The coming events revival
SVEN BOSSU CEO OF AIPC SAYS LIVE EVENTS ARE COMING BACK BECAUSE THE GLOBAL ECONOMY NEEDS IT
T he year of 2021 has seen us go through the cycle of hope , fear , and disappointment . Most recently , the high hopes continental Europe had for Q4 were crushed by the fourth Covid-wave , which will most likely also push back the projected 2022 business boom in the region .
On the other hand , we see business booming in the US and China , Australia re-opening at full capacity for domestic events and Southeast Asia slowly opening for international organised events .
The big trend is clear : live events are coming back – not because the events industry wants it , but because the global economy needs it . The big question is : will the authorities allow us to make this happen ?
A recent report from Access Intelligence Research & Consulting on North America showed that events held in 2021 ( up to November ) have recovered 66 % of their pre-pandemic attendance base . When asked when business would be back to pre-pandemic levels , 42 % indicated this would happen in 2022 and 35 % gave 2023 – figures that show a level of optimism and drive which reflect something different : the global need to meet in person again .
This is also demonstrated by the shift in key challenge areas in the same report . In the summer of 2021 , the key challenge areas were mainly sitting with pandemic-related low attendance ( 72 %) and government / corporate restriction on travel ( 58 %) and replacement with online alternatives ( 42 %). By November , the concern with online alternatives dropped to 30 %. It was no longer about going digital , but about how to make it possible for communities to meet face-to-face and how governments are ( not ) helping to do so .
The same type of discussion took place at the Annual Conference of the Convention Centers of Canada ( CCoC ), where executive director Barry Smith and I agreed to continue the strategic alliance between our organisations . Beth Potter of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada put it clearly : “ We know that there is much confusion right now regarding the new variant and the changing travel rules and restrictions . Our biggest priority through this is clarity for the industry , and ensuring we advocate for one , pan Canadian process . As we start to see provinces and territories reacting with their own measures , we need to ensure we are vocalising the need to not move backwards into a fragmented system .”
One would imagine that , by now , governments have understood the importance of organised events , not only because of the ( short-term ) impact on the local economy but also because
Above : Sven Bossu , CEO , AIPC
of the ( long-term ) impact on global trade , collaboration and innovation as demonstrated by the global manifesto of the Joint Meeting Industry Council ( JMIC ) on the use of business events as primary agents for post-pandemic economic recovery and renewal .
Advocacy efforts on different levels are indeed resulting in a better understanding of the organised events industry . A good example was the roadmap published in October by the New South Wales , Australia authorities for planning Covid-safe major events and which was co-created by the government and the events industry .
This type of collaboration makes me optimistic for the future of organised events .
Let ’ s close on some key figures that the Events Industry Council published : “ Pre-pandemic , business events generated $ 621.4bn of direct GDP and contributed a total economic impact of $ 1.5 trillion ( global gross domestic product ). If the sector was a country , it would rank as the 13th largest in the world .” But what is not included in these figures is perhaps even more important : the long-lasting impact business events have on the development of global trade , collaboration , and innovation .
10 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / ISSUE 116