Latham
Cover Feature
there was a definite gap in the market to
help event organisers and brand owners
who were not maximising their revenue
potential in sourcing commercial
partners and sponsors.
“The first freelance contract I signed
was with the amazing Showmasters
team, who own London Film & Comic
Con. Our agreement was planned
to cover their upcoming July event
and to develop further sponsorship
and promotional opportunities as I’d
managed to source multiple partners to
invest in their recent Spring edition.
“After the success of the event in
February I’d secured further interest
and extra investment from both
existing and new clients for the July
show. However, over the past few
weeks, whilst these brands are still very
much interested in being involved in
the event, they are now currently not
in a position to commit to any further
marketing activity for obvious reasons.
Things are simply ‘on hold’.
“The impact to the entire events
and exhibitions sector is huge and the
reverberations are being felt across
all areas within our industry. As a
freelancer, it has a direct effect on my
ability to earn as if show dates move
and partners don’t commit, this inhibits
my ability to earn as my agreements are
22 — April
based on commercial targets.
“Event Organisers must consider
freelancers at this difficult time – do
as Showmasters did for me – reach out
to your freelancers and ensure their
contract remains. The July show is still
planning to take place and although the
revenue isn’t pouring in from brands
committing. Showmasters can see the
value in me putting in the leg work,
building the database and maintaining
relationships and more importantly not
stopping, I’m being prepared and ready
to move fast once brands are good to go.
“It’s about working together to find
a solution and being positive and
proactive. In response to their support
to me I’m now pitching for their show
in November as well as July that wasn’t
part of our initial agreement. It’s about
both sides being able to adjust and adapt
to this unique situation.”
Becky Latham, freelance designer,
Minx Design
“I’m a freelance designer within the
events industry. I’ve been doing it for
20 years and I’ve not gone a single day
or week where I’ve had to ask, chase or
advertise for work. It’s been there for
taking 24 hours a day/seven days a week
if I wanted.
“And within two weeks. It feels like
my entire business and livelihood has
been packed into a van and driven off
the face of a cliff. There is literally no
work for me. Contractors are holding
back, and even worse exhibitors are too
with the unknown. It seems even with
briefs going into the end of the year. The
knock-on effect as a designer could go
on even longer as stands that have been
built for cancelled shows will go into
storage for next year which means they
won’t need to be re-designed either.
“I am a working mum of a four and
two-year-old and the sole earner. There
is NO help for people like me. I need to
pay rent and childcare let alone feed my
family. Yet the word is this might not
pick up until June. What happens to
people like me? This is the scariest and
loneliest time of my life.”
Jason Megson, MD, at George P.
Johnson (GPJ) Experience Marketing
“COVID-19 has brought with it
tremendous challenges both for our
business and our people. GPJ’s number
one priority is the health and well-
being of our staff, and we have taken
all necessary precautions to look after
them at this time. We are embracing
remote working, focusing resources on
well-being initiatives (particularly with
those who are isolating) and giving our
people the flexibility to balance home
and work during these exceptional
times. The situation continues to evolve
and so will our strategies for dealing
with it.
“From a business point of view our
industry - live brand experience - has
been one of the first to feel a heavy
impact. Commercially, our clients have
their own challenges to overcome and
need to minimise the effect on their
businesses. We are here to help them do
that - working in partnership with them
to identify positive, progressive ways
to continue to engage their audiences
despite cancellations, postponements
and travel bans. We are sharing our
expertise, deploying our teams, digging
into our global office experience and
being inventive in the solutions we are
providing.
“This is an incredibly difficult time for
our industry, and we are being realistic
in our outlook. We are hopeful that
the culture of GPJ will help us grow
stronger through these challenging
times. When we come out the other
side of this pandemic an evolved live
experience sector, with its power to
truly connect people, will be hugely
important, not just from a business
point of view but for people themselves.
“We have a responsibility, as one of
the large experience agencies, to ensure
we are supporting industry regrowth
for the future. People will crave human
interaction more than ever and it’s at
this point brands and our industry will
have a responsibility to help rebuild
positive human connections.”