Craft Focus - February / March 2021 (Issue 83)

WORKING TOGETHER FOR SUCCESS Creativeworld will take place once in 2021 with Christmasworld, Paperworld and Ambiente as a digital event. The Consumer Goods Digital Day is the digital meeting point for the industry and will take part on 20 th April 2021 With events effectively banned in Germany, and ongoing international travel restrictions, the International Consumer Goods Show has been cancelled and, in its place, there will be a digital offering, namely, Consumer Goods Digital Day. “The coronavirus pandemic has taken centre-stage, and our plans have not escaped its impact. In light of the current situation, it would not be possible for us to satisfy our customers’ requirements for international trade fairs in April or May,” said Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt. That’s why Messe Frankfurt has decided, following close consultation with its customers and partners, to postpone the hybrid Prolight + Sound event planned for April and the three textile fairs Heimtextil, Techtextil and Texprocess scheduled for May, and to cancel the International Consumer Goods Show scheduled for April. An annual spring event is essential for the trend-based order cycles in the entertainment, technology, consumer goods and textile industries, which means that postponing these events until the second half of the year would not serve the interests of exhibitors. As a result of the current situation and ongoing travel restrictions, exhibitors are faced with huge uncertainties regarding who will be allowed to be present and their customer contacts, making it extremely difficult to commit to trade fair participation. Focus on digital formats Messe Frankfurt has created numerous digital offerings for its customers. Consumer Goods Digital Day on 20 th April, 2021, offers customers the opportunity to get together at a digital location where they can engage in dialogue and obtain information. The content of the Digital Day will be focused on ways in which retailers can help their businesses, particularly since it has not been possible to hold any international flagship fairs in Frankfurt featuring the relevant presentation possibilities and supporting programmes since Ambiente 2020. This content will be supplemented by the opportunities presented by Nextrade, the first order and data management portal for the home and living sector. Nextrade also offers attractive possibilities for manufacturers of finished home and household textiles to present their products, as well as a frequently used channel through which they can promote business with retailers and traders. Braun states: “The ongoing shutdown of retailers in our visitor countries has made relevant up-to-date information and solutions essential, and we are satisfying this demand with our digital offerings during this volatile time. As you know, we are also continuing to do everything in our power to make safe and successful trade fairs possible, because nothing can take the place of face-to-face encounters.” 28