There is no business like show business according to Broadway producers. Organisers of trade shows in the graphic arts sector will almost certainly concur. After two desolate years, shows have bounced back this autumn. Well, not so much bounced, it was more of a stumble back. Neither Printing United nor Igas could break the 30,000 visitor barrier (though Printing United has not yet published official figures). This is on the low side of expectations though enough to stop exhibitors demanding their money back. Now Drupa has announced it has 900 companies filling 100,000m2 of space at the Dusseldorf Messe. It is not yet a sell out.
The German organisers will be immune to the sorts of nerves that others are subject to, but will be poring over the statistics and trying to work out whether printers have fallen out of the habit of visiting trade shows, or whether the size of the industry has shrunk to the extent that the numbers reflect the reality. Perhaps printers will now prefer more manageable more focused events, say the revived EcoPrint event planned for June next year in Switzerland, or the Hunkeler Innovation Days in the same country. Is a parade of exhibitors enough to entice printers to come out? If not what is the formula that will work?
Drupa possibly has less to be concerned about than others, but the absentee list must be a concern even if there is plenty of time to change minds. It is the calibre and number on that list that will cause concern. The organisers will have to work hard now to find the formula that takes Drupa into a post pandemic era. That means compelling content that visitors want to engage with. It means putting these initiatives centre stage rather than on the peripherally and it means understanding what it is that will fill the circle seats as well as the stalls. The dream of a full house is what units the exhibition organiser and the theatrical impresario.
Hit the lights, the show’s about to begin
There is no business like show business according to Broadway producers. Organisers of trade shows in the graphic arts sector will almost certainly concur. After two desolate years, shows have bounced back this autumn. Well, not so much bounced, it was more of a stumble back. Neither Printing United nor Igas could break the 30,000 visitor barrier (though Printing United has not yet published official figures). This is on the low side of expectations though enough to stop exhibitors demanding their money back. Now Drupa has announced it has 900 companies filling 100,000m2 of space at the Dusseldorf Messe. It is not yet a sell out.
The German organisers will be immune to the sorts of nerves that others are subject to, but will be poring over the statistics and trying to work out whether printers have fallen out of the habit of visiting trade shows, or whether the size of the industry has shrunk to the extent that the numbers reflect the reality. Perhaps printers will now prefer more manageable more focused events, say the revived EcoPrint event planned for June next year in Switzerland, or the Hunkeler Innovation Days in the same country. Is a parade of exhibitors enough to entice printers to come out? If not what is the formula that will work?
Drupa possibly has less to be concerned about than others, but the absentee list must be a concern even if there is plenty of time to change minds. It is the calibre and number on that list that will cause concern. The organisers will have to work hard now to find the formula that takes Drupa into a post pandemic era. That means compelling content that visitors want to engage with. It means putting these initiatives centre stage rather than on the peripherally and it means understanding what it is that will fill the circle seats as well as the stalls. The dream of a full house is what units the exhibition organiser and the theatrical impresario.
Explore more...
Prayers for the future of the print industry