Exhibition News March-April 2021 | Page 17

Feature

Flying hybrid

Martin Fullard talks to Gerard Conway , regional account director at GES , on the rise of hybrid and what organisers should be thinking about it as hall doors reopen

This won ’ t be the only feature you read in this issue of EN which reminds you , in case you needed reminding , that the prime minister has given the exhibitions industry a modicum of good news : the industry can crack on once more from 21 June , on the premise that there are no more unwelcome surprises . While dwelling on the past year sounds like jolly good fun , I am afraid that for this missive I have elected to take a more positive route . Before Christmas I had the pleasure of hosting a roundtable discussion with

GES , which included a dozen or so organisers , all of whom at the time were trying their best to stay optimistic about things . Despite the landscape changing what feels like several times since then ( three months in Covidtime is akin to 18 years ), the views expressed by those organisers haven ’ t much changed : yes , we ’ re coming back , and yes again , hybrid and online – or virtual as most of you call it – will remain part of many plans for a while to come . So , to help me get my event-frazzled mind around it , GES ’ very own Gerard
Conway made time to answer some of my questions . “ There ’ s a light at the end of the tunnel ,” Conway says when I ask him for a reaction to the prime minister ’ s announcement after the 22 February . “ It ’ s coming to an end , there ’ s been a wonderful lifting of spirits . The expectations of a UK return are no longer expectations : it ’ s becoming a reality .” Conway is beside himself . “ The conversations have shifted from scaling back to scaling up , and we are proud to have played our part , supporting the industry and the national effort from early on in the pandemic and mobilising to help build the Nightingale hospitals alongside the Army . “ From a personal perspective , being involved in the delivery of the UK Government exhibitions pilot , alongside the likes of Clarion , Hyve , Informa , Reed , the Business Design Centre and the associations was a real privilege . It demonstrates our joint commitment to reopening events in a safe and secure environment .” It ’ s a timely reminder of where we were , but like I said before , we are now talking about where we are going . That , then , leads us towards the use of technology . While it is fantastic news that we have some manner of clarity towards reopening , the ‘ hybrid ’ concept is still widely believed to play a key role going forward . Certainly , with international travel off the menu for a
“ I truly do believe that virtualisation is placed now within the industry , but the focus is going to need to shift when physical returns .”
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