by Amadeus Finlay
On the Front Lines of COVID-19: Q4 is almost upon us. As the tradeshow and event industry enters a fourth quarter plagued by the uncertainty of COVID-19, enterprising professionals from Boston to Seattle continue to push the possibilities and develop innovative solutions that break the mold.
School is back and in Lakeville Mass., T3Expo has turned its attentions to the needs of the next generation. With many of the nation’s children learning from home for the foreseeable future, the firm’s line of school desks (pictured above) is designed to make the transition a little smoother. With open storage to facilitate laptops, books and all the various accoutrements of the 21st century student, each handmade piece is built from 3/4” cabinet-grade plywood and can also be fitted with a whiteboard top.
Keeping the focus on education, in Rhode Island, the third annual Hack for Global Good summit has adopted an innovative new look. A two-day event where industry experts meet with state and private school students to tackle real world problems, 2020’s Food: People, Production, Policy summit has been turned into a virtual, two-week “design sprint” in response to COVID-19. Hosted by Rocky Hill Country Day School, the summit will be comprised of live web events, as well as asynchronous learning opportunities, and pre-recorded VIP speakers. In a nod to the traditional format, mentor and industry expert meet-ups in the food and innovation space will still occur in-person for a hybrid event. The summit will conclude with a live pitch event judged by a panel of cross-industry experts.
“We leveraged and applied design thinking to reinvent and reimagine what a hack-a-thon could look like during COVID-19,” explains event strategist and Rocky Hill’s Director of Innovation Meg Stowe. “Virtual events lend to greater inclusion, so we are excited by the potential of this year’s pivot.”
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PA NE’s annual golf tournament, “The Classic,” has also gone virtual for 2020. Rather than the traditional get-together at Shaker Hills Country Club, this year’s registrants will play at a course of their choosing, keeping score as they go. Two different tournaments, running Oct. 1-16, will allow golfers of all abilities to participate, with a “Best Ball” tournament being held alongside a mini-golf stroke play event. A Zoom call will be scheduled the week of Oct. 19 for an awards celebration.
In Texas, the Lone Star State is sticking to its guns when it comes in-person events. The Together Again Expo lands in Dallas on October 23 with the promise of complimentary registration. At press time, many of the floor spaces are available or on hold, with a handful of companies having staked a claim.
On the Pacific Coast, Exhibits Northwest has been merging the digital and physical realms with an innovative twist. Not content with walk-through renderings, the Seattle- and Portland-based design and build firm fully stages exhibits at their facility, before creating a 3D tour of the actual space. The experience is integrated with LiveChat, Meetings and Keynotes, and is equipped with lead capturing software, live tours guided by the brand’s sales team, as well as Google Analytics and heat mapping. For more info, click here.
Upcoming stories in this series will feature companies and individuals who have risen to the occasion to build temporary medical facilities, masks and whatever is needed during the current crisis. If your company is going above and beyond to assist in this fight, please email us at newsdesk@exhibitcitynews.com and Amadeus at amadeus_finlay@hotmail.com for inclusion in future stories in this series.
