Expos exposed: COVID-19 means new risks for tradeshows

Trade shows are pivotal to the window coverings industry, however, the sudden emergence of the threat from COVID-19 has forced many organisers to rapidly reevaluate their strategies. 

R+T Asia, scheduled for February 2020, was postponed then cancelled, while in the US IWCE will take place entirely online this year; IWCE Virtual roll out on July 29 and 30, 2020. Meanwhile organisers of Heimtextil in Germany in early 2021, have confirmed 95% of floorspace sold for January. Responses to the Covid19 outbreak have been varied, but what’s clear is that a totally new way of approaching major trade fixtures is required. For now, R+T Stuttgart, a key event for our industry, looks set to forge ahead next February, while organisers of other shows and their attendees are adopting a range of approaches.

R+T STUTTGART STANDS FIRM FOR NOW

Organisers have confirmed that plans for R+T Stuttgart 2021 continue apace, pending a review in August, at which point a clear recommendation will be established and published to all affected parties.

Sebastian Schmid, Department Director of Technology, Messe Stuttgart, who is responsible for all matters concerning R+T, says the challenges faced by the entire event industry can’t be underestimated. 

With the schedule for R+T 2021 essentially set, confirmed by exhibitor and industry figures, he indicates that cancelling or sending trade fairs online may not always be the best solution. 

“As trade fair organisers, we cannot take a blanket view of our trade fairs. Each project has its own parameters and success factors,” he told WFA. “These must be illuminated individually, taking into account the current situation as well as the general conditions for events.  The high degree of internationality of R+T certainly plays an important role in this. We evaluate the location and prospects for a successful trade fair together with our customers. As a service provider, it is our task to ensure a safe and successful framework. 

Overall, he says Messe Stuttgart is positive in its outlook, with the effects of the lockdown and the associated handling of the situation in recent months having shown its ability to react quickly.

“Many measures will accompany us in the future, at least as the situation demands. But we will adapt to them and they will become part of a new normality and no longer be perceived as restrictions,” he says. 

“As an exhibition company, we have the great advantage of being able to plan our events in detail. We know the distribution of visitors on the individual days of our trade fairs, the routes they take and the distances they travel. You can be sure that we will not only hold successful trade fairs in Stuttgart, but also safe trade fairs for exhibitors and visitors. In addition to established and new hygiene standards, this will mean, for example, changes to the catering facilities and a more generous layout of the hall aisles.”

THE LOCAL BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE

Australian businesses have reacted in a variety of ways to the dramatic changes to the trade show circuit, where business opportunities and information exchange form a vital offering. 

ALPHATEX INDUSTRIES

David Symons, Sales and Marketing Manager – Blind Textiles Division – Alphatex Industries, recalls that during the Heimtextil Frankfurt exhibition this past January there were few concerns surrounding COVID-19 or an understanding of things to come. 

“Several of our partners had timed their product releases around the 2020 residential and contract window covering trade show calendar and as a result of cancellations and postponements of these shows we had to work with them to find other innovative ways to launch their latest designs.”

“For the most part the various trade show organisers have been excellent in the way that they have communicated. I imagine trying to understand and predict market conditions and travel restrictions on visitors from their major markets would be a very difficult thing. R+T Asia was the first to face some hard decisions with the first date selected for the postponement only having to be revised again out to 2021, when it became clear issues surrounding traveling to China or anywhere were going to continue much longer than first predicted.”

As a textile mill it has been a conscious decision for Alpha not to display at trade shows, instead attending to support its various distribution partners with their exhibits.  “Business to business cooperation is based mostly on relationships and trust often developed over many years. Even if you have a good product at a competitive price, if the relationship is not sound it is unlikely the business will be long term. Trade fairs are a meeting place and an important chance to begin, foster and grow these relationships.”

Symons indicates that other business forums such as roadshows and the digital sphere could grow in importance as a result of COVID-19. 

“Particularly in the North American market, several of the biggest industry brands have long preferred an exclusively hosted road show format over exhibiting at trade shows. Through a roadshow they have the full attention of their customers, can choose the timing and are able to achieve greater coverage by getting to some of the more regional cities and areas.”

“During lockdown many businesses have placed more emphasis on researching product online before making purchasing decisions. As a result I am certain the benefits for those who have increased their investment in digital marketing of their products will continue into the future.”

BLINDWARE

Managing Director Grant Norton says expos such as R+T Stuttgart are likely to find the current landscape challenging. “Visiting an exhibition such as R+T Stuttgart (or Shanghai) is partly about seeing new products, but it is also significantly about re-establishing connection with the many people in your business circle. Whether it be long-time friends, customers, suppliers or peers operating within international divisions of your company, meeting people who are also traveling to the event is a critical driver of successful outcomes. If there is doubt people will come, then people are likely to think twice about taking the long trip and exposing themselves to COVID-19 and other health risks. In the end, it may even be worldwide government controls that finally determine the ability for people to travel internationally and make the show both viable and worthwhile.”

“From a personal point of view, I can confirm there are real risks associated with travel to exhibitions such as R+T Stuttgart. After the 2018 exhibition, I was forced to spend 48 hours in hospital in Doha with Viral Influenza that suddenly hit at the end of the R+T exhibition. Flu was rife in Germany that year and the hospitals were overloaded with cases. Advice from the local doctors in Doha was that if I had not called for assistance at Doha airport, I might not have survived the final leg home to Melbourne. Scary thought, but even more scary when you consider the added ferocity of COVID-19. I will be carefully weighing up the risks associated with making the trip this time around.”

OZROLL

Jack McDonald, National Sales and Marketing Manager. Ozroll Industries, confirms the company had intended on showcasing at least once this year, “but one by one the events we had enquired about were cancelled.” 

“The latest notices included revised dates for later this year, and I remember thinking some of those dates were a bit ambitious, but thankfully we seem to be coming out of the isolation period now. It might mean we have the opportunity to exhibit again during Spring and Summer.”

While the company has responded to the current situation with sales presentations and training sessions using online tools, it’s keenly looking forward to getting “back to normal,” he says. “Ozroll emphasises quality and while we do have some unique items that look good in photographs, we find that people gain a greater appreciation for our products once they have the opportunity to get hands on and see for themselves the detail of what we do.”

“We’ve exhibited at the R+T in Stuttgart since the year 2000 and we intend to be there again in 2021. The question is whether or not international borders will be open. If not then staff from our German offices will host the stand alone, but if the borders are open then we will have an Australian contingent fly across to join them.”

WILSON FABRICS

Wilson Fabrics was scheduled to exhibit at IWCE Charlotte, USA at the end of March, a show that was eventually cancelled a week before the Wilson team jumped on the plane. The company remains booked, with caveats, into exhibiting at R&T Stuttgart in February 2021. 

“While Europe seems to be re-opening its borders, we are still unsure of what international travel will mean for Australians by then. While we are hopeful that travel to Europe will be authorised, we can’t help but wonder what the implications will be. Will we need to be quarantined in Europe as well as in Australia? If that’s the case, these extra costs will make any attendance or exhibition to any fair pretty pricey and the ROI may not be worth it.”

In terms of participating in trade shows going forward, Wilson Fabrics will be much more selective. “Only trade fairs with a good ROI will be considered. Exhibiting pre-Covid-19 was already costly;  exhibiting in a world with COVID-19 means that we have to allocate extra cost, time and human resources to travel and quarantine.”

Wilson Fabrics is currently looking at innovative alternatives such as webinars and online lead generations. “Having said that, it’s also clear to us that, in our industry, every online/virtual activity has to be supported with an IRL ‘in real life’ action such as providing samples to our audience with ease. We are also lucky to work with wonderful agents abroad that can help us with face to face interaction if and when needed.”

THE SHANN GROUP

According to Managing Director Martin O’Shannassy, The Shann Group’s plans for upcoming international trade fairs have altered markedly. “Other than a February visit to customers in Fiji, no one from the company has stepped outside Australia this year and it is extremely unlikely anyone will.”

Shann, like many companies, had to adapt quickly amid multiple emails advising about delays, postponements or cancellations of exhibitions during the crisis, he says. “One local exhibition here was done online, which was interesting but, I felt, not well done. It basically took you to exhibitors’ websites and not a lot else was offered other than that a few exhibitors had a couple of ‘show specials’ on their website.

In terms of exhibiting at trade fairs in light of COVID-19 “I’m not sure, is the honest answer. Most of our exhibiting is done here in Australia (not all) and I think I’d want to read the room a little, as to whether people are willing to get back into attending exhibitions, before we’d decide to exhibit. In regards to overseas exhibiting, I think from our perspective that’s unlikely until there’s a vaccine for Covid.”

Moving forward, alternative forms of industry showcase might emerge. “If the vaccine takes a while, I’d be interested in trying some form of a serious online exhibition, not like the one mentioned earlier, where you’re simply taken to someone’s website, but one that runs for say three working days, where you perhaps have exhibitors set up their ‘manned stand’ in their showrooms with cameras and you visit via zoom.” 

COURSE SET FOR BMAA SUPER EXPO 2022

BMAA is proceeding with the planning for the 2022 Super Expo, and has booked the Gold Coast Convention Centre for 4 to 11 June 2022. The event will again be hosted in conjunction with the Specialty Textiles Association. However, Chris Nolan, chair of the Super Expo Committee, indicates it’s too early to predict exactly how the dice will fall.  

“With regard to the 2022 Super Expo, it is difficult really to forecast what the impact might be. By then, I would think that travel restrictions, at least within Australia would have been lifted, and the economy to have rebounded. The only similar event we have experienced was the 2008 financial crash. That impacted severely on the industry, but even so, the 2010 Super Expo exceeded all expectations. You may recall that this was the first held at the Gold Coast Convention Centre after the far more modest trade shows that had traditionally been hosted at the Royal Pines Resort, and the industry stepped up and supported it wholeheartedly. My impression at the time was that the exhibitors, through their substantial investment in stand space, wanted to demonstrate their commitment to the industry and its future.”

He hopes the same optimism will be demonstrated in 2022, but posits some possible “downers.” 

“First, it depends on how much the 2021 R+T Stuttgart is disrupted by COVID-19.  Historically, the new products on display there have shown up in our Super Expo eight months later, and cancellation or postponement of R+T would therefore  have a flow-on effect on Super Expo exhibitor commitment and attendance.”

“Secondly, all offerings have a lifecycle, including Super Expo. The 2019 event was again an outstanding success, with stand space sold out in record time, and great attendance. But this might have been the high point, given the effect that Corona-19 has had on face-to-face interaction, and the consequent boost to online marketing, communication, and the whole concept of product display through three dimensional digital technology. That said, people thrive on personal interaction, and one of the highlights of the Super Expo is the Gala night, which makes it one of the most unique events of its kind in the world.”