Interview
“When do you
postpone to that gives
any certainty? We
did not feel that
postponing to June or
July, from May, was
sensible”
Ad astram: IMEX
launches new virtual
experience
IMEX CEO CARINA BAUER TALKS TO CMW ABOUT THE
FRANKFURT SHOW CANCELLATION AND BEYOND TO THE
LAUNCH ON 6 MAY OF PLANETIMEX
as postponement of
IMEX Frankfurt to
another date possible? I
assume the Messe and
the GCB were supportive to the last?
Firstly, Messe Frankfurt have been
amazing partners to IMEX. First, in
their rapid response as we began to look
into the options available to us, as well as
in the aftermath of cancellation. The
availability of their top team, together
with their willingness to help us on
costs, has been above and beyond and we
thank them for this.
A part of this support was looking at
alternative dates. The issue was that, in
making a decision to postpone, the
question is when do you postpone to a
time that gives any certainty? We did
not feel that postponing to June or July,
from May, was sensible given the
situation and we did not want to put the
industry in a position of continually
having to ‘wait and see’. Further out than
July was not sensible due to the
proximity to IMEX America and other
industry events.
In terms of insurance, we are currently
working through our brokers and are
hoping that some insurance will be
available to us.
Your cancellation message to the
industry and stakeholders came
across as very heartfelt. Does that
provide any comfort?
Absolutely – we’ve been overwhelmed by
the messages of support that we’ve
received from across the industry and
around the world. It meant so much to
the whole IMEX team and we have all
shared these and taken great comfort in
them.
As well as our new virtual experience,
our team is also busy working towards
IMEX America in September. We are
living with the reality that things can
change quickly, but at present we know
that the industry is very much looking
forward to coming together in Las Vegas
to celebrate our renewal and we can’t
wait to welcome people there.
What about investment in the 2020
Frankfurt show to date and venue
and exhibitor costs? Are you being
refunded and will exhibitors get
refunds?
Firstly, we committed to refunding our
exhibitors 100% of their stand costs, as
well as sponsorships and advertising. We
are also working to refund our hosted
buyers and speakers who may have
purchased non-refundable flights to
Frankfurt. All of this is underway and
our Finance team has been incredibly
busy making these payments over the
past few weeks.
In terms of venue and other costs, as I
explained above, our venue has been
outstanding in their help with costs. In
addition, we’ve been overwhelmed by the
support from the Frankfurt community
– hotels, venues, suppliers – which have
all helped in different ways and to the
degrees that make sense.
When we cancelled we sought to
speak to every one of our suppliers as
soon as we could – aiming to work with
them to mitigate our costs and their
costs, at the same time as taking a fair
and reasonable approach. This means
that each situation is individual and there
is no ‘one size fits all’ but, working
together, we can hopefully support each
other through this crisis. That is our aim.
How are things looking for IMEX
America in Las Vegas in September?
Is it too early to plan for the
industry’s recovery and what might
that process look like?
I strongly believe that there will be a
pent-up demand for both face-to-face
meetings and events, as well as travel.
However, that pent-up demand will only
be realised fully when we are truly out of
this crisis and people have confidence to
plan events months in advance and
confidence in the health and safety
aspects. We’ll need to think carefully
about how we can deliver that confidence
as an industry, and we’ll also need clear
direction from governments around
things like open borders and projections
for the future of this epidemic. I do
believe that our business will come back
strongly, but while there is uncertainty
we must find ways to possibly have local
events with hybrid components and plan
for some interim solutions.
How have things moved since your
cancellation announcement. Where
are your and Ray’s priorities now?
Our priorities are the same as they have
always been – to serve our industry and
the business events community and to
look after our team and their wellbeing.
Above: IMEX CEO
Carina Bauer
ISSUE 106
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CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD
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43