Industry News

As a significant contributor to the economic growth, recovery and transformation within Southern Africa’s construction industry, the African Construction & Totally Concrete Expo’s exceptional focus on buyer and seller engagements has cemented its place in the construction sector’s diary.

The Ticketpro Dome is excited to host a hybrid event that will bring live and digital elements together. The event is a perfect example of how innovation and creativity have changed the way in which events are presented and how thrilling that a vital sector in building our country’s infrastructure will also be laying the cornerstone for other Covid-compliant hybrid events.

From Monday 23 to Wednesday 25 August 2021, the African Construction & Totally Concrete Expo will provide live and digital access to CPD accredited workshops; important industry content; and connections for professionals to network, both online and in limited-attendee capacity. To register to attend (entrance is free), to book a stand or discuss possible sponsorship opportunities, go to www.africanconstructionexpo.com

The Ticketpro Dome looks forward to hosting a safe and successful hybrid exhibition-meeting experience, where we will connect the construction industry in Southern Africa.

Future of innovation leadership: African Smart Cities Summit

Also at The Ticketpro Dome on 23 – 25 August 2021, the 4th annual African Smart Cities Summit will explore and celebrate Africa’s progress in the smart city arena, noting major trends and challenges, while discovering the many opportunities and innovations set to advance African cities.

The summit will facilitate positive growth through strategic thought leadership and inspiring case studies. The inclusion of the Smart Cities Pavilion on the exhibition floor showcases how technology and innovative solutions can transform African cities.

Attendees will once again be able to access this summit in person or digitally and the event, as with all events hosted at the Ticketpro Dome, will be following strict safety regulations to ensure the events are can be enjoyed safely.

To register to attend, to book a stand or discuss possible sponsorship opportunities, go to https://www.africanconstructionexpo.com/african-smart-cities-summit

Ends.

The recent SITE Skills Retention in Hospitality virtual conference highlighted the radical loss of talent and experience our industry is suffering, as a direct result of COVID-19 restrictions.

On the one hand this is a terrible blow for the industry, but on the other, this opens up the doors for new talent to spread their wings and fly.  The “chicken and egg” contradiction has existed in our industry as long as memory serves:  young people entering the market need jobs but the employers are looking for experience.  What ended up happening is that very little new talent has entered the market and now we are faced with an ageing segment with all the experience and very little, if any, succession planning.

One good thing about the events and exhibitions industry is that we have a natural resilience.  As event planners, hotel managers, banqueting coordinators, front office and AV people, we are faced with challenges on a daily basis.  Changing or adapting plans at a moment’s notice is part of our daily activities; which has made us experts at crisis management and problem solving.

So…let’s solve this problem.  As it is, our global industry is facing a massive brain drain and teams at all levels have had to adapt and upskill.  We put a brand new meaning to multi-tasking, as hotel sales managers are cleaning rooms and serving coffee at breakfast, amongst other tasks!

We have already acknowledged that our industry will not be operating at full velocity when events and groups return.  Now is the time to find the talent out there and start preparing them for the next phase.  There are many event and hotel management students in their final year of study but with minimal practical experience available to them at the moment.  Let’s work together to find the funding and start creating small training events.  This will also be an opportunity for the seasoned out-of-work experts to pass on their skills end experiences while sponsors fund mentorship programmes.

Several associations within the SA Events Council have successful youth development programmes including SACIA (South African Communications Industries Association).  SACIA has established eight on-campus student chapters at university level, encouraging members to provide mentorship and work-integrated learning opportunities to enhance the students’ academic learning experience.  In addition, they’ve formed an alliance with the South Africa Film Academy based in Cape Town – again, to enhance practical work experience and assist students in earning a SAQA-recognised professional designation that is aligned with their skills and competence.  Sadly, all of this has slowed down as a result of COVID-19 restrictions.

SAACI (Southern African Association for the Conference Industry) has actively worked on developing young graduates within the MICE sector by initiating a branch-level congress in the Western Cape. This congress is aimed at educating the Events Management students of CPUT with information on the type of work the industry does and how to go about planning a successful conference, exhibition, meeting or event.

SAACI also plans on establishing a national youth brand and the launch for this is anticipated to take place during the Annual SAACI National Congress on 19-20 May 2021. The youth brand will focus on the resources required by students and graduates to grow their careers, study paths and the sustainability of the industry’s future by providing necessary insight into the industry with expert guidance.

Insight initiatives will include a separate National Youth Committee with participants from around the country, workshops and knowledge-sharing initiatives with networking opportunities dedicated to the youth as well as an online students / youth portal accessible from the main SAACI website.

SAACI is inviting all academic institutions with business-events-related course offerings, to contact their National Office on members@saaci.org for information on how to get involved in these exciting programs.

SITE Africa has also recently launched their first Young Leader committee.  The committee’s core objective is to network within the MICE industry across the continent, share knowledge and experiences and drive education opportunities.  Connecting with like-minded future leaders promises to yield some innovative ideas, strategies and future potential for this group, which has shown strong vision in ensuring that the current leading professionals of the sector are also engaged and included to allow for a mentorship program within the structure.

The future of our industry lies in the hands of the next generation, but the success of this drive lies firmly in the hands of those of us involved in this sector right now. Let’s take this to the next level and ensure that our new young leaders are fully equipped to take over the reins and lead us into the next chapter.

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By Tes Proos

Confidence starts with the individual. Our industry needs key individuals at decision making level to #TrustUS as we build recovery for the business events and exhibition industry. What has not passed is the uncertainty, severe limitations and restrictions that are compromising our industry’s survival and pathway to recovery.

The business conditions remain challenging, and in some cases, they have worsened for 2021. The industry still faces critical challenges over the next 6-10 months whilst the market regains confidence to plan, deliver, book, and pay to attend events across the country.

Investment in ongoing, targeted support is needed as an urgent priority to ensure we can sustain our sector and retain our event professionals into the future.

We are not calling for hand-outs, but for government and corporate South Africa to book, meet in-person and do so regularly, on a small basis to start the rebuild towards recovery.

For the industry to return to its proven position as a major economic driver for the South African economy, short term targeted support is critical to retaining core capacity and capability.

Indicators for a return to in-person business events in the next 6 months are looking good. Furthermore, we need to survive now, to make it to the six-month mark. To do that, we need additional and targeted Government support.

The SA Events Council will continue its engagement with Government towards achieving these critical outcomes.

As a private sector collective, we have provided sufficient evidence throughout 2020, by hosting a number of proof of concept events that demonstrated our ability to host, deliver and ensure stringent adherence to the Health and Safety Protocols that are aligned to the World Health Organisations (WHO) for business events and exhibitions.

The time is now to #TrustUS.

Any further delays will not only see more job losses and business failures in the short term but also long-term ramifications for the economic potential of the industry.

We will lose market share to other countries that may never return.

By Glenton De Kock

Exhibitions industry celebrates the launch of first-of-its-kind global coalition designed to prioritise the safety and success of communities as they return to business

Paris, France — 8 April 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.

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.

“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 revenue-driving 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 re-open, 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.

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, 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 post-COVID-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 in-person 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.

• To learn more about Global Exhibitions Day, visit www.ufi.org.
• To learn more about the All Secure Guidelines, visit www.siso.org.

List of #GED2021 partner associations under the UFI umbrella: AAXO, AEFI, AEO, AFE, AFECA, AFIDA, AMPROFEC, AOCA, AUMA, CAEM, CEFA, CENTREX, CFI, EEAA, EEIA, EFU, EMECA, EXSA, FAIRLINK, FAMAB, HKECIA, ECA, IDFA, IECA, IEIA, IELA, IFES, LECA, MACEOS, MFTA, PCEI, RUEF, SACEOS/SECB, SCEIA, SISO, TEA, TECA, TFOA, UBRAFE and UNIMEV.

Cologne-Paris, April 2021: Sonia 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.

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.

You can reach Jochen by mail: jwitt@jwc.eu.com; or tel.: +49 221 27 25 89 60
You can reach Sonia by mail: sthomas@jwc.eu.com; or tel.: +33 769 87 37 70