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The increase in herd immunity in the Czech Republic and in Europe is a good signal for the restart of trade fair and congress events in the Brno Exhibition Center. “Trade fairs are a part of business life. If we want to be back in business as usual, we have to learn to live with certain measures for some time,” Mr. Jiří Kuliš, CEO of Brno Trade Fairs Co., comments with the clear ambition to resume exhibition activities.

Participation in the trade shows in the “Vaccinated-Recovered-Tested” mode

“Events such as trade fairs, congresses and company events have to be planned in advance. Project planning security is needed. We see it in the growing immunity in the population. In the Czech Republic, as of today the immunity through vaccination will reach more than 60%!  This puts us in a completely different situation than we were a year ago,” explains Mr. Kuliš. Therefore, he is not afraid of further closings or postponements of events.

The basic rule is the proof of immunity of all show attendees based on the pre-condition of having been vaccinated, recovered from the Covid diseas, or tested. Only those persons can be admitted to events such as trade fairs. This corresponds to the development throughout Europe when visiting restaurants, sporting and cultural events as well as trade fairs.  Visitors and exhibitors at the exhibition center must prove immunity upon entry. The same applies to the operating staff.

BVV Trade Fairs Brno Co. has a high ratio over 80% of vaccinated employees, the non-vaccinated must be tested regularly. "The biggest organizational obstacle so far has been the limitation of number of people in the exhibition halls. With the new pre-condition, this criterion has been abolished, which has significantly changed our situation for the better," specifies Mr. Kuliš.

Also, he admits that some of the regulations and restrictions imposed may affect the number of exhibitors and visitors attending. “There are exhibitors who want to have the fair without any restrictions, and there are exhibitors who hesitate about their participation for coronavirus-related reasons and who restrict their employees to participate. The 3 principles of proving immunity lead to a relatively safe trade fair environment. It is a reasonable compromise between these two opposite views. In no case, we want to introduce restrictions that violate the basic sense of a trade show, namely meeting people "face-to-face with a handshake."

Further safety measures as respiratory protection in accordance with current regulations or social distancing are in place. Aisles in exhibition halls and resting areas will be increased a few meters, disinfection stands are common. Conference rooms are disinfected before and after the event. Exhibitors and visitors can buy services and tickets online to avoid any queues.

New start in autumn

A recent survey among visitors and exhibitors confirmed that 80% of the trade fair participants see live presentations and face-to-face meetings at the trade fair as important for business and irreplaceable through online formats. "If companies do not want to take part in this year's event, it is not about the rejection of trade fairs, but it is coronavirus-related. It is about mistrust in the development of the pandemic and health concerns," emphasizes Mr. Kuliš. "After recent discussions with the responsible authorities, we see no reason for such worries and lockdown anxiety!”

The fashion fairs STYL and KABO open the new trade fair season on August 21st. The ANIMAL TECH with the National Livestock Show will be staged in early September, followed by the World Dog Show. The professional defense and security fairs IDET, PYROS and ISET take place in early October, while they confirm great interest of exhibitors. Preparations for this year's International Engineering Fair, which has been postponed to the beginning of November, are in full swing. The GAUDEAMUS, guest fair for higher education, and Caravaning Brno, the caravan show, as well as other hosting events are being prepared.

“Trade fairs can take place under the circumstances given, but cross-border travel has not yet been completely resolved, as well as the recognition of vaccinations between countries, there are limited flight connections, and situation in some overseas countries is difficult. For European participants EU Green Pass is a great help. Participation from non-EU countries is a concern, but we are ready to assist by any means,” adds BVV CEO Mr. Kuliš. For potential exhibitors who are geographically distant and have difficulty in travelling to Europe, the Brno Exhibition Center offers the option of hybrid exhibition booth with an online connection.