects around the world.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

News Buzz

April 2021

Minister MSME Shri Nitin Gadkari Assured EEMA To Address Matter In Fast-Track Mode In The Long-Awaited Meeting On 7th April, 2021

he Event & Entertainment sector which saw massive impact due to the Covid pandemic had now just started to see some green shoots before getting hit again due to the surging Covid cases

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Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Shri Nitin Gadkari and the Event Industry Apex body EEMA met to discuss several issues faced by the Event and Entertainment sector. Event & Entertainment Industry body EEMA’s Government interaction committee led by its Executive Vice President Samit Garg along with Treasurer EEMA Major KJS Gurna, Zonal Vice President (North) Prerana Saxena and principal member EEMA Rajeev Jain called upon the long-awaited meeting with Minister Nitin Gadkari and talked about the performance of the sector.

The Event & Entertainment sector which

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saw massive impact due to the covid pandemic had now just started to see some green shoots before getting hit again due to the surging covid cases. The meeting also discussed the long-awaited Industry Status for the event businesses and the industry leaders have urged the Government to bring the policy as soon as possible to recognize the industry for strengthening the sector.

The other points of discussions included: Listing of Event Management as an exclusive category in the MSME NIC code list under Udyam Registration.

Providing focused MSME guidelines and schemes for the Event industry businesses. Schemes offering working capital with collaterals at low and affordable interest rates for the sustainability and growth of the event industry. Fast track clearances of Government dues under the MSME Samadhaan – Delayed Payment

Monitoring System. Minister MSME Nitin Gadkari assured EEMA that all the matters will be discussed, and actions will be taken soon. Roshan Abbas, President, EEMA said, “EEMA has been working to make the government realize the value of what we do. And Shri Gadkari had promised to address our issues last at the EEMA Summit. We are glad he took time to understand the issue and has assured us of help. Now is the perfect time for event managers to join EEMA and strengthen us further.”

Adding to this, Samit Garg, Executive Vice President, EEMA said, “It was extremely encouraging to see the immediate response of the Hon’ble Minister and how he got the concerned office bearers together in no time to listen to us and address our requests. It was a day well spent between his residence and Udyog Bhawan and we are very upbeat about the expected outcome.”

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

News Buzz

April 2021

ISSA And Informa Markets Solidify Partnership In India

ISSA and Informa Markets solidify strategic partnership serving the Indian global cleaning and facility management industry through the launch of the ISSA Conference India scheduled for October 21- 22, 2021 at the Westin Mumbai Garden City in Mumbai, India.

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“ISSA is very happy to further expand our strong global partnership with Informa Markets by offering the ISSA India Conference,” said Dianna Steinbach, ISSA Vice President of International Services. “This collaboration enables ISSA to bring more international insights and education at a local level, supporting the Indian cleaning industry’s growing professionalism, as well as helping local businesses contribute to improved public hygiene and societal advancements.”

The launch of the in-person ISSA Conference India comes on the heels of the incredibly successful inaugural event hosted by the partners in 2020 – the ISSA Global Biorisk Symposium in India. More than 1,000 industry professionals joined the online symposium to receive cutting edge information from highly qualified speakers on cleaning for infectious disease transmission prevention.

Speaking on the announcement of the ISSA Conference, Mr. Yogesh Mudras, Managing Director, Informa Markets in

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India, said, “We are happy to work closely with ISSA to launch the ISSA Conference India. It will not only bring international advanced experience and ideas to India’s fastgrowing cleaning industry but also will introduce overseas innovative equipment, products and solutions to the huge Indian market. By joining forces and sharing resources, I believe together we can promote better development of the cleaning industry.

The ISSA Conference is as timely as it is relevant considering the see-saw battle we are engaged with at the moment with the pandemic. The event will bring together professionals and companies, sensitizing them on the pertinent issues in dealing with pandemics and redefining the global cleaning community with the single mission of changing the way the world views cleaning. The symposium is designed to provide the commercial, institutional, and industrial stakeholders with lessons learned and best practices in disaster management, readiness and resiliency, as well as leadership in times of crisis.”

Visitors of the ISSA Conference India can source new cleaning solutions for commercial cleaning, industrial cleaning, public utilities, municipal environmental sanitation, indoor environment purification and property, provided by international and local Indian companies.

The event will host 8 educational conference sessions over the course of 2 days on topics such as Sanitation, Health, and Hygiene in India Challenges for the Coming Decade, Key

Management Solutions Every Facility Service Provider Should Consider, The Science Behind Cleaning & Disinfecting, Integrating Infection Prevention into Routine Cleaning: Learnings from Covid Pandemic, The Next Big Need in India’s Facility Management World, Leveraging the Merger of Building Automation & Service IoT, Developing a Top Quality Assurance Program, and Making the Business Case for Investing In Cleaning & Hygiene.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND? The ISSA Conference India establishes a framework for communication and awareness of best practices throughout the world and more specifically in the Indian market. The event is ideal for cleaning and facility management professionals looking for education, products, solutions and the latest technologies and trends to enhance the health and safety of the buildings they maintain. The ISSA conference India will attract executive decision makers from commercial cleaning, industrial cleaning, hospitality, retail, public utilities, municipal environmental sanitation, indoor environment purification and other public venues of all sizes seeking to improve operating procedures.

IN-PERSON EXHIBIT, SPONSORSHIP & DIGITAL OPPORTUNITIES The ISSA Conference India offers flexible and customized opportunities that enable companies around the world to showcase products and services and grow their reach in the Indian market.

Companies seeking to reach key decision makers within the Indian market have an opportunity to not only build brand awareness abroad but to improve company positions as a leading player in the worldwide cleaning industry.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

News Buzz

April 2021

Informa Releases 2021 Outlook, Heralding Return Of F2F Globally nforma PLC have released their 2021 outlook. Calling 2021 a "transition year for B2B physical events”, the group says it expects “activity levels (to be) dependent upon the pace and scale of re-opening of physical events, which is varying by region and customer market“. Mainland China, North America and the Middle East, in that order, are tracking ahead of Europe, the company says. This is in line with Informa's latest data in the UFI Barometer.

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In the US, Informa reports a progressive return of B2B physical events on a stateby-state basis. In, Mainland China, the group has now run 45 B2B events postCOVID, six of these with revenues in line or ahead of 2019 levels. Elsewhere, Informa have seen or have now confirmed a return to physical B2B events in Australia, Dubai, Egypt, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and the UK, amongst others. There remains continued uncertainty over the pace and rate of return in Continental Europe. In 2020 Informa expanded significantly into virtual and hybrid events. The group is “building on this experience and customer feedback in 2021“, partnering with a range of key partners. Stephen A. Carter, Group Chief Executive, Informa PLC, said: "The strength and performance of Informa’s subscriptions businesses, combined with actions undertaken in 2020 to protect and preserve our brands and customer relationships in B2B Events, are delivering continuing Stability and Security in 2021, in what will be the year of transition.”

He added: “This Transition Year will be defined by continued strength and improving growth in our subscriptionsled businesses, further growth in B2B

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digital services and a progressive reopening of physical events, led by Mainland China and North America, which will ensure we deliver our revenue commitments for 2021, and remain cashflow positive throughout.”

He concluded: “The experience of COVID-19 has underscored the value of market specialisation and the power of data and applied technologies for the benefit of our specialist market customers, all of which will underpin a period of Revitalisation and Growth through 2022-2024.”

Key 2020 Highlights Full Year 2020 Results: Adjusted Operating Profit1 of £267.8m (2019: £933.1m) on revenues of £1,660.8m (2019: £2,890.3m), in line with guidance and reflecting the significant pandemic-impact on physical Events business; One-off COVID-19 noncash impairment of goodwill and other exceptional costs result in statutory operating loss of £880.4m (2019: £538.1m profit); Ÿ Continuing Stability & Security: Strength in Subscriptions-led businesses in 2020, combined with our COVID-19 Action Plan, have delivered Stability and Security; costs Ÿ matched to current activity levels through £600m+ cost savings, and balance sheet secured, with liquidity of more than £1bn, removal of all financial covenants and positive cash generation in the first quarter of 2021; Ÿ Subscriptions Strength & Performance: Strong performances by our Subscriptions businesses have continued into Q1 2021, reflecting consistent investment in specialist content and digital platforms. Ÿ

Full year target is for positive underlying1 growth at Taylor & Francis and 4%+ underlying1 growth at Informa Intelligence. Growth underpinned by consistent performance in clinical trials intelligence, supported by addition of TrialScope, and strong growth in intelligence products for US retail banks, with further opportunities for product expansion through a potential combination with Novantas.

2021 – The Transition Year: 2021 will be The Transition Year for B2B physical events, as permissions progressively return and B2B customer confidence rebuilds. This will vary by region and customer market, with Mainland China, North America and the Middle East, in that order, tracking ahead of Europe. The pace of return in B2B physical events will determine the extent of improvement beyond this year’s baseline Group revenue commitment of £1.7bn.2022-2024 – Revitalisation and Growth: Demand for B2B Event platforms that connect buyers and sellers efficiently, at scale, remains strong, as evidenced through the return of our business in Mainland China (45+ events and 1.2m attendees since June). Confidence in a period of Revitalisation and Growth through 2022-2024 is underpinned by the strength of our portfolio, built around major B2B brands (75% of revenue) in major locations (65%+ Mainland China and North America). Ÿ Expanding Digital Services: We continue to expand our range of adjacent B2B digital services. Across the portfolio, we delivered more than £100m of revenue in 2020 from virtual and hybrid events, with further growth targeted in 2021. Ÿ

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Interview

April 2021

E XCLUSIVE CONVERSATION With Phil Chung, CEO of IICC Operating Company (KINEXIN), General Director of KINTEX ES. What are the areas which will see drastic changes in exhibitions post the Covid19 period?

Phil. I guess the biggest difference from the past will be our sense of importance on the number of visitors at the exhibition site as well as the public sense of physical distance between people. Most of the organizers as well as visitors may think now that the quality factors are much more important and meaningful than the quantity factors for exhibitions. Quality over Quantity for recruiting and attracting visitors and buyers. It is deemed that large number of crowd on site is no longer the proud criteria for the organizer because even visitors will feel the need to secure their individual 'space' more than any other times.

Visitors are inclined to attend a less crowded exhibitions these days due to Covid19 than ever to enjoy their 'showtime' focusing on their individual buying and studying needs according to our observations on recent large exhibitions staged in our Korea venue. I think India organizers, for the time being till we see the reassuringly lowered Covid19 curve of India, can develop more ‘invitation-only’ style

of exhibitions as they can predict the right number and quality of the visitors for their effective show crowd-control, and manage them relatively easily according to pre-made plans.

About the shortage of the number of visitors, they may be able to attract more important people online regardless of their office locations. However, most of tradeshows will be again organized in large scales post-Covid19 period, and what’s needed will be more ‘spacious’ exhibiting spaces as you will need more space between booths, between people, etc.

Organizers do not need to downsize their shows in order to make the audience feel more comfortable once they could secure some more additional space for such arrangements like on-site registrations, booth set-ups, queues and more.

Venues can consider supporting organizers in this way during the pandemic period, helping organizers and visitors maintain their existing needs, show-size and requirements while solving the physical distance concerns at least till the Covid19 issues get fully controllable in India and many other countries along with the rate of public vaccination. Naturally, the importance of digital visitor promotion’s expected to rise as exhibitors need the maximum exposure to the potential buyers of all places. Organizers can be creative in using numerous interesting gadgets like VR/AR gears, Smart-glasses enabling organizers and visitors to communicate real time regardless of their location while watching the displayed exhibits at a show.

IICC construction site - work in progress 16 | www.exhibi onshowcase.com

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Interview

April 2021

And secondly, it may sound challenging to some countries, but I guess the importance of strong local champions will no longer be under-estimated. During the Covid19 period, we have seen most of the ‘international’ tradeshows have been largely damaged due to the international travel-restrictions of all types. However, in countries like Korea, China and Taiwan, I’ve been seeing not a few strong local shows are surviving even during these hard times. For international shows, in order to maintain the international status, the international tradeshow organizers should put more weight of significance on identifying and attracting numerous local and regional headquarters, subsidiaries, sales agencies, and all other local counterparts instead of courting their HQs which will suffer international travel-restrictions during this the pandemic period and even afterwards, such importance will rise I guess as international visitors shall watch the pandemic situation even afterwards for the time being.

Therefore, international organizations like UFI and ICCA may need to reconsider of updating and revising their traditional criteria on ‘international exhibitions or international conventions’ which mainly considered the number of foreign travelers from outside of the country for the official international expo audits in the past. We definitely need quite a different criteria on assessing the quality of exhibitions and conventions unlike the preCovid19 era.

ES. How do you see the role of technology in events and what would be the tech trends for event venues in 2021?

Phil. I’ve discussed with a lot of event software developers for the creation of several experimental virtual tradefair 17 | www.exhibi onshowcase.com

formats, and personally come up with a conclusion that such virtual tradeshows absolutely cannot replace our physical exhibitions or tradeshows. Tradeshows and exhibitions have been surviving and evolving for several centuries regardless of pandemics, wars and other challenges. For many corporate workers, buyers and business owners, tradeshows are offering great opportunities to free them from their office routines, which helps them to break away from the steady. It is also a getaway business at the same time, so many countries consider them as a big part of business tourism. I don’t personally see it more as a tourism though. And they travel to see the shows and with the refreshed minds, they can focus fully on each and every exhibit, and make significant volume-purchasing decisions.

Therefore, it would never work if things go from ‘digital to physical’; rather, they should go from ‘physical to digital’ in their show approaches of all types, which means that the very starting point is the actual and physical exhibiting space at the venue, and then they can try to add many enhanced experiential solutions. May be you can see the physical showfloor sometimes through augmented reality gears or smart glasses that can add more real time information to the users so that they can have more effective and informative communications with visitors and booth marketers. You can sometimes enjoy playing games provided by some sponsoring companies while at the venue. I see AR or MR(Mixed Reality) technologies may work. And every solutions and technologies, however, are considered to be ‘supplementary measures’ adding more pleasure and effectiveness to the physical experiences.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Cover Story

April 2021

Reputations Are Built In Hard Times The exhibi on trio of IndiaWood, DelhiWood and MumbaiWood has cemented its posi on as India's largest sourcing pla orm for furniture manufacturers, wood-based handicra manufacturers, saw millers, carpenters, cra smen, architects and interior designers in the region, over the last few years. The rising local demand, scope for furniture manufacturers to expand their facili es and a ract new investments, and the posi on of India within the global supply chain, are some of the factors which have contributed to this growth. The Industry itself is undergoing a massive transforma onal shi when it comes to supply chain management, adherence to latest technological advancements in line with Industry 4.0 and the rise of new regions within the context of demand and supply.

As per Industry reports, the domes c furniture market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.91% during the period of 2020-2024, while the global furniture market is es mated at USD 1.1 Trillion.

Apart from the domes c furniture market, the poten al for furniture exports also shows great promise, with several countries looking to diversify their manufacturing bases in the post Covid-19 era.

Sivakumar Venugopal Group Director & Member of the Management Board, NürnbergMesse India leads us through the upward trajectory of this sector, while also throwing light on their plans to grow in line with this ever-booming industry.

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Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Cover Story

April 2021

ES. What are some of the key factors driving the woodworking sector in India?

Siva. The key factors driving this sector include a shift in consumer preferences, a greater thrust by the Government of India towards the manufacturing sector, rise of E-Retail & Furniture rental and lastly a robust logistics infrastructure. Gen Z and millennials also play an important role as game changers for this Industry, given their increasing spending power, and their ability to influence older generations. India’s growth also means growth for the world at large, by having a correct service and product strategy in place, the country can indeed emerge as a world leader.

ES. How is NürnbergMesse supplementing the growth of this sector?

Siva. NürnbergMesse Group has been closely following the trends of the growth trajectory of the Indian furniture market while infusing its vision and strategy in the development of the events. One step in this direction was the acquisition of India Mattresstech Expo (one stop event for mattress and upholstery production technology, machinery and supplies exhibition), which was held for the first time parallel to India Wood 2020 in Bangalore to an encouraging response.

We are following industry dynamics very closely and you can expect more strategic associations and partnerships in the future which will further catalyse the sectoral growth.

At IndiaWood 2020 we had visitors coming from about 981 cities across India viz a viz IndiaWood 2014 where we had visitors from 254 cities which is almost a 400% growth. As a show organiser in the B2B space, it is very important for those helming a project to have a shared 19 | www.exhibi onshowcase.com

vision with the respective industries and its stakeholders.

Embrace the power of networking, meet customers, understand the nitty-gritties of their businesses, consolidate minds, accept feedback and finally deliver what the industry wants.

ES. What changes can be witnessed in the post-covid era?

Siva. The post-CoVID era has led to the adoption of newer smarter ways of operating, investments have been made in technologies of the future, while new partnerships and alliances are being explored. Furthermore, there is a major shift in the supply chain management system all over the world, which currently puts India in an enviable position as a potential manufacturing hub for the world.

The adoption of Industry 4.0 has also been accelerated due to the pandemic as businesses realised the importance of the integration of modern technology with traditional methods to ensure an uninterrupted flow of work.

The initial few months of the pandemic created a havoc amongst manufacturers across verticals, and furniture manufacturing iwas no exception where the industry was largely depended on migrant workers from across the country. The disruption in workforce pushed manufactures to embrace automation and digitalisation which is expected to transform this sector drastically and at a faster phase. Obviously, this will also result in major job loss for unskilled workforce in the sector. Here, I would strongly advocate the industry to join hands with skill development council such as FFSC – Furniture and Fittings Skill council of India in upskilling our workforces so that they are not left behind in the quest for expansion and modernisation.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Cover Story

April 2021

The event also marked the felicitation of two Industry legends - Smt. Gouri Ramakrishnan and Shri Ashok D’Souza for their incredible contribution towards this Industry

NürnbergMesse India has always been at the forefront of leading through change, innovation and creating exhibition experiences which supplement the Industries being served.

While continuing its legacy of being “the” meeting place for the woodworking sector, the team of the woodworking shows organised an Industry Connect Event in Bengaluru on the 12th of March to reconnect and restart the conversations and discussions. The allied fraternity showed up in great numbers, using the opportunity to interact collectively after a gap of more than a year. The evening was marked by some insightful discussions, with the overall consensus being that nothing can beat the power of face-to-face interactions.

Speaking at the event, Mr. Sivakumar Venugopal highlighted the importance of change, in the aftermath of the pandemic, “This change has forced us to adopt newer smarter ways of operating, it has made invest in technologies of the future, relook and change the way we have done business before and explore new partners and opportunities. This is the beginning of a new era- one where we have combatted a major world crisis, one where we have learned to persevere and pivot and most importantly where we have learned to innovate and lead from the front”.

Venkataramana Gorti

Stefano Botten Sales & Marketing Director, India

Jurgen Koppel

Ashok D’ Souza

President

Director, India

MD & Country Head, India

Krutik Mistry Director, Felder Group India

We have been present in India for over two decades and during this time, we have seen the woodworking Industry Evolve from hand tools to Automation. Our Indian Market is extremely promising and stands at the threshold of the next big growth curve.

INDIAWOOD, DELHIWOOD & MUMBAIWOOD offer an unparalleled opportunity to connect with all the important Stakeholders from the woodworking Industry.

We gain market insights, new leads and an over-all growth perspective of the sector by being a part of these forums.

INDIAWOOD along with DELHI WOOD & MUMBAIWOOD offer an active engagement for this growing industry, both in terms of networking and to witness the latest technologies. We look forward to seeing you all soon at the upcoming editions.

The woodworking Industry in India is poised to develop further and we envisage a positive growth scenario in the coming years. Our best wishes to the organisers NürnbergMesse India and we look forward to seeing you all at the upcoming editions.

EUMABOIS has been a proud supporter of INDIAWOOD and DELHIWOOD for the last decades. As European Federation of Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers we are creating a joint approach of promoting our industry based on a mutual vision.

The woodworking industry in India has taken tremendous strides especially over the last decade, evolving into a force to reckon with. INDIAWOOD and DELHIWOOD have succeeded in bringing this entire sector on a common platform and have played an instrumental and extraordinary role in fostering the growth of this industry. We wish them continued success and look forward to meeting you all in best health, soon.

INDIAWOOD, DELHIWOOD & MUMBAIWOOD are must attend events for the entire woodworking Industry. They offer a perfect forum for displaying latest technology, establishing new business connections, networking and meeting stakeholders from all over the world.

The value proposition derived from participating at these events is immense and we are eagerly looking forward to the upcoming editions. We wish the organisers, NürnbergMesse India continued success.

Exhibitions are one of the age-old traditional way of connecting with the customers (both old and potential new ones). Even with new technologies coming-up every day sometimes a Face to Face interaction goes a long way in appreciating many times the implicit needs of customers.

NürnbergMesse group, pioneer in the eld through their INDIAWOOD, DELHI WOOD and MUMBAIWOOD exhibitions is doing a commendable job in bringing together the various players from the industry to a common platform. Wishing them another successful show in the upcoming editions.

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Cover Story

April 2021

ES. What are some of the trends being seen across the furniture manufacturing Industry?

Siva. Furniture giant Ikea is accelerating its India expansion, the company opened its second India store on the outskirts of Mumbai in December and another in the southern city of Bengaluru is now on course to be completed soon. India’s lockdown helped bolster Ikea’s online business, which now accounts for 40% of total sales compared to about 10-15% previously. Furthermore India's rental furniture and appliance market, dominated by the likes of RentoMojo, Furlenco, Rentickle, and CityFurnish, is now worth Rs33,500 crore, with top 20 cities accounting for 55% of the total addressable market, as per data from management consultancy Redseer. ECommerce Giants like PepperFry, UrbanLadder, WAKEFIT, Homelane, Livspace, and WoodenStreet all have solid expansion plans in progress. All of these factors collectively augur very well for the woodworking Industry as it brings a certain degree of uniformity, internationalisation, better design aesthetics and quality enhancement to the forefront.

ES. Would exhibitions assume an enhanced significance in the coming time, given the current circumstances?

Siva. Tough times don't last, tough people do. Reputations are built in hard times, not the easy times. Present times demand that we wear the 'Hat of Hope' and support one another.

our customers with a purpose driven approach, I am sure exhibitions are going to be really significant in a post pandemic world.

Satyan Thukral

Nirav Shah Managing Director

CEO

The Indian woodworking Industry has evolved tremendously in the last decade, there is a growing consensus towards investing in quality technology and products.

Additionally, Skilled labour can be India's biggest advantage in the years to come as we have the potential to become the manufacturing base for the world at large. This is where forums like INDIAWOOD along with DELHIWOOD & MUMBAIWOOD play a crucial role in terms of bringing experts and novices together and creating a common growth platform. We look forward to meeting you at these events soon.

The vision of the Woodworking Fraternity is aimed at upscaling the growth of local businesses and Industry. By strengthening our skills and capabilities, we will be better prepared for the future and effective in our endeavor to integrate our Industry with the global supply chains.

INDIAWOOD along with DELHIWOOD & MUMBAIWOOD has been successful in bringing the whole woodworking community together since many years. We are proud to be associated with NürnbergMesse, and are looking forward to meeting our customers at the upcoming editions.

We at NürnbergMesse are active and present. We are actively looking forward to serving our clients while keeping them and our people safe. I strongly believe that we are moving to a new paradigm, where purpose-driven brands will be in the best position to sustain, succeed and grow. If we are ready to embrace this shift in paradigm and see the potential to genuinely add value to the lives of

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Interview

I

April 2021

N CONVERSATION WITH Nanu Binu

Founder Director, Meroform India & Founder President, IESA, Shares His Journey

ES. Litmus Meroform celebrated its glorious 21 years of excellence. Please share with us your reminiscences of this incredible journey.

Nanu Binu. Thank you for asking me to share the memory of this journey. Journeys have different phases. Sometimes it is pleasant and at other times you find yourselves in storm and get headwinds.

We had a baptism of fire to start with. So, when the headwind came, we did not falter. We believed in our principles and ethos. We always kept the interest of the customer in mind. We treated our associates well and they all stood with us in good times and bad times. Yes, looking back it is an incredible journey.

ES. We have heard stories about your hard work and dedication where you used to move around carrying exhibition equipments on your scooter to the site. How true is this account and do give us a glimpse of your hardwork and efforts. Also please share how was the industry back then.

Nanu Binu. Well, I do not know how to ride a two wheeler. So, the scooter bit is somebody’s figment of imagination. I hail from a business family which owned multiple businesses. In my first chosen profession also I was rising very rapidly when I made the decision (circumstantial) to change my profession and reached Delhi. Initial years were difficult but soon I jumped directly from the DTC bus to a Maruti Van. When I bought that blue van, I removed the back seat so that I could load materials at the back. I used to go to Bhogal market myself to order things and then move to Pragati Maidan and work till 1200 or 2 AM till the day’s schedule is finished. I hardly saw my children during those days. But my family backed whatever I did.

Going back a bit more. While in school, one of my teachers wrote a line on the blackboard, “Perseverance is the very hinge of all virtues.” I copied it in my diary and wrote that line in every 22 | www.exhibi onshowcase.com

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Interview

April 2021

ES. Please throw some light on the major turning points in your journey that put Meroform in further orbits one after the other. Please highlight some key projects that transpired in your journey.

MEROFORM INDIA transforms itself to Nanu Binu. There are many theories in management. One theory is to focus only on one LITMUS Meroform business where you have complete mastery. The to be leaders in the complete other one is slightly broader. Bajaj Auto believes that BTL spectrum of its operation making motor cycles is their area of excellence and Meroform, the flagship company has they stopped making scooters. Tata Motors believes created new verticals and spread wings to other BTL segments under the brand that moving people and materials from one point to name of LITMUS Meroform the other is the expertise that they have. I believe in the latter theory. Display is our expertise, whether it is in the field of exhibitions or any allied businesses. diary I kept. To this day, I believe in that and persevere for This widening of the horizon helped us find new pastures. any objectives that I set. I was also not risk averse.

Whenever a challenge came, I took it head on. When the ES. What ethos have transpired to allow the group to set company where I was in those days got the first large order, the industry standards for the customer service and I took it although resources were limited. We had to find satisfaction? solutions for the shortage of funds and we did. It turned out Nanu Binu. We called it the three tenets of Meroform to be fantastic project which changed our fortunes and also which we started following from day one. Be ethical, Be gave a new and visible direction to the exhibition business transparent and have the attitude to walk that extra mile in India. with a smile. We are in the service industry and face challenges every day. But, when you are transparent with The motive was not money alone. Money is important but the client and they believe that you will walk that extra mile somehow I have always pursued excellence with fervour. and you will be ethical, things happen is a positive way.

Then quality and excellence became the hallmark of the Regarding industry standards, we can simply say that we company and whatever I did subsequently. Exhibition always tried to do the best and try to set the bar high which business was in nascent stages then and quality was an subsequently becomes industry standards. Probably, we accident. I decided to make it a rule. It was difficult but not were the ones who started employing people with higher impossible. We did not have the help of computers, IT or academic standard, tried for extensive detailing and communication facilities. Drawings were drawn by hand, planning for each project. Many times, I also wonder artwork by hand and work was more physical and crude. I whether people realise the extent of work behind every had the backdrop of technical education and experience of project. The concepts, thoughts and struggle when you try working in an industry. I tried to bring in all the to do something different and away from the oft walked management techniques and rules of productivity to path. Perhaps that struggle is what you term as industry exhibitions. To an extent, I was successful. I am using the standard. adjective as I still feel that our businesses can still adopt many practices and do better.

ES. Please share with us your major struggles and challenges encountered in those days & how did you overcome them.

Nanu Binu. First struggle was for funds. But I always kept in mind what Dhirubhai Ambani once said, “if you have a solid business plan, funds will never be difficult.” Then came phases of many challenges when the existence of the company became difficult. But as I said before, when your clients and associates trust you and support you, no challenge is insurmountable.

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Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Interview

April 2021

ES. In your previous interview you had stated that lack of low cost finance and lack of skill at every level were some of the major challenges faced by you during the start of your professional journey, how do you relate the current scenario for the entrepreneurs with the challenges faced by you earlier?

Nanu Binu. Finance has become much more easier than when I started. At last, Banks now know that exhibitions and events is a business with a good return and they have started backing our business. As far as skill is concerned, there is a definite upward shift in recent years. But we have a long way to go before we can call ourselves ‘ global standard’. But we are very close and have bridged the gap substantially.

ES. How Meroform is gearing up to overcome the challenges posed by Covid19? How have you evolved your offerings and understanding, adapting to the future of the industry.

Nanu Binu. COVID is a circuit breaker and Black Swan. It is too early for a prophecy as to what will happen when the pandemic is over. Sometimes, I think a bit philosophically, that world will be a better place having experienced the humbling phase we are going through now. I also believe that post COVID world will be a much more efficient place with more technology interventions.

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ES. What drives you to keep going even at the time when the current scenario is striving against the stream? How do you see 2021-2022 in terms of business? When can we see the revival of our industry.

Nanu Binu. It is too early to talk about any definite date.

Every night has a day. Let us hope that the times turn for better sooner than we think.

World is cyclical. I learnt about Sine Wave in mathematics class. Sine Wave goes up and down the median in equal measure. Sometimes I think that it should have been taught is philosophy class because life is like that. Up and downs in equal measure. One should not rejoice too much when the graph is at the highest point nor despair when it hits the bottom. The cycle will repeat. I do not know when business will be as usual, but it is a matter of time. Just hang on there even when you feel that things look beyond redemption.

ES. Each and every year, we see the latest trends that are ranging from the new technology to stronger focus on the sustainability. Do you think its time that our industry reflects a stronger commitment towards environment and sustainability? What can be done to safeguard and promote sustainability in our industry so that it does'nt impact the environment in a negative way?

Nanu Binu. We are a very wasteful industry. The

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Interview

April 2021

norm here is ‘ build and burn’. I agree that we need a huge quantum jump before we can talk about sustainability.

Mind you, we alone cannot do it. We need to educate our clients also about the importance of sustainable practices and make them partners in our endeavours. Perhaps the industry associations can ponder over this subject through workshops involving clients and creative minds. Rather than calling it new technology, I would say a new mindset is required.

ES. What according to you are the challenges and the opportunities surrounding the Indian Exhibition Industry in the current age?

Nanu Binu. The challenges and opportunities come from technology. The shift from physical to virtual is an emerging challenge. The setback the virtual is facing is temporary. It will become better and better as time goes along and become a challenge to wood and aluminium.

The opportunity also lies in the same sphere. We have a wonderful opportunity to migrate to a better and eventually profitable phase. Right now an Indian exhibition is visited by a million at the max. In the virtual world, the number will be ten times. We will almost become B2C where exhibition will reach every home just as Netflix and Amazon Prime reaches every home. Maybe, industry will have its most prosperous phase when that happens and if we are prepared to change with times.

ES. What is your take on virtual events? Are exhibitions here to stay in the new normal?

Nanu Binu. I always hear of the power of a handshake and a cocktail. True ! Millions of years of herd mentality will not go away in a year or two but it may change in decades.

See how our habits about entertainment has changed.

Theatre gave way to Cinema. The cinema hall is giving way to OTT. The economics of entertainment has changed.

Now IPL or F1 can happen without audience and will remain profitable. In any of the sports, gate collection is now a fragment of the total income. So, technology is capable of making rapid changes to our behaviour.

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Exhibitions will also change. But as Broadway and Hollywood exist parallelly, both physical and virtual will continue. But I believe that technology will have the last laugh. Always think that Change is the only Constant.

ES. What learnings can we handpick from this disruption?

Is there any silver lining in this dense dark cloud?

Nanu Binu. As I said before, a cyclical wave is the norm for life and business and change is a must and is inevitable. We are a resilient society. Our history has many disruptions.

But, we always came out of it and always rebuilt ourselves. I agree that we have never come across a situation like what COVID has created. But let us believe that this will pass and good times will return. Every dark cloud has a silver lining. The silver lining is human spirit and endeavour.

ES. As IESA's Founder President, what are your recommendations & suggestions to the association, to serve better the interests of its members and that of our industry overall? What is your message to the industry ?

Nanu Binu. We have already achieved some objectives. If you look at the SOP released by GOI regarding reopening of exhibitions, you will see terms like venue owner, organiser and service provider. A few years back when service tax was introduced, we all were clubbed under ‘Mandap decorators’. Because of the activities of our Associations, the GOI now know us and also recognizes us.

ES. What is your message to the industry?

Nanu Binu. But always there is more to be done. Imparting knowledge is an inevitable part of any association. We should focus on skilling and reskilling. The knowledge of yesterday is no good for business of today. We should have more seminars, workshops and India Expo Shops. All physically and virtually. Members should be encouraged to discuss the platonic shifts happening in the business and we should think how we can avoid future shocks by building more flexible businesses. We should think together and act together. This is my message to the industry.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Event Tech

April 2021

Platforms To Skies hile physical exhibition business is still on hold in most of the continents (except China, US, Spain and parts of Asia) the digital business solutions buzzing in our heads every minute. On all events and discussion rounds we keep hearing digitalization, hybrid events, virtual event, event-platforms, digital networking solutions, MessePlus, FutureX etc.. name it - our industry was very busy trying out new tech products like never before.

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One year in the pandemic its time to summarize what happened to the various experiments:

each of them almost 8 years in the market. Grip headquartered in London, Swapcard in France and Jublia in Singapore 3 companies had a head start 8 years ago and came from small start ups to global players. While Grip and Swapcard historically came from an event app, Jublia started from a web-based solution. All 3 of them are working with more or less sophisticated AI algorithm which allowed them to grow their clientele not only into event organisers but also to associations, PR companies, big corporations as well as universities and schools. Grip and Swacpard received venture capital in the meantime to boost their global outreach and engagement while Jublia is still in the hand of its original 3 owners.

In China - Tencent and other groups announced virtual shows for Spring/Summer 2020. After only one edition companies realized that it wasnt successful and so most of the shows are not talking about hybrids or digital editions anymore and pushing full speed for physical meetings. Similar to other Asian nations - while virtual and hybrid show launches were celebrated in 2020 the tides have changed and ITB Now only welcomed 30% of its original attendance virtually. In general the big organisers report an attendance of 20-30% of their physical trade shows. Very often real B2B transactions are not possible because people want to see and shake hands their clients before signing a deal.

Very often this third of exhibitors and visitors are more interested in what is going on within the industry, latest innovations and trends. Hybrid and virtual events became very educational and networking focussed while the real transactions are not taking place. This is a good news for physical event organizers because they can expect a very quick return of old glory as audiences are thriving to meet again in person.

Venture Capital was the reason why eventplatforms valuations are growing to the skies these days. Hubilo announced a 24 million capital injection from a venture capital company in India and many others platforms are equally receiving very high valuations of above 20 from venture capital seed investors. Currently there are around 10 global event platforms with an annual turnover between 2.5 - 12.5m USD. Together we are talking about roughly a market size of 100 million turnover. It is expected that we will see some consolidation on the market and that the increased prices for event platforms will reach beyond skies.

Some large exhibition organisers might be opting to work with one of these platforms exclusively while others might use different platforms for different events. Since not all events have the same level of engagement or B2B or B2C it is important that event platform are amoeboid.

On the event platform side we have seen a mushrooming of companies all over the globe. Traditionally Grip, Swapcard and Jublia are the longest in the market with

We have also seen cases particular in Germany and Italy where ready made AI from market leaders are less of interest and that exhibition

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organisers IT divisions partner with start ups or even software developers. In particular Corussoft - a small software programmer from Berlin - has been very successful to attract most of the German Messe companies to host their shows although Corussoft has only little expertise in Eventplatforms and AI for matchmaking as such. Corussoft came from a APP and software programming background. The obvious beauty for many state owned exhibition companies in Europe is they can combine programming houses with their own heavy IT infrastructure. However this is completely against the global trend and might be a dead end.

The future for eventplatforms for 2021 at least will be good but as soon as physical events will be full on the bubbles from the sky might also fall and only a few credible companies might be left. The market size suggests that within 3 years we will have 23 large players globally each of them able to achieve 50m USD turnover by 2025.

The question will be will organizers want a piece of the sky?

Written By Bjoern Kempe, CEO ExposAsia

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Event Tech

April 2021

DigiTech ASEAN Thailand 2021– Connecting With The Global Tech And Digital Community

igiTech ASEAN Thailand 2021, an international exhibition and conference serving to connect with the global tech and digital community, will take place from 24th to 26th November 2021 at IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Centre, Bangkok, Thailand.

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DigiTech ASEAN Thailand 2021 is organized by IMPACT Exhibition Management Co., Ltd in collaboration with key technology stakeholders from the government and private sectors. This

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event is a key industry platform and gathering place for over 200 international and local Thai companies to present their latest digital solutions and tech innovations to a targeted audience seeking answers to support their digital transformation strategies.

DigiTech ASEAN Thailand 2021 will present the latest tech and digital trends covering sectors such as enterprise software for business, artificial intelligence, cyber security, e-commerce, digital marketing, data & cloud, smart solutions & IoT, and 5G technology.

Over 5000 attendees from companies for all sizes, including corporations and SMEs, government organizations and agencies, start-ups and many more, are attending this all-important 3-day international tech and digital event.

The digital economy is an important driver for Thailand's national 4.0 agenda.

Ms. Atcharin Pattanapanchai, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society said. “Thailand's

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Event Tech

April 2021

Internet penetration is amongst the highest in ASEAN, with over 52 million users or 75% of its population. Mobile and broadband subscriptions are at 187% and 108% respectively. In addition to developing our digital network infrastructure to support connectivity with high-speed internet coverage nationwide, we are also advocating the use of big data to improve our digital capabilities. Hence, we see DigiTech ASEAN Thailand as an important platform to pursue our digital economy strategies, in line with Thailand's national 4.0 agenda.”

The progress of digital transformations has accelerated across all facet of life, from business to individual level. This has led to growing importance of digital skills and capability amongst the workforce. On this matter, Professor Sirirurg Songsivilai, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation said “As Thailand embarks on an innovationbased economy, it is important that our

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workforce be equipped with the necessary competencies. We are looking forward to DigiTech ASEAN Thailand that will allow us to engage and conduct dialogues with all stakeholders to chart our capability development strategies that can fulfill the needs of Thailand's 4.0 digital economy and society over the next decade”.

DigiTech ASEAN Thailand is organized in an emerging market environment where ASEAN's internet economy is forecasted to reach US$240 billion by 2025. Digital economy sectors such as 5G, IoT, Cloud and AI are expected to contribute 30% to Thailand's GDP by 2030, and by then, 95% of all jobs in Thailand will have undergone some forms of digital transformation.

Ms. Peerayaphan Pongsanam, Assistant Senior Project Manager, IMPACT Exhibition Management Co., Ltd. said “To address these rapid digital trends, we joined forces with government and media partners to position DigiTech

ASEAN Thailand as the key regional platform that connects with the global tech and digital community”.

Government organisations and media partners collaborating with IMPACT include the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, Digital Economy Promotion Agency (DEPA), National Innovation Agency (NIA), and the popular local digital media platform, Tech Talk Thai.

In addition to the exhibition taking place in November, there will be a series of interactive conferences, workshops, networking events, webinars, certification courses to be conducted during preevent, during the event and post event all -year -round. These include activities such as Tech & Digital Talks, Main conference, Industry certified conferences, Tech & Digital workshops, Boot Camps, Technology presentations, and business matching programme, all aim at connecting with the global tech and digital community all year- round.

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Insights

April 2021

A Message From UFI President

Anbu Varathan

ormally at this time of year, the show season reaches one of the annual peaks around the world.

Yet, one year into the COVID pandemic, venues around the world are serving as vaccination centres and emergency hospitals still in many cases, rather than welcoming show attendees.

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At UFI, we are tracking the recovery of exhibitions and business events. Where shows have taken place, exhibitors and visitors have expressed their satisfaction with attending shows, as well as reporting good business. Confidence remains the key to reassuring customers and visitors that business events can be operated in a controlled environment, whilst adhering to local regulations and policies, and minimising associated health risks. Early indicators from events that have successfully taken place around the

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world sustain this argument. And to support the re-opening of events and the wider exhibition industry, the third edition of the Good Practice Guide: Addressing COVID-19 Requirements for Re-Opening Business Events is now available. The report produced jointly by AIPC, ICCA and UFI, is a wonderful example of collaboration. And this is the power of our industry, to collaborate so that we can meet again!

UFI is witnessing the need and request from the industry to meet again. We are thrilled to offer the MEA Conference as an in-person event in Dubai on May 26!

In line with UFI’s mission and responsibility to connect and bring together the exhibition industry community, the association is committed to holding regional conferences this spring.

2021 will be a pivotal year for the global exhibition industry. We know our industry will recover thanks to a combination of on-site physical meetings and online digital tools, but “how” we do this will be the question going forward.

How the future of our industry looks will be a key focus of the UFI MEA Conference. I look forward to seeing you face-to-face in Dubai. I can’t wait to meet leading players from the Middle East and Africa region and beyond, to network, exchange ideas and forge new partnerships.

Over the years, UFI Regional Conferences have become highly rated and relevant gatherings for learning and networking in the regions. Join us and don’t miss your chance to connect online and in-person with event professionals from all over the world!

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Insights

April 2021

Wri en By

Ashley Roberts General Manager at Omanexpo

How Has COVID-19 Changed The Events Industry?

Event businesses were quick to introduce or almost a year, the COVID-19 new digital offerings but in many cases has significantly F epidemic without a robust understanding of the affected the events industry across the globe. Jobs and businesses have been lost, some events will never return and unfortunately the turmoil seems likely to continue in the shortterm. However, we are now starting to see a way out of the current status quo with mass vaccination programmes fast gaining pace, and the ever-growing realisation that draconian restrictions are unsustainable. Some may argue that the events industry has changed for ever but only time will reveal if that is true. What we must realise is that change has occurred and with change comes opportunities.

So, what has changed?

Digitalisation We are all quite familiar with the term

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‘digital pivot’ but perhaps we are not all familiar with what it actual means.

‘Digital pivot’ is broad, in the context of the events industry it goes beyond the digitalisation of events, it includes company operations in a digital capacity such as remote working through to how we interact with our audiences. The largest growth area, in a digital capacity in the events industry, has been the resurgence of virtual events which is not a new concept, and which has been around since the turn of the millennium.

Another digital offering that has significantly increased are webinars, again, a connect that has been in available for many years.

needs of our audiences and the purpose of these digital offerings. We have learnt what has and can work, and importantly what role digital offerings have to play.

Digitalisation in the events industry will continue and this should be embraced.

Customer Care

Customer loyalty and a high retention rate is something that all events businesses aspire to achieve. To achieve this, it requires meaningful efforts to support clients in achieving a

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Insights

April 2021

return on investment in relation to their participation at events. The way that clients have been treated over the last year will have lasting effects,both good and bad. What is certain is that loyal customers take time to build but can be lost in an instance. Client retention is paramount and greater efforts will certainly be invested to work closer with clients to ensure that their objectives are met.The focus on supporting clients and better facilitating their participation at events is gaining more attention and this is positive for all parties.

doing, yet this is not always the case. All event professionals have had to learn and evolve over the last year, as have event businesses. It is talent that will allow events business to navigate the current economic period and to prosper into the future. Motivating, recognising and supporting both the current and future talent is intrinsically linked to the longterm success of events business and this is something that should never change.

The financial undertakings of events businesses will have been laid bare over the last year and the impact will take years to restore in many cases. Diligent financial management will be needed more than ever. Every cost should be assessed to ensure value for money and that a return on investment can be measured. Yields, something that event organisers are very familiar with, will become an even more important barometer for the financial success of events.

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Unfortunately, many events business have shed staff and although as our industry bounces back some of the lost roles may never return. Events business have had to scrutinise how their businesses are structured, what roles are essential, what roles can be combined and what will be the needs of the business in the future. In the short to mid-term event business will operate a leaner business strategy.

Accept Mistakes, Make the Right Changes and Evolve

Strategy

Talent

Identifying, valuing, and nurturing talent is something that all people managers and events businesses should always be

Personnel

Financials

Visitor Centricity

Visitors are at the core of all events.

Simply put, without visitors, there would be no events. Over the last year greater consideration and time has been applied to better understand who our visitors are and what do our events need to deliver to meet their objectives. A more comprehensive understanding of our visitors and their needs will not only mean that future events are more relevant, but this highlighted the need to communicate with our audiences beyond just the days of the event.

impact is a necessity.

The global epidemic has shown just how vulnerable events are to circumstances.

While no strategy could fully prepare any events business for the last year it is important to learn and take heed from what the events industry has endured.

Any good business should have a strategy, and this absolutely applies in the events industry. The events landscape has changed for the short to mid-term, and arguably, the long-term. Defining a strategy that not only accounts for the present challenges but allows for future

No events business could have been entirely prepared for what the last year has dealt our industry. However, there is much that we can learn from the challenges that have and will be faced.

Many of these changes will bring positive change and they can improve our industry. It is important that we work together, continue to push the boundaries, and ensure that events remain relevant.

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Insights

April 2021

The Italian Fairs Towards Re-Opening After A Year Of Emergency

Wri en By

Loredana Sar General Secretary AEFI n recent days the Italian exhibitions system has finally joined the debate about the potential re-opening of the economy.

Leaving aside issues relating to the health and safety of our country, the following considerations apply on our industry:

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1) The exhibitions industry has gone through one of the longest periods of closure of the entire Italian system: over the period 1 March 2020 to 31 March 2021, exhibition districts have only been open 53 days, resulting in a downturn of 80% over 2019 and losses in excess of 30%.

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Of this, 800 mn euro were generated directly by exhibition districts, which host 96% of international events and organise more than 50% of them, and around 300 mn euro were generated by organisers without exhibition centres, employing around 2,500 staff. Thanks to almost 1,000 trade shows, hosting around 200,000 exhibitors and 20 million visitors, the Italian industry is the fourth largest internationally, after the United States, China and Germany, and the second largest in Europe.

2) Large investments have been made to upgrade exhibition facilities for

compliance with health regulations, which are set out in the AEFI regulations for the containment of COVID-19 at exhibitions and trade shows passed by the TSC at the 16 June 2020 meeting.

Our Association has reinforced its content to benefit visitors and users, and has upgraded it with a view to the reopening of business, having forwarded it to the TSC on 15 February 2021.

3) The industry needs continuity and long time schedules for organisation: major investments are needed in management

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Insights

April 2021

and publicity to involve exhibitors and visitors alike, who both come from all around the world. Even the creation of digital events, designed to maintain contact with the market, has required a major effort.

4) Exhibitions are not events which can be held at any time: they have a fixed international schedule designed to fit in with the production and consumption cycles typical of their target industries.

An exhibition is scheduled to suit the needs of its target market, and this is done in coordination with analogous events worldwide. Changing its date not only means reprogramming the work of its organiser, but also risks compromising the normal way in which companies launch their new products and services on the market.

An exhibition which cannot be held according to its customary calendar cannot be made up for, and an exhibition which misses two successive dates risks disappearing completely from the marketplace.

5) Exhibitions generate high direct spinoff benefits - fitting, catering and all the other services offered at the exhibition district - and even higher indirect spinoff: hotels, restaurants, taxis and businesses throughout the city, making exhibitions essential to the local economy. What is more, the quality of these spin-offs is also essential: only highly skilled fitters will create unique booths, and only high quality restaurants and hotels will contribute to an unforgettable experience and drive up interest in the event. Worldwide, ever more exhibitions are situated in business and cultural centres, also linked to events organised here. The centres of attraction of our exhibitions are our cities and their businesses.

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6) The industry's contribution to tourism is confirmed by the numbers. The 20 million visitors to Italian exhibitions are also business tourists, often accompanied by purely leisure tourists, who have not visited the country without trade shows to bring them here. When we look at individual cities, closing down exhibitions has meant losing 4,000,000 business visitors to Milan, and from 1 million to 1.5 million visitors to Bologna, Rimini/Vicenza or Rome, and the numbers are proportionally significant wherever an exhibition district and calendar of events exists.

This is why trade shows are not just drivers of the economy, but also promote the development of local areas with the business tourism that constitutes the richest segment of the tourism so sorely needed by our country to resume normality.

7) Trade shows are activators of innovation: annual events are an opportunity to meet and talk with business professionals and naturally stimulate the desire to excel over the competition. Some years ago, AEFI ran a study with Prometeia to measure the level of innovation and the patent registration, which showed that industries which have an important trade show are also those in which the number of patent registrations is highest.

8) The difficulty of the current situation is situated in a global context which has seen: Major investment in the industry in fast developing areas of the world: China, India, Arab Emirates, Turkey and the Asian “Belt and Road Area” countries in general have chosen trade shows as the preferred means of bringing their production to the world market Ÿ The re-opening of exhibitions in a Ÿ

growing number of countries and, at the very least, the identification of dates for re-opening Ÿ Large government investments to cover losses, including at the European level (Germany and Denmark are examples).

9) Digital events, which have currently replaced events which could no longer be held physically, have confirmed, thanks to the very precision and accuracy with which they have been designed, the limits of this approach compared to a conventional exhibition.

Large machines must be seen at work to enable professional visitors to understand how they might fit into their production lines; the quality of a product is different when experienced in a full-sensory, immersive way, like a trade show, rather than (merely) digitally; and this applies not just to the products on show at our big food and beverage exhibitions, but also to fashion and other trademark Made in Italy products. Strategic decisions for the purchase of services are more fluid when catalysed by that sense of trust which only open social contact can engender.

The industry is looking forward to resuming its business and demonstrate the new competencies it has acquired, in the awareness than there is no alternative to work as the source of prosperity By re-opening, Italian exhibition districts can contribute to the resumption of business for innumerable people in a vast variety of industries by reactivating entire value chains. We have the tools we need to do so, and we hope for nothing better than to put them to work at the service of our country and leave this unprecedented situation behind us as soon as possible.

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April 2021

Exhibition Highlights China's Scenic Splendor n exhibition showcasing the beauty and tourism splendor of China and highlighting its tourism trends opened in the Pudong New Area. The “Tourism Plus Theme Exhibition,” one of the city's biggest tourism events of the year, features an immersive 1,200-square-meter tourism scene via multimedia technologies, taking the audience on a journey along the 318 National Highway. People will enjoy a virtual cruise trip on the Grand Canal, take a leisure tour in China's countryside and appreciate the breathtaking scenery of snow-covered plateaus. The exhibition has around 200 exhibitors introducing tourism destinations and attractions around the country to visitors, government authorities and tourism industry insiders to brainstorm topics such as innovative developments in cultural and tourism in 2021. The exhibition runs to Saturday at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center. Songjiang District revealed its spring cultural and tourism charm with dozens of activities on the agenda during the event.

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They include a Chinese rose exhibition at Chenshan Botanical Garden, a bamboo culture festival and a camping festival at the Sheshan scenic area, and a traditional Chinese costume festival and

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an electronic music party at Shanghai Happy Valley. The cultural and tourism resources of Songjiang New City, one of the "five new cities," were highlighted.

Taizhou in Zhejiang Province showcases the city's enchanting natural beauty and profound culture and history. The city is home to two 5A national tourist attractions, the Tiantai Mountain scenic area and Shenxianju scenic area featuring hills, creeks, and waterfalls, and 17 4A national tourist attractions. Taizhou’s cultural and tourism authorities released eight routes with themes ranging from fruit picking to Tang poetry and beach resorts for Shanghai tourists. Last year, Shanghai recorded 236 million visits from domestic tourists and reaped 280.95 billion yuan (US$42.5 billion) in domestic tourism revenue.

The recovery level was 18 percent and 20 percent higher than the nation's average, said Fang Shizhong, director of the Shanghai Administration of Culture and Tourism, during the exhibition. The COVID-19 pandemic prompted the development of digital and technologydriven tourism and has changed the tourism consumption habits, he said.

"Global tourism is replaced by domestic and local tours with countryside tourism gaining popularity, significantly fueling

Shanghai's consumption market," he said.

"Private tour groups with three to five members who are usually family members are increasingly popular and tourism preference is changing from traditional sightseeing tours to in-depth and slow leisure tours," said Fang.

Meanwhile, the integration of different industries such as sports, tourism, commerce, and health has deepened, said Fang. Between 2021 and 2025, Shanghai will step up the development of red tourism, Huangpu River cruise tours and architecture-themed tourism, and beef up the construction of intelligent tourism application scenes at tourist attractions and hotels, he said. Tourism projects centering on the "five new cities," Chongming world-class ecological island and the Lingang Special Area of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone will be released to create a batch of world-class tourism resorts with cultural essence in Shanghai, Fang said.

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Leading International Gas Conference & Exhibition In South Eastern Europe To Be Held In Opatija!

he 36th International Scientific & Expert Meeting of Gas Professionals will be held from 16th to 18th of June, 2021 at the Congress Center of the Grand Hotel Adriatic in Opatija. During the three days of the event, the participation of numerous gas and energy experts, 60 distinguished lecturers and a significant number of exhibitors from more than 20 countries in Europe and the world is expected. This influential meeting of gas professionals, organized by the Croatian Gas Association, a member of IGU, and Croatian Gas Center Ltd., will cover 10 current thematic units, several interactive panel discussions and a poster session on the topics which include the entire natural gas chain, application of new technologies, as well as the crucial challenges which will determine the development of the natural gas market in the near future.

of gas produced in the United States.

Ariel Cohen, PhD, will try to answer questions whether this is the end of shale gas, what the consequences of this regulation for the North American, global and European gas industry could be and how it will affect gas prices both globally and in Europe.

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The gas industry has an important positive role to play in the global energy markets, as well as in the energy transition, so the aim of this conference is to ensure understanding and acceptance of the key role of gas and the gas industry

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in the low-carbon future. We are pleased to announce an invited lecture by Mr. Andrea Stegher, Senior Vice President of the Energy Transition Business Unit of the Italian company – Snam and future President of the International Gas Union (IGU) in the mandate from 2025 to 2028 and the current Vice President of IGU (from 2021 to 2025), who will present the future of gas and gas infrastructure with reference to the European Union.

Ariel Cohen, PhD, Senior Associate of the Atlantic Council and Director of the ITIC (International Tax and Investment Center) Energy, Growth and Security Program and founder and CEO of International Market Analysis Ltd., will hold an invited lecture on the topic of stopping drilling on the US federal land, which will significantly reduce the amount

There will also be some interesting lectures on the impact of the EU Methane Strategy on the natural gas sector, the future role of renewable gases and the readiness of existing gas systems for new gases. An important part of the upcoming conference will consist of presentations of several professional papers on the regulatory framework for gas exploration and production and new projects and incentives for investment in natural gas exploration and production.

The third thematic unit will focus on the current state and future course of development of strategic gas infrastructure in Europe such as the Trans-Adriatic pipeline, the IonianAdriatic pipeline, the newly built LNG terminal on the island of Krk and the Zlobin-Omisalj evacuation gas pipeline,

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thus giving Croatia a new, diversified supply route that provides energy stability and security of gas supply. The last-year construction of a compressor station enabled a bi-directional gas flow between Croatia and Hungary, and with the reconstruction of the Rogatec-Zabok pipeline between Croatia and Slovenia, all the conditions for the transmission of gas from LNG terminals to Central and Southeast European countries were met.

Thus, the Croatian gas transport system is integrated into European gas flows.

The LNG terminal and the ZlobinOmisalj evacuation pipeline are the most complex facilities of the gas transport system, the implementation of which has successfully been completed despite the challenges caused by the pandemic.

Within the fifth thematic unit, the development potentials of LNG terminals and their role in the future European gas infrastructure will be presented. In many interesting lectures the application of smart technologies in the gas and energy systems, innovations

and transfer technologies and their role in the gas industry will be presented.

There will also be several lectures and panel discussions on the current situation and trends on the natural gas market and future expectations. The development of sustainable transport powered by CNG, LNG and LPG will also be discussed at the conference. Within the eighth thematic unit, participants will gain an insight into the current status and potential development of the biogas use in the energy, agricultural and transport sectors. Numerous domestic and foreign experts will present papers on issues related to transport, distribution, storage and consumption in terms of efficiency and safety of the gas system. The upcoming event will also include innovations in legislation, technical regulations and rules of the profession for a safe and efficient use of gas and how they are applied in practice. Due to the great interest of energy entities, as a part of the conference program, a poster session will also be held this year, where the papers of numerous experts from

various fields of the gas and energy industry will be presented.

Along with the conference, an exhibition of gas equipment and technology will be held, where a respectable number of exhibitors from Croatia and abroad will present advanced technical solutions for the gas and energy industry. The sponsorship of the event provides companies with a unique opportunity to strengthen their position, demonstrate their expertise and new technical solutions for overcoming the challenges of the gas industry.

Targeted thematic units and distinguished speakers are the main features of the conference that brings together science, education, profession and businesses that actively participate in the gas industry. The event mobile app will be available before the opening of the meeting and social events in Opatija will ensure enough time for interactive networking and creating new business opportunities.

Facts & Figures Milipol Qatar 2021 ilipol Qatar 2021 has been held from 15 to 17 March in Doha, M welcoming 7,924 visitors and 150+ exhibitors. The Emir of Qatar, H.H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad AlThani, visited the exhibition.

The 13th edition has been a watershed event that provided a large scale business opportunities to all attendees, despite the challenging time the world is facing.

Milipol Qatar 2021 in figures Ÿ

Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ

150+ exhibitors from 17 countries (54% of new exhibitors and 51% of international companies).

7,924 visitors from 63 countries.

241 Official Delegates.

261 journalists were there to cover the event.

5 international pavilions: France, Germany, USA, United Kingdom

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and Brazil.

16 seminars featuring 16 international speakers and attracting more than 250 attendees Ÿ The total deals' value generated by the Ministry of Interior of Qatar alone reaches QR 390 million. Ÿ

Cyber Security & Cyberthreats Civil Defence Large Events Security Management

Event’s highlights Official visit of the Emir of Qatar, H.H. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad AlThani Ÿ Opening Ceremony and official visit of the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior H.E. Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani along with Ministers from Ukraine, Moldova, Pakistan, Lebanon and Iraq, and dignitaries from 30 countries. Ÿ Seminar programme with key topics: Ÿ

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April 2021

IFA Berlin Set To Take Place As A Full-scale, Real-life Event From 3 - 7 September 2021

FA Berlin, the world's leading industry event for consumer electronics and home appliances, is gearing up for a full-scale and real-life return to the exhibition halls and fairgrounds of Messe Berlin. Last year saw a deliberately small-scale “special edition” of IFA Berlin, extending the invitation-only real-life presentations and meetings with a virtual exhibition and event space. With the world on course to emerge from the pandemic, the organisers are now seeing huge interest from brands, manufacturers and retailers across all industry sectors, who want to come to Berlin and see products and innovation in action once again. IFA Berlin 2021 will take place from 3 to 7 September. Some exhibition segments are seeing unprecedented levels of interest and are already reserved by more than 80%.

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“IFA Berlin is the world's most inspiring tech event, and completely unique in its depth and breadth of showcasing the global technology industry – from startups to the biggest consumer electronics

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brands in the world,” says Martin Ecknig, CEO of Messe Berlin. “The message we hear from our industry is loud and clear: 'Tech is Back in Berlin' and ready to meet with retailers, media and consumers – safely, but in real life.”

Just like during last year's “special edition” of IFA, public health and safety is the top priority for the organisers of IFA Berlin 2021. They are in constant contact with public health authorities as they develop concepts that will ensure the safety of visitors and exhibitors alike.

“As always, keeping our visitors and exhibitors safe is our top priority. The global vaccination effort is gaining huge momentum, while tough lockdowns are finally beginning to pay off – which gives us confidence that we can invite the world to come to Berlin in September for IFA 2021,” says Jens Heithecker, IFA Executive Director and Executive Vice President of Messe Berlin. “Of course, with all our precautions to ensure everybody's good health, we don't expect IFA Berlin 2021 to set new records.

However, the trend is clear: IFA Berlin is set for a full-scale comeback, to lead our industry once more.”

Two events are IFA newcomers: Tech Up for Women - a highly innovative conference, designed by women for women, to learn from and with top female executives, researchers and experts and to establish global networks Ÿ Berlin Photo Week - a creative and spectacular reinforcement of IFA's product portfolio on the subject of imaging on the exhibition grounds in parallel with Berlin Photo Week events throughout the city

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Last year's special edition of IFA Berlin – a tightly controlled, three-day real-life event, amplified and extended by a virtual exhibition space – had 145,900 visitors onsite and online, with 1,570 industry partners participating and 10,750 journalists following the event.

The special edition attracted visitors from 100 countries and territories.

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2021 Will See The Rise Of Hybrid Events trade show with its vendor booths, demos, lunches and in-person networking opportunities.

"For the events industry, 2020 was certainly a year of trial and error," Alroy said. "We saw virtual events that enabled attendees to engage with content in their own ways, but there were still many aspects about in-person events that organizers and attendees missed—from the connections and face-to-face interactions to the excitement of grabbing your morning coffee.”

rade shows, sporting events, concerts and other live events ground to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic, but now that millions are vaccinated and companies are beginning to see light on the other side, new plans are underway to bring back events, including technology conferences and trade shows.

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when it comes to virtual events. Looking at it from the organizers' side, roughly 68% of event planners say their number one challenge in the virtual world is driving engagement and networking opportunities for their attendees.”

"The events industry went through major changes in 2020," said Alon Alroy, cofounder, CMO and CCO of Bizzabo, which provides a platform for in-person, virtual and hybrid events. "The shift to virtual events was the most notable takeaway from this past year, and it's now clear that when in-person returns, virtual events will remain a component of event programs." Alroy said that according to his company's recent Evolution of Events Report, 75% of organizers shifted their events to virtual in response to COVID19. While some events were postponed or cancelled, the majority of event planners embraced the digital space.

The ability to meet person to person over a cup of coffee or to share experiences in a room of 20 or 30 people, is lost on a video call. In fact, a significant number of workers found video calls exhausting after having to participate in them continuously throughout 2020. Jeremy N. Bailenson, a professor of communications and founder of the Virtual Human Interaction Lab at Stanford University, cited four major reasons for video call exhaustion: excessive amounts of close-up eye gaze, cognitive load, increased self-evaluation from staring at video of oneself and constraints on physical mobility. With this in mind, marketers are now planning hybrid events in 2021, with the goal of converging in-person and virtual events.

"It also became clear that both organizers and attendees are eager to resume some level of in-person events," Alroy said.

"After surveying 700 attendees, our research team noticed an increase in attendees failing to network and learn

What will a hybrid event model look like?

Most likely, a hybrid event will combine the broad reach and ability of virtual conferencing to link in distant experts and resources to a physical event like a

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This builds the case for hybrid events. It also pencils in an important role for video events in corporate IT's big data strategy.

"The virtual aspect of events will look somewhat similar to virtual events we've seen this past year but there will be key differences," Alroy said. "While event organizers will still leverage virtual event tools to stream keynotes and sessions and include interactive elements for the remote audience to engage, they will also create opportunities that cater specifically to both in-person and virtual attendees.

That means creating unique in-person experiences for events attendees, including content that can be only accessed virtually, and merging opportunities for both in-person and virtual attendees to network and interact with each other and with event content.

The key will be creating a unified, purposefully built experience for both virtual and in-person participants." Are companies ready to do this?

This year will see a lot of trial and error, too, as companies sponsoring their own events will seek out the best combinations of physical and virtual activities, with marketing, IT and outside vendors working together to make it happen.

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Questex Acquires Digital Signage Expo uestex has acquired the assets of Digital Signage Expo. It builds on the recent acquisition of LDI, which connects design, technology and production to the live audience experience, and with Questex's Technology assets including Sensors Converge, StreamTV Show and Fierce Electronics. The acquisition complements Questex's business and aligns with its growth strategy including both acquisition and organic growth in the experience economy, the company states.

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Questex CEO Paul Miller commented, "Digital Signage Expo complements our portfolio perfectly and we're excited for the opportunity to grow these properties as part of the Questex family. We hope to build upon the past success of the brand to connect suppliers with buyers across this very exciting market."

Questex, owned by MidOcean Partners,

acquired the rights to the live and digital assets including all trademarks, tradenames, websites, domain names, databases as well as customer, vendor and attendee lists. Questex will announce the goforward strategy for these assets in the near future.

The digital signage industry is booming. Digital signage technologies like LCD, LED and projection-to-display images, video, and streaming media are in a whole host of spaces including hotels, restaurants, retail stores and more, creating opportunities for suppliers in the digital signage and the digital out-of-home (OOH) advertising industries.

The global digital signage market size is predicted to grow to USD $31.71 billion

by 2025 (Grand View Research, Inc.), while the digital OOH advertising market is expected to reach $31.05 billion in 2023 Additionally, with an increased demand for connected lighting systems and the global high-end lighting market expected to reach USD $24.3 billion by 2025 (Grand View Research, Inc.), Digital Signage Expo in tandem with LDI will provide a strong platform for connecting buyers and sellers in this market.

European Sign Expo, October 2021: ‘Bringing Colour Back’

ESPA is 'Bringing Colour Back' at this year's European Sign Expo and co-located FESPA Global Print Expo, which is now scheduled to take place at the RAI exhibition centre in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, from 12 to 15 October 2021.

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This will be the first FESPA live event in Europe since May 2019, following the

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postponement of all events during 2020 and early 2021 due to the COVID pandemic. Recent research conducted among FESPA's audiences reveals a strong appetite for the live event, with 73% of respondents seeing trade shows as an essential platform for reviewing and making future product purchases. With a focus on supporting speciality print communities with sustained business recovery following the challenges of the last year, FESPA aims to deliver a COVID-safe environment that gives visitors and exhibitors the first chance to connect face-to-face in over 18 months.

European Sign Expo, the largest European exhibition for non-printed signage and visual communications, will once again be co-located with FESPA Global Print Expo, enabling brand

owners and communications professionals to explore opportunities beyond print.

Neil Felton, CEO of FESPA comments: “Our audiences have told us that they need access to hands-on product demonstrations and to participate in faceto-face meetings with multiple suppliers to support their recovery, and they see FESPA Global Print Expo as a key milestone in their forward planning.

Taking into account all information currently available to us, we're relaunching FESPA 2021 this autumn with confidence that we can offer participants a live event that takes all possible health and safety precautions, while still fulfilling their key expectations of a FESPA show as an interactive, multisensory experience.”

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April 2021

G3 Partners – AIPC, ICCA and UFI – Release Third Updated And Expanded Edition Of The Good Practice Guide: Addressing Covid-19 Requirements For Re-opening Business Events just the latest example of this continuous support.

n increasing number of markets around the world have started to re-open business events, with varying COVID-19 protocols in place. Confidence remains the key to reassuring customers and visitors that business events can be operated in a controlled environment, whilst adhering to local regulations and policies, and minimising associated health risks. Early indicators from events that have successfully taken place around the world support this argument, which will bolster the industry as more markets emerge from lockdown restrictions.

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To support the re-opening of events and the wider exhibition industry, we are pleased to announce the launch of the third edition of the Good Practice Guide: Addressing COVID-19 Requirements for Re-Opening Business Events. The report is produced jointly by AIPC, the International Association of Convention Centres, ICCA, the International Convention and Congress Association, and UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry.

Driven by their Joint Safety & Security Task Force, the three associations have been engaged in assisting their members, and the industry at large, since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, and the third edition of this key resource is

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The guide follows a series of COVID-19related publications released by the three associations, and is now being shared with the global exhibition community to support their work in creating conditions and safeguards that will enable the smooth reopening of activities, whilst observing the needs and expectations of governments and health authorities.

AIPC, ICCA and UFI stress that this guidance is just that: guidance based on examples. Specific local, regional and national health, safety, environmental, compliance and legal requirements differ vastly from country to country, from service to service and from product to product, and this guidance is not intended to represent or supplant this.

“Alongside resilience, event venues must demonstrate adaptability, agility and innovation in the learning and reapplication of insights from emerging practices as a result of COVID-19. As the global crisis and response evolves, business visit bubbles will play a significant role in allowing business exchanges and personal interactions to happen,” says Aloysius Arlando, AIPC President. “The world’s first bubbled business exchange, Connect@Changi in Singapore, is an important milestone in the progressive re-opening of Singapore’s borders and in facilitating face-to-face meetings between participants from

different countries using approved testing regimes, without the need for quarantine in Singapore. It is a showcase of the collaborative spirit and innovation amongst like-minded partners to put in place such a facility at the Singapore EXPO & MAX Atria, in less than 14 weeks. This temporary facility is a firm reminder of the role face-to-face meetings play in bridging that important human connection, which fuels economic progress.”

“With each iteration of the Good Practice Guide, we can see the difference that collaboration and knowledge-sharing make in re-starting the meetings industry.

The new insights shared by convention centres offer an invaluable perspective on re-opening in the face of the current challenges caused by the pandemic. It is vital that our industry returns to face-toface events quickly, safely and efficiently.

This update is an excellent resource for any organisation in our industry to understand the very latest innovative and adaptive approaches,” says James Rees, ICCA President.

“At UFI, we are tracking the recovery of exhibitions and business events around the world. Where shows have taken place, exhibitors and visitors have expressed their satisfaction with attending shows, as well as reporting good business. This guide is a ready reckoner for global good practices, and as a service to the entire events and exhibition industry, we are making it available for all stakeholders globally. Standing together, working together – this defines our whole sector, and, for me personally, the G3 alliance between AIPC, ICCA and UFI is a wonderful example for this power of collaboration,” says Anbu Varathan, UFI President.

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Dubai Shares Model For Recovery Of International Business Events Sector such as the Arab Association of Urology Annual Congress and MEIDAM Conference, and a strong pipeline of future events has already been confirmed.

ey leaders in the business events sector and stakeholders from across Dubai shared their experiences of restarting exhibitions, trade shows and conferences over the last six months.

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Held against the backdrop of the Museum of The Future, the Forum featured leaders from Dubai Tourism, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), Dubai Airports, Emirates, dmg events and Accor. UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, and the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) supported the event, with their global membership primed to benefit from the knowledge shared.

Since the official resumption of local events on 15 September 2020 in the emirate, followed by international events on 1 October, Dubai has played host to a number of major trade shows and exhibitions, including Gitex Technology Week and Gulfood – making it the only city in the world to successfully host two large scale international events in the last three months, each recording more than 50,000 attendees from more than 100 countries.

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According to independent research commissioned by DWTC, conducted

by GRS Explori, a world-leading research company for exhibitions, visitor attractions and large events and research partners of UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, Dubai scored extremely highly in key safety and satisfaction ratings: 96-98% of attendees consistently rated these events as providing a safe or very safe experience Ÿ 92% of attendees (both exhibitors and visitors) rated Dubai as offering the best experience in the world owing to its high safety standards, access to business opportunities and overall business experience Ÿ 89% considered Dubai as “the safest destination in the world” Ÿ Over 90% of attendees felt safe consistently across their journey travelling on Emirates (90%), arrival and departure at Dubai Airport (94%), using local transportation (96%) and their accommodation (96%) Ÿ

Dubai also played host to a number of association conferences and congresses

His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of Dubai Tourism and Dubai World Trade Centre Authority, said: “Driven by the city’s strong, decisive leadership and prudent handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dubai was not only able to reopen for international tourism ahead of its peers, but also restart the business events sector that plays a vital role in economic and knowledge development locally, regionally and globally. Working with stakeholders across the public and private sectors, we were able to create a framework that clearly demonstrated it was possible to both prioritise the health and safety of all participants and delegates, while at the same time provide platforms for showcasing new products and innovation, networking, professional development and knowledge sharing.

We look forward to building on this over the coming months with more major business events on the calendar, as we accelerate towards the hosting of Expo 2020 Dubai. We also welcome the opportunity to collaborate with other destinations and stakeholders internationally to ensure the global industry is able to restart as quickly and safely as possible.” Moderated by Scott Armstrong, Editor in Chief of Arabian Business, the Forum followed a hybrid format, with physical attendees including key tourism and business events stakeholders from across the city joining a virtual global audience of over 1,300 tourism authorities, event organisers, and venues, hospitality and tourism professionals from 62 countries.

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April 2021 keeps pace with the evolving pandemic, operating best practice, emerging research and the global (public) health response, as the industry gradually adapts and reopens for business.

Asia Pacific was the first region to emerge from national restrictions and in China, Reed Huabo Exhibition Co Ltd held its major gifts and houseware fair in Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center in June 2020.

Reed Exhibitions Japan has been able to hold hybrid events since autumn 2020, catering for professionals in sectors such as fashion, gifts, electronics, construction, cars, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, IT, marketing and agriculture. In September 2020, Lifestyle Week in Tokyo welcomed 16,817 on-site visitors to meet 283 exhibitors from across Japan for two days. The event also offered an ‘exhibitor not-present’ package in order to engage beyond borders.

Reed Exhibitions Shares Global Expertise With ATM

s restrictions start to ease across countries, Reed Exhibitions’ events globally are sharing their best practice and experience of running Covid-safe face-to-face and hybrid events, including with Arabian Travel Market (ATM).

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ATM will take place in Dubai from May 16-19. Following the physical event, there will be a digital element to cater for those unable to travel, with ATM Virtual (May 24-26). Reed Exhibitions continues to work closely with local and national governments and public health associations as part of their Global Covid-19 ‘Safety Shows’ Health and Safety strategy, launched in January 2021.

Focused on: collaboration, risk management, planning, communications and safeguarding measures, the plan

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In Thailand, Reed Tradex’s, machine tools event Metalex in Bangkok was held in November 2020. In February 2021, Reed Exhibitions Russia held two face-toface events: Aquatherm Moscow – the largest exhibition for the household and industrial equipment sectors, welcoming 9,693 industry representatives during the four-day show with 113 participants and the National Aviation Infrastructure Forum and Show NAIS 2021, which hosted 2,933 industry representatives at the physical event and more than 80

exhibitors. Reed Exhibitions events have also taken place in Turkey, Vietnam, India and Korea and in March 2021, Reed Exhibitions USA ran its first faceto-face event in Miami Beach – the JIS. Anna Dycheva-Smirnova, CEO of Reed Exhibitions UK, Russia, Turkey, Middle East and India commented: “Our commitment to the health and safety of all our customers, visitors and staff remains our number one priority. Our framework to reopen shows safely has meant that we can reopen in markets as soon as restrictions are lifted and our teams around the world are leading the way in producing excellent events that blend face to face with virtual in order to give our audiences the best possible experience."

“The feedback from our customers is that face to face events are incredibly important to them and their businesses."

“All attendees, whether physical or digital, have been keen to nurture existing business contacts and make fresh connections to put them in the best position for the post-pandemic recovery.”

Dycheva-Smirnova continued: “Our secure approach demonstrates that we are able to run Covid-19 safe and compliant shows in the countries where we are permitted and that we are fully prepared to do so in other countries as they carefully reopen."

“We are committed to providing a stimulating and engaging experience for delegates at ATM as we know how important the show is for the travel trade to look for business connections and discover information about postpandemic markets, to help prepare for the new normal.” There are more than 400 events in the Reed Exhibitions portfolio, and, despite restrictions caused

by Covid-19, the company ran 103 faceto-face events in 2020 and has organised 18 in 2021 – to date.

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April 2021

ICC Sydney Expands Broadcast And Hybrid Event Solutions With Media Studio nternational Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney) has announced the launch of its Media Studio – a dedicated permanent studio space offering broadcast recording services, live streaming and digital event solutions.

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ICC Sydney's Media Studio features green screen technology which allows for visual integration of presenters into customisable background content. The new facility and services will be delivered by the venue's expert Audio Visual and ICT teams who have executed more than 200 broadcast and hybrid events in the last 12 months including Online Retailer Fusion 2020, MEALIVE Awards, Stand Tall 2020 and ATA Live.

ICC Sydney Director of Audio Visual

Services Brian Nash said the venue is proud to expand its audio visual product suite following positive client feedback and uptake.

“We're pleased to have hosted an enormous range of hybrid and broadcast events for clients and partners over the last 12 months throughout the COVID19 pandemic, enabling organisations, industries and individuals to continue to connect during this time.

“We are always looking at ways to expand our products and services to meet client needs and following the success of the broadcast studios originally set up in the ballrooms, we are pleased to be able to provide our clients with a permanent media studio in response to

high demand for broadcast quality recording services, even as live events return.

“Together with our dedicated team of creative, skilled professionals and best in class technology, we are here to support event organisers' vision and deliver a seamless event experience, for their audience here and anywhere in the world.”

IFEMA MADRID Launches Its Leadership In Digital Business With A Renewed Brand digital and hybrid gatherings, which are giving way to smarter, more competitive and profitable events.

aking a step forward in the transformation process, IFEMA Madrid has launched its new strategy and revealed its new corporate identity. The plans include digital platforms and services and the hybridisation of its fairs adding 30% to current turnover over the next three years, adding more than 40 million euros in revenue. According to the president of the IFEMA Madrid Executive Committee, Jose Vicente de los Mozos, "today, no one questions the potential of

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They have come to satisfy a society that is changing, which, for IFEMA Madrid, means a twofold challenge: to revolutionise its business model and to lead not only in Spain but also in international markets".

In terms of turnover, this growth from the digital space could reach an annual contribution of around 40 million euros, IFEMA estimates. This new momentum has coincided with a change in corporate identity, through the design and conception of a new brand that represents the values of this powerful project for the future.

To this end, IFEMA Madrid has

committed to a thorough renovation of its image, recognising the legacy of a brand that has been part of Madrid's history and landscape over the last 30 years. "Feel the inspiration" is the new claim, the new image was produced by Brandfor agency. According to IFEMA Madrid's CEO, Eduardo López-Puertas, "IFEMA's magic lies in its ability to connect ideas and people. To generate ecosystems for innovation and development. To harmonise the intelligence, ingenuity and creativity of so many companies, people and sectors that share their talent and knowledge. A magic that we have undoubtedly embodied in the new IFEMA Madrid brand, announcing to the world our ability to continue inspiring companies and being a source of transformation".

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Global News

April 2021

Atlanta's Largest Hotel In Ages Set To Launch Construction Next Month Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Improvements will also be made to the East Plaza behind the Omni Hotel.

A year after the COVID-19 pandemic brought business travel and tourism industries to their knees, a flurry of construction around downtown Atlanta’s convention megaplex could soon start to signal optimism for the future.

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Plans the Georgia World Congress Center Authority has been discussing for the past few years—both at street level and high above—have begun to visibly materialize this week with construction of a Pedestrian Mall in place of two oneway traffic lanes. But the blockbuster news, as GWCCA officials tell Urbanize Atlanta, is that one of Atlanta’s largest hotels—and the world’s first ground-up Signia by Hilton concept—is set to break ground in April.

The Gensler-designed hotel project was on track to launch in late spring last year, just after Atlanta’s planned NCAA Final Four basketball crowds had cleared out of downtown.But then 2020 devolved into post-mid-March 2020. Per GWCCA officials, the Signia project is scheduled to open in December 2023 with roughly 1,000 rooms.

That would rank it between the fifth largest hotel in Atlanta (Omni Atlanta

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Hotel: 1,038 rooms) and the current sixth (Sheraton Atlanta Hotel: 749 rooms). GWCCA spokesperson Holly Richmond said further details on the hotel will be released soon.

Earlier plans had called for about 30 stories, which would rank the building among the tallest all-hotel structures in Atlanta. The Signia would be the most visible part of the GWCCA’s 2020 Vision master plan, a sweeping campus redo.

Rising over the Home Depot Backyard and Northside Drive, it's planned to link with the GWCC by way of Building C at the Georgia Ballroom level.

The Pedestrian Mall is expected to be completed across two phases and fully open by Christmastime.

Just south of the pedestrian expansion, an $18-million transportation depot is also scheduled to begin construction next month as a hub for dedicated bus and ride-share options serving the area. That aspect is scheduled to finish in April next year, and officials believe it will help relieve congestion in the Marietta Street corridor and improve general traffic conditions in the district.

Meanwhile, between existing convention halls and State Farm Arena, Manhattan Construction Company broke ground in recent days on a $15-million Pedestrian Mall project that will consume traffic lanes in order to boost the experience of people on foot in the area. The goal is to create a much wider, safer passageway for pedestrians from Centennial Olympic Park, through the GWCC campus, to the foot of the Signia hotel and

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April 2021

TCEB Launches 'MICE Winnovation' To Give MICE Entrepreneurs A Ready Suite Of Tech Solutions And All-round Support To Go Digital will unlock the resources built up under our 'Thailand's MICE Startup' programme since 2018. We have witnessed the co-creation of numerous technology solutions from the programme and will continue to support our MICE entrepreneurs to future-proof their businesses through innovation, while creating trade opportunities for startups and tech firms" he said.

'MICE Winnovation' is made up of four components: MICE Innovation Catalog – an online innovation and technology databank listing products and services for pre-event, onsite, and post-event management Ÿ Technomart – a business-matching platform for MICE entrepreneurs and startups throughout Thailand Ÿ Inno-Voucher – a funding scheme to promote innovation implementation Ÿ Digital Literacy for MICE – an initiative to encourage MICE entrepreneurs to attend online or offline workshops where they can exchange ideas with experts to advance their digitalisation strategy.

TCEB is set to launch a quarterly podcast in 2021 to help MICE professionals stay abreast of relevant technology and trends. Ÿ

hailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) has launched 'MICE Innovation, Winning with the Innovation' to offer enhanced support for Thai MICE entrepreneurs to source and implement innovation in all aspects of event management. The goal is to ensure business continuity and long-term competitiveness of Thailand's MICE industry. It is an expanded version of the bureau's MICE innovation incubation programme 'Thailand's MICE Startup' starting in 2018, which has so far involved 37 successful startups and tech firms and the resources and experiences of which have been consolidated for the newly launched project.

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At the launch of 'MICE Winnovation', 29 tech firms showcased their products and services to 126 trade visitors representing convention venues, hotels, event organisers, travel agents, trade associations, and education institutions.

Their products and services included software for monitoring visitor traffic, face recognition cameras, robots, ondemand workforce, and livestreaming services. Technomart, the business-

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matching segment of the day's programme, gave MICE entrepreneurs an opportunity to meet a select pool of potential technology partners who are familiar with the particular requirements of MICE. A total of 101 businessmatching meetings were held onsite while 51 more were conducted online.

Some of the online meetings took place as a result of searches made by attendees on TCEB's online MICE Innovation Catalog.

To spur adoption of MICE technologies, TCEB is extending funding support in the form of Inno-Vouchers. These vouchers can be used by organisers of domestic and international exhibitions, international conventions, and festivals to offset their investment in new digital solutions. TCEB President, Mr Chiruit Isarangkun Na Ayuthaya, said the 'MICE Winnovation' project will enable Thai entrepreneurs to take concrete steps to embrace digital innovation in the face of a fast-shifting business landscape.

"Implementing innovation is one of the four pillars of TCEB's Operational Plan for 2021 to maintain Thailand's competitiveness. 'MICE Winnovation'

‘MICE Innovation, Winning with the Innovation' is a collaboration between TCEB and the following partners: Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa), National Innovation Agency (NIA), National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Thai Exhibition Association (TEA), Thailand Incentive and Convention Association (TICA), and Thai International Events and Festivals Trade Association (TIEFA).

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Global News

April 2021

Belarus' Exposition Opens At Industrial Expo In Uzbekistan development - a 65012K dump truck that uses natural gas as an engine fuel.

he international industrial trade fair “Innoprom. Big Industrial Week in Uzbekistan” kicked off in Tashkent on 5 April. Taking part in the fair are 23 Belarusian enterprises, BelTA learned from the exhibition organizing company BelInterExpo of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Uzbekistan is hosting this event for the first time. It is the continuation of the Innoprom fair traditionally held in Russia's Yekaterinburg.

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The company NIVA-Holding presented an SBSH drilling rig with an electric and diesel engine, handling and mining equipment. Belkommunmash displays an electric bus with a daily run of up to 300 km and a low-floor tram meant for tram lines with a rail gauge of 1524 mm and a possibility of an autonomous run. Tires for cars, city and suburban buses, as well as for agricultural machinery and tractors were presented by Belshina.

“The Industrial Week in Uzbekistan is the largest event in the country after the break caused by the pandemic. The number of participants is big enough to fill all four pavilions of Uzexpocentre in Tashkent,” BelInterExpo noted. Taking part in the expo are more than 200 companies from Armenia, Belarus, Germany, Italy, China, Korea, Russia, Turkey, Uzbekistan, France, Czech Republic, Japan, and other countries.

Government officials of the EAEU member states took part in the main strategic session of the event “Global Industrial Production in Search of Growth Drivers”. Among them are Sardor Umurzakov, Deputy Prime Minister for Investments and Foreign Economic Relations - Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan's Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar, Member of the Board (Minister) for Industry and Agroindustrial Complex of the Eurasian Economic Commission Artak Kamalyan, Belarus Industry Minister Piotr Parkhomchik, Tajikistan's Minister of Industry and New Technologies Sherali Kabir, Russia's Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov, Kyrgyzstan's Minister of Energy and Industry Kubanychbek Turdubaev

representatives of government agencies and business communities from Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The overall number of participants is expected to exceed 8,000.

The expo will stay open until 7 April.

The opening ceremony of the Belarusian national exposition Made in Belarus took place on 5 April. Taking part in the ceremony was Belarus Industry Minister Piotr Parkhomchik. The exposition features products of mechanical engineering, metallurgy, chemical industry, pharmaceutical industry, as well as medical equipment, new R&D solutions and consumer goods. BELAZ is one of the exhibitors.

The exhibition is attended by

The Belarusian industry giant showcases its new products and solutions. Minsk Automobile Plant demonstrates its latest

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The National Academy of Sciences of Belarus showcases the latest research outcomes in the field of health and medicine, materials science and agricultural mechanization. Among the exhibits is equipment to treat respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in people diagnosed with COVID-19. It was developed by the Institute of Physiology of the National Academy of Sciences and is the CIS only equipment of this kind. The Scientific Research Center for Materials Science brought to view products based on graphene, composites, electronic ceramics and electromagnetic shields, as well as products made from artificially grown emeralds.

AMKODOR exhibits backhoe loaders, a universal loader and an electric platform truck. Minsk Tractor Works showcases new machines, including tractors with upgraded cabins and tractors for tropical countries. Minsk Motor Plant demonstrates a multi-purpose threecylinder diesel engine. Products of other Belarusian companies went on display, too. The national exposition Made in Belarus was organized by the exhibition organizing company BelInterExpo of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

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Global News

April 2021

Sonia Thomas (Ex UFI Chief Operating Officer) To Join Jwc As Senior Consultant onia Thomas, ex-Chief Operations Officer of UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, will join jwc GmbH as senior consultant. Sonia, who has been part of the UFI team between 2006 and 2021, will join jwc GmbH, led by UFI past President Jochen Witt, from 1st May 2021 onwards.

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jwc is a leading consulting firm for the global exhibition and conference industry with offices in Cologne, Germany, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, China. Jochen Witt, previously President & CEO of Koelnmesse, founded the organization in 2008, an organization that is based on four core values: partnership (working with, not for clients), excellence (in terms of quality, professionalism, and responsiveness), client success (customer centricity, focus on client needs) and

value creation (tangible, concrete results).

Jochen, President and CEO of jwc, comments: “We are extremely happy to welcome Sonia as our new team member. It is of highest importance for our organization to work with people who have the right fit in personality, professionalism and industry know-how.

Sonia brings all of this and much more to our team. Sonia Thomas is delighted at being part of jwc: “I had the pleasure of working closely with Jochen when he was UFI President in 2007: We share the same values and work ethic. I have also had the pleasure of working with Gerd Weber and Jimé Essink, the other two members of the jwc Board.

I am delighted to remain part of this great industry - the exhibition industry and will use my know-how and extended experience for the benefit of our jwc

clients. Our industry is on the eve of recovery, and there is much to do to assist our clients as they embark on the road to a new form of normality”. Sonia Thomas has the equivalent of a master’s degree in team coaching (and is also certified in executive coaching), and an honours degree in hospitality management. She is also a part-time teacher at the renowned Dauphine University in Paris, and a team coach for the Master’s in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the HEC Business School in Paris.

EDC To Take Place In May, With New Safety Measures

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ace up those dancing shoes: the Electric Daisy Carnival is officially on as scheduled.

One of the first major music festivals to take place since the coronavirus outbreak, the three-day electronic dance music marathon will take place as planned on May 21-23 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway after being previously postponed twice last year. “We are moving forward as planned & will be

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working closely with local & state officials to make the show as safe as possible,” EDC founder Pasquale Rotella wrote in an Instagram post breaking the news.

“You can expect the full EDC experience with no details spared.”

There will be a host of new safety measures, however, to combat any potential COVID-19 concerns.

In a 37-page proposal submitted to the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, Rotella outlined a series of measures intended to keep the coronavirus at bay.

Every attendee and staff member will have to download a health pass mobile app prior to entry, which will allow the user to link either their vaccination record or lab test results to demonstrate

they have been vaccinated or tested negative for COVID-19.

Masks will be mandated and the use of COVID-19 scent-detection dogs is being considered, among other safety provisions. The line-up will announced soon, and anyone with tickets unable to attend can transfer their passes to next year’s festival.

Event organizers are expecting 180,000 attendees nightly, which represents 90 percent of their approved capacity of 200,000 a day. “We’re ready to spread our wings & embrace our community who we miss so much,” Rotella wrote.

“We know there may be challenges in front of us, which we accept & do our best to overcome.”

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April 2021

bauma To Be Postponed To October 2022 auma - the World's Leading Trade Fair for Construction Machinery, Building Material Machines, Mining Machines, Construction Vehicles and Construction Equipment - is postponed to autumn 2022. That is the result of many discussions between Messe München and top industry representatives as well as the Advisory Board. New date is October 24–30, 2022.

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Initially, bauma was to be held from April 04 to 10, 2022. Despite the pandemic, both the industry's response and the booking level was very high.

However, in numerous discussions with customers, there was a growing recognition that the April date involved too many uncertainties in view of the global pandemic. Especially global exhibitors, who expect customers from all over the world to attend bauma and make correspondingly high investments in stand construction, logistics and hotel capacity, advocated a postponement.

With this decision, exhibitors and visitors now have clarity and a secure planning basis, emphasizes Klaus Dittrich, Chairman and CEO of Messe München: “The decision to postpone bauma was

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not an easy one for us, of course. But we had to make it now, before the exhibitors start planning their participation in the trade show and make corresponding investments.

Unfortunately, despite the vaccination campaign that has been launched around the world, it is not yet possible to predict when the pandemic will be largely under control and unlimited worldwide travel will be possible again. This makes participation difficult to plan and calculate for both exhibitors and visitors.

Under these circumstances, we would not have been able to fulfill our central promise that bauma, the world's leading trade fair, represents the entire spectrum of the industry and generate international reach like no other comparable event. After all, bauma's last edition welcomed participants from over 200 countries around the world. Hence, the decision is consistent and logical.”

face-to-face event, augmented and expanded by digital offerings. “This allows customers from all over the world to participate in bauma, even if they can't or don't want to travel to Munich,” explains Klaus Dittrich. In consultation with the industry, the most important industry topics have already been defined for bauma 2022. Reflecting the megatrends of digitalization and sustainability, bauma 2022 will focus on the following topics: The road to zero emissions Digital construction site Construction methods and materials of tomorrow Ÿ The road to autonomous machines Ÿ Mining—sustainable, efficient, reliable Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ

Regardless of the postponement, the technical and organizational planning for bauma 2022 continues. The core of bauma 2022 will be the

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April 2021

Trade Show Organisers And Associations Join Forces To Create Safe, Successful Platforms For Economic Recovery And Reconnection s global economies look for opportunities to rebuild business in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, exhibition organisers 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 collaborators’ approach. As industries ranging from manufacturing to healthcare, aviation, agriculture, maritime and many others, look for opportunities to recover following devastating economic hardship, the exhibitions industry is dedicated to supporting commerce and connection by providing safe environments to network and do business.

global communities they serve.

Most notably, many of the industry’s organisers and associations joined forces last year 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.

This coalition, which is led by the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, UFI, organiser of Global Exhibitions Day (GED on 2 June 2021), and important industry associations such as SISO, as well as the world’s leading exhibitions organisers Clarion Events, Comexposium, Diversified Communications, Emerald, Informa Markets, Reed Exhibitions (RX) and Tarsus, are joining forces as their customers are signalling a desire to return to live event experiences.

Between the leading global organisers, they have hosted resoundingly successful trade shows for the real estate, yachting, fashion and beauty, travel, hospitality and jewellery sectors, among others, which include: US-based Palm Beach International Boat Show and Surf Expo in Florida, and JIS in Miami Beach, as well as Cityscape Dubai and Egypt editions, PROJECT Tokyo and Fashion Week Tokyo, both in Japan, SATTE in India, and Hotelex, China Beauty Expo, Music China, Hometex and many more in mainland China, all under the All Secure guidelines with many exceeding expectations in terms of attendance.

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“Exhibitions and business events are the fastest of all fast tracks to drive economic recovery after the pandemic,” says Kai Hattendorf, Managing Director & CEO – UFI. “Especially small and medium-sized enterprises rely on these marketplaces to drive their sales. As an industry, we have systems and processes in place to provide safe platforms for face-to-face trading.”

While this expansive global group is collaborating for the first time, many of the leading exhibitions organisers, typically competitors, have been finding meaningful ways to collaborate and combine resources for the benefit of the

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“Our platforms help build and grow global industries,” says Charlie McCurdy, CEO – Informa Markets. “They serve an important role in relationship building, discovering innovation and revenuedriving for the communities they serve.

This year, our support in re-invigorating hard-hit communities is more important than ever. Our communities are ready to return to the show floor, and it’s our responsibility to ensure they feel confident that our platforms value their success and safety in equal measure.”

Hugh Jones, CEO – Reed Exhibitions, says: “COVID-19 has thrown into sharp relief how much we value face-to-face interaction, and how important live events are in championing innovation and driving growth for our customers and communities. We are planning meticulously for our return to in-person learning, networking and business after an unprecedented year, keeping health and safety top of mind for reassuring and productive event experiences. At the same time, we continue to extend a growing range of digital tools and remote participation opportunities for those customers who are unable to attend our events in person so that our customers can build their businesses from wherever they are.”

As cities around the globe begin to reopen, industries can feel secure that trade platforms are taking a consistent approach to safety, with local guidelines and community feedback helping guide that approach. 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, FL, between Informa Markets, Clarion and Tarsus to execute their events using the All Secure Guidelines, where onsite rapid testing of all participants proved the effectiveness of the safety plans with no infection spread.

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April 2021

Douglas Emslie, CEO – Tarsus and Chair of SISO, said: “We hear first-hand from our customers how eager they are to get back to some sense of normalcy and how essential face-to-face events are to source products, negotiate and meet suppliers. All three organisers, and our customers, were extremely pleased with the turnout and buying activity at our recent co-located fashion events. In providing a controlled and compliant environment, we believe that we have provided reassurance and confidence that live shows are a very effective and safe way to do business once again.”

“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 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.”

“We are eager to start organising live events again after a year of experiential learning. These events will still prioritise safety and will be reinforced by the virtual opportunities we learned to create,” said Renaud Hamaide, Chairman of Comexposium. “I firmly believe that live events are critical to driving economic recovery. These interactions will truly revamp individual businesses and entire industries.”

This coalition is the culmination of industry-wide collaboration around the world, for example through the recently formed Exhibitions and Conferences Alliance (ECA). Comprising eight industry associations, the advocacy coalition is dedicated to the recovery and advancement of face-to-face business events by representing the common interests of the US exhibitions and conferences industry to legislators,

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promoting the impact of the sector, and working with partners globally to maintain a favourable operating environment within the US. Under the ECA umbrella, Go LIVE Together is a campaign started by Freeman to advocate for reopening business events safely through one unified voice, which 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.

Hervé Sedky, President and CEO – Emerald, says: "The exhibitions industry has a tremendous impact on local, state and federal economies, creating a significant multiplier effect. 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. As an exhibition industry, we are united now more than ever by a common purpose: of stimulating economic growth, supporting postCOVID-19 recovery efforts, and safely reopening in-person events through our collective and diligent approach of implementing the All Secure Guidelines, and actively working with medical health experts.”

Most importantly, the coalition claims that feedback from a wide variety of industries spanning across several regions consistently proves one point – communities are eager for a return to inperson experiences. For all the organisers and associations, customer sentiment drives the majority of their decision making.

Ted Wirth, President & CEO Diversified Communications, says: “Conversations with our customers, suppliers and buyers alike have revealed the importance and unique value of meeting in-person to maintain current relationships and find new products and suppliers at events. The need for business continuity is a common theme among our audiences and, while we successfully provided alternative solutions for buyers and sellers to connect, there is no more effective way to build trust and new relationships than by meeting face to face.”

The sixth annual Global Exhibitions Day, celebrated annually, will take place this year on 2 June 2021 and recognises 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, this coalition wants to prove one thing – in-person opportunities for connection and business can happen safely and successfully, with collaboration, consistency and customer experience at the heart of the approach.

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April 2021

European Countries Show: Prospects For Trade Fair Approval Are Possible AUMA: Opening up German trade fairs could begin with model projects at regional level

he trade fair industry in Europe is gradually gaining momentum or is at least opening up prospects, for example in Spain, Great Britain and the Netherlands - but not in Germany. In Spain, the first national trade fair took place in Madrid under state-defined framework conditions. In Great Britain, an opening perspective towards June has been set and in the Netherlands model projects have been started in the area of congresses and other event formats, also with the aim of setting appropriate standards for trade fairs on the basis of the experience gained.

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In Germany, on the other hand, neither the individual federal states nor the regularly meeting Prime Minister's Conference have dealt with the prospective readmission of trade fairs after the trade fair industry was sent into the second, still ongoing lockdown at the end of October 2020. The managing

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director of AUMA - Association of the German Exhibition Industry, Jörn Holtmeier: “It is high time that German politics seriously concerned itself with how Europe's largest exhibition industry, which organizes most of the world's leading events, should get going again.

Many of these trade fairs are globally known brands, often well beyond the industry communities.

Equal trade fairs with retail Such trade fairs with participants from all over the world could certainly not take place in the next few weeks, if only because of the numerous international travel restrictions. "But now we have to start building trust again in a safe and successful trade fair", said the AUMA managing director. Regional and national trade fairs are the ideal starting point for this. They would have a manageable catchment area and could therefore be included in the model projects that have already started in some federal states.

Experience could already be gained in

the second quarter and a signal for the second half of the year could be sent.

Holtmeier: “If model projects in retail outside the food sector are possible, this must also apply to suitable trade fairs. In retail there are millions of customer contacts every day who have no relevant influence on the number of infections.

Why should it be any different in the trade fair industry, which has comprehensive health protection concepts prescribed by the federal states and which, in normal times, has about as many visitors per year as retailers per day? "

Harald Kötter Head of Public Relations

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April 2021

New Standards For MICE Sector Launched As S'pore Prepares To Hold Larger Events, Welcome Visitors ingapore has launched a new certification programme for the meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) sector for largescale events to be conducted in a safe manner.

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Event organisers, venue owners and suppliers who meet strict benchmarks and uphold best practices in areas such as hygiene and sanitisation, safe distancing and emergency management will be able to display a mark of assurance that they meet Singapore government standards, which can serve to assure global participants, such as conference attendees. The SG SafeEvents Certification, billed as a firstof-its-kind programme, was launched on Wednesday (April 7) by the the Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers (Saceos).

The certification is aimed at giving MICE players here a competitive edge as they recalibrate their business operations for a Covid-19-safe marketplace, said Saceos president Aloysius Arlando. Adherence to the national standards provides a mark of assurance to the industry and the

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global community that events organised by certified organisers and suppliers, and held at certified venues, are "recognised under the programme to be safe, and the health and well-being of all involved are managed with the utmost care and consideration", he said.

The provisional standard goes beyond current government-mandated safe management measures and complements the Singapore Tourism Board's (STB) safe business events framework, which hybrid events such as TravelRevive and Geo Connect Asia 2021 have followed. To be certified, event organisers must also have a risk management plan and use contactless technology where feasible, while venue operators must develop a routine and periodic cleaning and disinfection plan.

The programme, announced at STB's annual Tourism Industry Conference, will run for three years, after which there may be plans to use the experience gained to turn the SG SafeEvents Certification into a full-fledged Singapore standard.

Ms Jeannie Lim, assistant chief executive

of STB's policy and planning group, said the SG SafeEvent standards contribute to Singapore's post-Covid-19 reopening efforts.

"As we progressively resume larger events and welcome more overseas visitors, we must ensure that the industry is ready to implement the necessary safeguards and systems to ensure the well-being of our visitors as well as the local community," she said. In support of the MICE sector, STB will also be setting up two new offices in Brussels and San Francisco.

Announcing this during the Tourism Industry Conference, STB’s chief executive Keith Tan said that these offices would draw more business events to Singapore, by facilitating engagements with more international organisations.

For instance, organisations with offices in Brussels include the United Nations, the World Health Organisation and the World Bank. Companies in the MICE sector that wish to be certified under the provisional standard can register their interest with Saceos to attend an industry briefing in May, where more details of the certification process will be announced.

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April 2021

Global Business Prospects Continue To Be Severely Clouded: DIHK Survey lmost three quarters of German companies abroad are suffering from the canceled trade fairs.

This is the result of the current DIHK survey “Going International 2021” among around 2,400 internationally active German companies. Even one year after the start of the global coronavirus pandemic, the effects are still having a negative impact on German companies' international business. The companies cite travel restrictions as the most important burden in international business (77%), immediately followed by the canceled trade fairs (69%) .

44% are seeing less demand for products and services. As a result, only 17% of internationally active companies expect better business in the next twelve months than in the crisis year 2020, a relative majority of 27% even worse. However, the business prospects differ greatly depending on the target region. In the Chinese market, 32% of German companies expect better business, only 17% worse - a much more positive picture than in the previous year's survey.

In the eurozone, too, slightly more companies expect better (25%) than worse (19%) foreign business for 2021.

The companies surveyed see their global business prospects at a low point. Almost half have to cancel or postpone investments due to the corona pandemic,

In contrast, there is a risk of business failures in many markets in South and Central America, Africa, the Middle East and in countries in Southeastern and

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Eastern Europe such as Russia and Turkey. Likewise in Great Britain: In addition to the pandemic-related challenges, German companies also have to cope with the consequences of Brexit.

In addition to the corona pandemic, economic crisis situations and increasing trade barriers in many regions of the world will also have a negative impact on companies' international business in 2021. A total of 47% of the globally active German companies currently report increasing barriers in retail. These include, in particular, increased security requirements (53%), additional local certifications (46%), sanctions (29%) or higher tariffs (25%).

Reed Sinopharm Exhibitions Acquires Majority Stake In The China Hospital Construction Conference eed Sinopharm Exhibitions, the joint venture between Reed Exhibitions and the Sinopharm Group, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in the China Hospital Construction Conference (CHCC).

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CHCC is Asia's leading event in comprehensive and innovative solutions for Hospital Design, Build and Management. Launched in 1999, the event spans over 100,000sqm featuring over 600 exhibitors and 16 themed displays. In addition to the trade show exhibition, CHCC also produces over 80 conference sessions and offers excellent learning opportunities, knowledge sharing and information exchange for over 10,000 hospital designers and managers every year.

Commenting on the acquisition, Hugh

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Jones, CEO of Reed Exhibitions, said: “We have been very impressed by the CHCC team's continuous drive to innovate and build a broad platform for the coordinated development of the whole industry. I firmly believe that in adding the CHCC brand to Reed Sinopharm Exhibitions' health sector portfolio, we will bring our expertise in face-to-face and virtual experiences, global reach and resources, to bear on CHCC's members, stakeholders, academics and industry leaders, ensuring growth, development and value for all our partners."

Michael Cheng, CEO of Reed Exhibitions China, said: “I'm excited to welcome the CHCC team to the family and look forward to working together with Reed Sinopharm Exhibitions and our new partner to enhance this leading

show and adding value to the CHCC audience.”

The 22nd CHCC will take place at Shenzhen World Exhibition &Convention Center from 19th to 21st June, 2021. Thousands of hospital construction decision-makers and more than 800 outstanding enterprises will gather together to discuss the construction of the next generation hospitals.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Global News

April 2021

IAAPA Readies To Help Move The Attractions Industry Forward With The Return Of Three Global Expos In 2021 s the attractions industry continues to recover and look to the future, IAAPA, the global association for the attractions industry, is moving forward with plans to host its three IAAPA Expos later this year. With health and safety protocols in place, industry professionals will come together to learn, buy, and network in Shanghai, China; Barcelona, Spain; and Orlando, Florida, U.S.. To further complement this news, IAAPA also announced attendee registration is now open for IAAPA Expo Asia in Shanghai, and IAAPA Expo Europe in Barcelona.

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“This past year has been unlike any other our association, and our industry, has ever encountered,” said IAAPA President and CEO Hal McEvoy.

“Members have been looking to us to help them push the industry forward so guests around the world can safely return to the fun we are known for. The best way we can do this is by bringing the industry together for our global Expos.

No matter what stage of reopening, reemerging, or recovery members are in, they will be able to find inspiration, solutions, and new connections in Shanghai, Barcelona, and Orlando.”

IAAPA Expo Asia Since 1997, IAAPA Expo Asia has been

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the attractions industry's premier event in Asia. This year, the Expo is returning to the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC), where the event was last held in 2019. The in-person Expo will begin with IAAPA Expo Asia: 2021 Insights day on Tuesday, Aug. 10, followed by a dynamic trade show floor, additional education programs, and exclusive special events, August 11-13.

IAAPA Expo Europe Just over a month later, IAAPA Expo Europe will bring industry professionals to Barcelona. The event will take place at Fira Barcelona Gran Via across two halls. As the leisure industry's premier event in Europe, the Expo will focus on helping participants reinvent, restart, and reconnect. The conference portion of IAAPA Expo Europe, special events, and additional education programs will take place Sept. 27 – 30, with an invigorating trade show floor September 28 – 30.

IAAPA Expo IAAPA's third event, IAAPA Expo, the global attractions industry's premier event, will once again return to the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) in Orlando, Florida this November. With more than 75 planned education sessions, the conference

portion will run November 15 - 18, and the vast trade show floor will be open November 16 – 19. Attendees will also have the opportunity to attend exclusive networking events, take part in fundraisers for Give Kids The World Village, and more.

“As we plan all three shows, the health and safety of our exhibitors, attendees and team remain at the forefront of all that we do,” McEvoy continued, “The three Expo host venues are incredible partners and they are working with us to ensure we have in place the right safety measures, that meet industry standards and health guidelines.”

IAAPA has posted its current health and safety guidelines online, and will update as appropriate based on each Expo's timing, location, and guidelines from local public and health authorities.

International attractions industry leaders, decision makers, and visionaries from all segments of the industry will participate in IAAPA Expos, including manufacturers and suppliers, and the owners and operators of theme and amusement parks, water parks, family entertainment centers, zoos, aquariums, science centers, museums, resorts, and more.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Global News

April 2021

Abu Dhabi International Book Fair To Be Held At ADNEC From 23-29 May he Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi has announced that the 30th edition of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair (ADIBF) will be held from 23 to 29 May 2021. The event at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) is being organised to adhere to stringent safety precautions and measures to ensure the welfare of all visitors and participants.

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This year's ADIBF will include programmes and seminars hosted by a varied group of authors and publishers to raise awareness of the latest trends in the global publishing industry. “The Abu Dhabi International Book Fair plays a crucial role in uniting literary and publishing professionals from the region and around the world to showcase the latest trends, innovations and literary releases,” said HE Saood Al Hosani, Undersecretary of DCT Abu Dhabi.

“While last year's virtual edition featured an extensive programme of online events, we are pleased to be able to offer stakeholders and visitors a physical event once again. Our commitment to organising the 30th edition of the fair at ADNEC reinforces the readiness of Abu Dhabi to host major events while working to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all participants and visitors.”

Mouza Al Shamsi, Acting Executive Director of the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre and Director of Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, said, “This year at ADIBF, all the necessary health precautions have been taken to ensure the safety of participants and visitors. We are also pleased to announce a package of incentives for participants in this year's exhibition in support of the publishing sector. This includes the allocation of 300 grants as part of the programme 'Spotlight on Rights' in its three categories – translated paper books,

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e-books and audiobooks.”

Informa Markets, an exhibitions industry leader in creating platforms for global industries to connect and trade, has announced the latest step in its ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion. A new, global partnership with Diversity Ally, industry specialists in the diversity and inclusion space, supports Informa Markets' continued focus on creating balanced, inclusive environments for colleagues and customers alike.

The partnership will see Diversity Ally strengthen Informa Markets' diversity and inclusion practices through the development of senior management and wider colleague training programmes, and the provision of bespoke guidance and support to Informa Markets' colleague networks. Informa Markets offers targeted digital services, virtual and inperson exhibitions and actionable data solutions for a wide range of industries to connect, innovate and do business in over 40 countries. With more than 3,500 colleagues across the globe, the organisation is dedicated to promoting

fair and inclusive practices, and providing colleagues with the tools to actively work on reducing the systemic inequalities which impact the people they work with and support.

“We're very excited about the insight and expertise that working with Diversity Ally will bring into our business,” said Thomas Humphris, HR Director, Informa Markets. “This partnership will help us in our ongoing commitment to creating a more diverse and inclusive culture, that recognises talent without discrimination, and connects us closer to the customers and the communities we serve.” Diversity Ally uses a holistic blend of industry research, company data and company ecosystem engagement to help companies in the events, MICE and hospitality industry become more diverse and inclusive in their culture, people and image. Gabrielle Austen-Browne, CoFounder, Diversity Ally, said: “The events industry is poised to be a model industry when it comes to demonstrating the multiple benefits of encouraging diversity and inclusion.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Global News

April 2021

Electronica China 2021 Closes Successfully At Its 20th Anniversary

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lectronica China was successfully held in Shanghai International Expo Centre (SNIEC) on April 14-16, 2021. The show attracted 1,116 exhibitors, who presented their innovative solutions to 48,268 professional visitors on a total exhibition space of more than 60,000 square meters. The exhibition space increased by 42.5 percent compared to pre-pandemic level. At its 20th anniversary, electronica China upgraded and expanded its scale in all aspects, staging an electronic event entirely different from the previous editions to the electronics industry.

Falk Senger, Managing Director of Messe München GmbH, concluded: “I am glad to see the breakthrough of electronica China as a stand-alone event after the separation from productronica China. The growth of electronica China despite the challenging pandemic environment on the international side underlines the strength of the brand in the Chinese market. We have every reason to believe that the exhibition will bring more innovative developments in the future, strengthening its position as an important business platform.”

To reflect the development of the industry with new exhibition formats and content, electronica China introduced more applications in vertical industries.

Stephen Lu, Chief Operating Officer of Messe Muenchen Shanghai Co., Ltd., said: “I want to express my thanks to all the friends who have supported and helped electronica China in the past 20 years. We are also pleased to see electronica China and productronica China were separately held this year with great

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success. Greater exhibition space and more professional exhibition positioning will open a new chapter for the high quality and sustainable development of the exhibition. In the future, we will

further strengthen the sharing and interaction of resources between the two exhibitions, increase the expansion in key vertical areas, and create greater value and gain for exhibitors and visitors.” electronica China 2021 created the new exhibition area: electronica Automotive China. Focusing on the application of electronic technology in the automotive industry, the exhibition area builds a stage for the entire automotive electronics industry chain, bringing together research and industrial practice.

The supporting program of electronica China covers the entire range of industry related technologies such as automobile, IoT, 5G, intelligent manufacturing, medical electronics, power electronics and many others. This year, more than a dozen exciting theme forums on the cutting-edge topics of vertical industry were staged. More than 100 well-known experts and entrepreneurs from the electronics and application fields shared their insights on industry trends and policy, technology advances and solutions.

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE

Global News

April 2021

Event Industry Associations Grant Open Access To Well-being Toolkit Heads Up he Association of Event Organisers (AEO), Association of Event Venues (AEV) and the Event Supplier and Services Association (ESSA) have announced that their members' only "heads up" well-being tool kit has been made available to the public as a free resource for anyone needing help or support with their own mental health or that of colleagues, friends or family.

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This mental health toolkit, an evolving and regularly updated library of resources, advice and further help, was released in February 2020 - but only available to members of the three associations. In the light of the pandemic, and the tremendous pressure on the whole country's mental health, the associations have jointly agreed to make the popular resource freely accessible to

the public. Chair of the Cross Association Event Industry HR Group, Raj Pragji (HRD at QEII Centre) explained the decision to make the toolkit public, saying, “Mental health problems are common and widespread.

The Coronavirus pandemic has been a very stressful time for a lot of people and the last 13 months have been a testing time for all particularly managing isolation, continued uncertainty and anxiety about returning to the 'new normal'.

In the spirit of inclusion, we want to help the wider event industry professionals understand the factors that affect their mental health and to look out for the mental health of their colleagues.” Raj continued, “This tool kit was designed to help create a supportive and knowledgeable culture around mental

health. We want to encourage and embed wider positive long-term change across our industry, inside and outside of association memberships so everyone can thrive and succeed.”

The tool kit is available from the 'Resource' section of the AEO, AEV and ESSA websites.

Tokyo Motor Show Cancelled As Japan Faces Another State Of Emergency number of other prefectures that could last for about two weeks, according to media reports. For the past 67 years, the Tokyo Motor Show has been held biennially and, much like the Frankfurt Motor Show's relationship with the German automotive industry, it's a hugely important event for the Japanese domestic car market. okyo will not host its motor show this year because of the global pandemic, organisers said on Thursday, underscoring Japan's struggle to contain both a resurgent outbreak and the widening economic fallout.

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The cancellation comes as the government is expected to issue a third state of emergency for Tokyo and a

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The event is normally packed with concepts from home brands such as Toyota, Mazda and Honda. The chairperson of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Akio Toyoda, said the group felt it was difficult to provide a safe environment amid surging coronavirus cases. The show is normally held around late October to

early November.

Originally planned to take place towards the end of this year, it's the first time the Tokyo Motor Show has been cancelled since its launch in 1954, and analysts are expecting the decision will have a major impact on the local economy. The 2019 show raked in more than 1.3 million visitors from around the world.

“The Tokyo Motor show collaborates with a number of industries to envision a new future for mobility,” Toyoda added.

“It welcomes 1.3 million people in person. We don't want to hold the event online, we want to hold it in-person.

That's why we've chosen to cancel the show this time.”

Asia’s Most Comprehensive Media Pla orm For MICE