Trade show organisers and associations join forces to create safe, successful platforms for economic recovery

14.04.2021

As 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. This coalition, which is led by global industry association UFI, organiser of Global Exhibitions Day (GED) – 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.

“Exhibitions and business events are the fastest of all fast tracks to drive economic recovery after the pandemic,” says Kai Hattendorf, 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 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.