industry as a whole . He took his leadership team to BBC Winter Food 2019 at the NEC in Birmingham late last year , primarily for a quarterly business review but also because he wanted some of his other divisions to witness first-hand how the Showfreight team interacts with its customers . Little did he know that just a few weeks later , the whole event industry would grind to a halt . “ When COVID hit , it

created both challenges and opportunities for CEVA Logistics ,” Walton says . “ Healthcare , food and home improvement contracts went through the roof , whilst automotive and retail struggled to navigate the initial lockdown period . The Showfreight team ’ s work was obviously affected with the show calendar being cancelled until further notice .” Not ones to feel sorry for themselves however , the Showfreight team returned

back to the office as soon as government advice allowed . The timing coincided with the fantastic work already being done by many in the events industry to support the delivery of the NHS Nightingale facilities at the NEC , ExCeL London and other venues across the country . Showfreight ’ s visibility at the NEC soon produced a request to help with the unloading of specialist medical beds from various manufactures across the UK and Europe . The requirements quickly grew and before long , the company was managing a temporary warehouse across multiple halls complete with full inventory management . Walton explains how getting so many people back to work onsite was a huge psychological boost for those individuals who had been stuck at home on Furlough . He says : “ I visited one afternoon and seeing them in action epitomised their no-nonsense approach and philosophy to getting the job done with minimum fuss . “ For someone outside the day-to-day running of events , but who has had the privilege to be onsite at

30 — December