Editoriale
In Search of Lost Time
It was one of the greatest disasters in history, which to date has cost the lives of around fifteen million human beings on the planet, a low hypothesis since it is still very difficult to establish a definitive balance sheet. . No country has escaped this terrible virus, regardless of the health policies put in place.
Beyond the unfortunate victims, entire sectors of the economy have been affected more or less seriously. One of those that suffered the most was that of the salons, which were forced to close their doors for two long years, sometimes even longer. Nevertheless, thanks to prophylactic measures and an effective vaccination policy (except China) the past year has enabled the majority of them to reopen their doors, and everything suggests that unless there is a new wave of this dreadful Covid which returns to sow panic, 2023 will see a complete reopening of all indoor events on the planet. What assessment of these dark years, what consequences for the present and the future? This is what we have tried to analyze based on our diverse and varied experiences on the professional meetings we have visited.
The first observation is that trade shows are not dead, far from it. However, one could fear the worst after such a long absence. Some analysts even predicted the end of the shows, believing that the companies that exhibited on all these platforms would find alternative solutions and that visitors would be satisfied with them. This was also the case during these dark years, and this is how online meetings and conferences multiplied. We had to endure the golden age of Face time, Zoom, and other Webinars. There was no other alternative, and everyone made do with it.
However, none of these communication techniques has aroused such enthusiasm that one might think that they could replace trade fairs, far from it. If they were essential, they showed their limits.
People first
The major reason was quickly apparent. Our belonging to the human race makes us gregarious beings whose visual exchanges are an integral part of our nature. As effective as these online contacts were, it was quickly realized that we needed these physical meetings, whether in our daily lives or in our professional lives, and that trade fairs were an essential place for exchanges. Therefore, each of us involved in any commercial activity, had only one wish for the return of these dating platforms in order to be able to trade face-to-face as has existed since the dawn of time. It was therefore quickly acquired that there was a real demand for a return to the “old world”. The virtual as effective as it was quickly demonstrated its limits, nothing there that is very normal. The means offered by technology are only tools created by man, at his service.
This context of appetite for the reopening of the fairs therefore reassured the organizers, who suffered a thousand deaths while chomping at the bit without knowing who and what to count on, except for a sufficient ebb of the pandemic to hope to start again. Fortunately, this was mastered and better known to scientists, which made it possible to see that, if not completely eradicated, it could be contained and lived with by taking the appropriate precautions.
Adapt the key word
This is how, on the strength of this information, the doors of trade fairs have gradually reopened in many countries. The lucky ones were able to enjoy spectacular lulls in the attacks of the virus, while for the others, it was a bit of a wait. Still, with all the possible precautions for use, the return to a normal life was able to take place without damage, wherever professional appointments took place. Everyone has adapted to certain constraints, such as social distancing, wearing a mask, etc. Finally, it appeared that the lethality of the virus has dramatically diminished, making it little more dangerous than the flu, except for very old people or people with comorbidities.
Recovered time
Under these conditions, and despite some obstacles such as air transport and certain traffic restrictions in certain countries and not the least, the world of trade shows woke up from these nightmare years to the delight of all, organizers of course, but also exhibitors and visitors who have in all cases not shunned their pleasure of physical reunion. Each event we have visited has been a success that has always surprised the teams in charge of all these shows. Obviously the demand expressed during these endless months of confinement was indeed a reality. Nevertheless, if there is no question of tempering this shared enthusiasm, which is quite legitimate, it will still take a little time for a return to normal, especially in such a turbulent global economic context. However, this has not prevented some salons from acting almost as if nothing had happened, while others are gaining momentum more gradually, but are in phase with their progress chart. This is especially true for German platforms, but this is not surprising. These are more exposed to the vagaries of internationality, and the Chinese lock was not without consequences. Nevertheless, all of this had been largely anticipated by the organizers and the roadmap they had established was more than largely respected, even exceeded, with the most optimistic prospects for the year to come. So here is the time regained, to paraphrase the great Marcel Proust.
New type of lounges
It goes without saying, however, that the pandemic will have changed the face of professional meetings, with the appearance and generalization of what are known as hybrid shows. This is how each global offer presented at an event can be found online via dedicated websites where the buyer can find out about new products, order, restock at any time. This trend is not revolutionary, since it existed on Asian meetings, before the pandemic, as in Hong Kong, a high-tech hotspot. Above all, it has experienced an acceleration with the Covid and its consequences, and is tending to become generalized. This mix between the virtual and the real is however a real innovation for some. Be that as it may, this new phenomenon brings a real advantage, both for buyers and for exhibitors. This complementarity only offers advantages. On the very future of the typology of trade fairs, it is rumored that the slowdown in globalization will favor the rise of more local platforms. Allow us to doubt it. This discourse worked as long as the powerful China, the world's second largest economy, was double-locked. Only, this strategy not preventing the outbreak of Covid, the government has just lifted all the barriers, and everything suggests that our Chinese friends will rush to make up for lost time and given the size of their industry and their tropism for export, it's a safe bet that the Middle Kingdom will give a boost to globalization. It will just have a different shape.
So this is how we feel today, at the dawn of the year 2023. These observations come from our experience on the various and varied terrains. Perhaps we will have surprises, as the field of events is so complex and subject to so many hazards that its actors cannot control. Let's hope, however, never to live these two nightmarish years again.