Due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, the Global Association of the Exhibit Industry announces that the UFI European conference, which was due to take place in June at the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Center in Gothenburg, cannot take place as planned.
“The ongoing pandemic has left us with no other choice. We wanted to run the events as soon as possible, however we could not find suitable dates later this year, when our hosts and the wider industry will undoubtedly have very busy calendars,” says Nick Dugdale-Moore, UFI regional manager in Europe. “We thank our hosts at the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Center for being so accommodating, and we look forward to bringing the event to Gothenburg at some time in the future.”
Registration fees for industry professionals who have already registered for both events will be reimbursed. The Global Association of the Exhibit Industry team will reach out to all participants and partners.
“We are of course sad not to be able to welcome the Global Association of the Exhibit Industry and our European exhibition industry colleagues to Gothenburg this June,” says Carin Kindbom, ceo and president of the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Center. “However, we will be delighted to and look forward to welcoming everyone back when the time is right.”
The Global Association of the Exhibit Industry are pleased to announce that the next European Conference will take place from 5-7 May 2021 in Poznan, Poland, hosted by Grupa MTP in their centenary year.
“We are sorry not to be joining our colleagues in Gothenburg in June, however we are happy nonetheless to be confirmed as the hosts of next year’s UFI European Conference. Founded in 1921, next year marks 100 years of organizing trade-fairs, a very important milestone for our company and the Polish exhibition industry. Please join us in Poznan to celebrate together in style,” says Tomasz Kobierski, chairman of the board of Grupa MTP.
Although the European Conference will not take place this year, The Global Association of the Exhibit Industry will endeavor to facilitate meetings between members at various smaller events across Europe, once restrictions on travel and meetings have been lifted. Information and details of these meetings will be published in due course. The UFI HR management working group is now also looking at ways to bring the material from the forum to the UFI membership; more details on this will follow.
“Once we get through this crisis and shows can open their doors again, all of us at UFI look forward to visiting as many trade fairs and venues of our members across Europe as possible,” says Nick Dugdale-Moore. “We will organize smaller meetings where members and others can network and share ideas, both formal and informal. Exhibitions and trade fairs in the post-COVID-19 era will play a crucial role in the economic recovery at a local and regional level and we will need to work together to support each other, as our industry always does. In the meantime, during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry will support our global community and the industry at large in many ways,” Moore concluded.
The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry is the global trade association of the world’s tradeshow organizers and exhibition center operators, as well as the major national and international exhibition associations, and selected partners of the exhibition industry. Their main goal is to represent, promote and support the business interests of its members and the exhibition industry. The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry directly represents more than 50,000 exhibition industry employees globally, and also works closely with its 60 national and regional association members. More than 800 member organizations in 89 countries around the world are presently signed up as members. Around 1,000 international trade fairs proudly bear the association approved label, a quality guarantee for visitors and exhibitors alike. The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry members continue to provide the international business community with a unique marketing media aimed at developing outstanding face-to-face business opportunities. For more info, visit www.ufi.org/.
