Drupa, or at least a form of Drupa, takes place this week over Zoom rather than filling the halls of the Dusseldorf Messe. Printers from across the globe will participate in online sessions, in viewing video material that has been uploaded by exhibitors and perhaps in networking sessions, where, Tinder like, the profile of a printer looking for a particular technology can be matched with a provider of said technology. It’s Drupa, Jim, but not as we know it.
But Drupa has always meant different things to different people, like feeling an elephant while blindfold. The chap feeling the trunk will have a different opinion to the person holding an ear or a foot. For its organiser, Drupa is a vast trade show that traditionally has filled every inch of exhibition space. For the city of Dusseldorf, it means a bonanza for every hotel, every restaurant and every taxi driver, amounting to at least €5 million a day. For technology providers, it’s a showcase for their latest technology, the chance to compare themselves with competitors, to find distributors and crucially the chance to fill the order pipeline with leads. For some suppliers participation in Drupa amounts to their entire marketing effort. For printers Drupa means the chance to get up close with new technology, to be inspired by what is on show, to touch the technology, fill bags with samples and product brochures and to get several months of research completed in days. Drupa can and has changed the strategic direction of many businesses.
Virtual Drupa cannot satisfy this urge to get up close, to touch or to meet others to share an Altbier – the networking that for some can be the most valuable part of the Drupa experience. Nor will Virtual Drupa satisfy the businesses located alongside the Rhine. Drupa has always been the most international and most convivial of all the shows at the Messe, filling the Altstadt’s bars and restaurants. It may go some way to satisfy the exhibitors hoping to fill order books, or at least pick up the leads they need. And will have generated some revenue for the organiser. The unknown is the impact on printers that are prepared to select from the timetable of presentations and the exhibitors on site. Chosen wisely it will be worthwhile and Virtual Drupa may be regarded not as a non event, but as the event that sparked lasting strategic change for at least some in this industry.
Rhine maidens summon printers to Drupa
Drupa, or at least a form of Drupa, takes place this week over Zoom rather than filling the halls of the Dusseldorf Messe. Printers from across the globe will participate in online sessions, in viewing video material that has been uploaded by exhibitors and perhaps in networking sessions, where, Tinder like, the profile of a printer looking for a particular technology can be matched with a provider of said technology. It’s Drupa, Jim, but not as we know it.
But Drupa has always meant different things to different people, like feeling an elephant while blindfold. The chap feeling the trunk will have a different opinion to the person holding an ear or a foot. For its organiser, Drupa is a vast trade show that traditionally has filled every inch of exhibition space. For the city of Dusseldorf, it means a bonanza for every hotel, every restaurant and every taxi driver, amounting to at least €5 million a day. For technology providers, it’s a showcase for their latest technology, the chance to compare themselves with competitors, to find distributors and crucially the chance to fill the order pipeline with leads. For some suppliers participation in Drupa amounts to their entire marketing effort. For printers Drupa means the chance to get up close with new technology, to be inspired by what is on show, to touch the technology, fill bags with samples and product brochures and to get several months of research completed in days. Drupa can and has changed the strategic direction of many businesses.
Virtual Drupa cannot satisfy this urge to get up close, to touch or to meet others to share an Altbier – the networking that for some can be the most valuable part of the Drupa experience. Nor will Virtual Drupa satisfy the businesses located alongside the Rhine. Drupa has always been the most international and most convivial of all the shows at the Messe, filling the Altstadt’s bars and restaurants. It may go some way to satisfy the exhibitors hoping to fill order books, or at least pick up the leads they need. And will have generated some revenue for the organiser. The unknown is the impact on printers that are prepared to select from the timetable of presentations and the exhibitors on site. Chosen wisely it will be worthwhile and Virtual Drupa may be regarded not as a non event, but as the event that sparked lasting strategic change for at least some in this industry.
Gareth Ward
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