Fair construction and corona crisis.
Sudden thrust reversal.
A ship on the high seas, full speed ahead and suddenly the iceberg. This picture describes the situation of the exhibition stand construction industry in this March affected by the Corona crisis. At full speed all machines had to be stopped.
It jolts tremendously!
But what does this mean for whom?
The exhibitors are at least as surprised by the spread of the virus and the associated trade show cancellations as we are as booth builders. For exhibitors, a trade fair that does not take place means contacts that are lost or simply do not happen. And they mean concretely: financial damage. Because the partly ready produced exhibition booths do not come to the employment, must be paid nevertheless, at least proportionally.
The stand builders help their exhibiting customers as they reliably always do. Maximally flexible, fast and unbureaucratic. This flexibility is the special feature of this industry, which is not called " maker of possibilities " for nothing. Our company, too, has immediately put the lever on thrust reversal so that, depending on the time of cancellation, no further unnecessary costs are produced. We also do not abandon our customers in this difficult time for all of us and help. This is our contribution to the society in which we live.
The current decisions are right
Because we would like to express one thing clearly despite the threat of an industry disaster: We as a trade fair construction company have understanding. For the cancellations or postponements of the fairs by the organizer. And for the cancellations by the exhibitors themselves. Because a cancelled trade fair helps to slow down the spread of the new type of corona virus. And it is absolutely not an act of hysteria to cancel a trade show in the current situation. Let's imagine that after a trade fair had been held, we would have to read in the media that even one infected person had been present. The consequences would be fear and perhaps also newly infected people who could possibly no longer be traced. A horror scenario.
Damage for the trade fair construction industry
Protecting health is undoubtedly a top priority. But the economic consequences also deserve attention. In concrete terms, the question is who will help the " makers of possibilities" in the face of the flood of cancellations. An entire industry is in distress if too little help is offered. According to the FAMAB (The trade association of the event and exhibition industry), the damage incurred by stand builders amounts to 670,000,000 euros for the period under consideration of calendar weeks 9-11 of 2020. One can easily imagine that such a floor damage attacks the substance of the individual companies and in some cases also consumes them.
What would happen if the industry, which consists of around 5,000 small and medium-sized companies and employs around 150,000 people, were not "just" cleaned up, but dismantled? Leaving aside the many individual fates of each company and its workforce, what would Germany's leading trade show location look like then?
One thing is certain: There will be a time after the Corona crisis.
If the exhibiting companies can and want to go to the trade fairs again then, there would no longer be many efficient trade fair construction companies. Both the wealth of ideas and the skill to implement them would be lost. This combination is a treasure that - once buried - cannot be lifted again without further ado. This is because an exhibition stand construction company is, by its very nature, very preconditioned. Typically, it has therefore usually been on the market for many years, not infrequently even for many decades. This is the time in which it has built up its substance. After all, it needs a lot of trade fair material, costly machinery and a large number of expensive tools in order to be able to fulfill the individual wishes of the customers within the budget. But above all, it needs the knowledge of well-coordinated teams with their ideas and the huge mountain of experience. All of this could not simply be rebuilt from scratch after an industry crash. Stand builders are flexible. Yes. But they can't do everything.
The future.
A leading trade fair location in Germany is inconceivable without all (!) its stand builders.
So we demand that those responsible in politics and government help this industry get over the acute corona crisis.
And thinking into the future: After the Corona crisis, a perfectly functioning trade fair engine with full thrust is urgently needed. Because bringing people and markets together will enormously accelerate the overall economic recovery process. The trade show construction industry - flexible as it is - could then become a rescue ship for others.
All the best - and stay healthy!
Yours, Petra Hallmann