Fu Bingbing

Founded in 1998 with its head office based in London， Tarsus Group（hereinafter referred to as The Group） has grown steadily to become one of the worlds most well-known and respected B2B event organizers. On this edition of our Column， were very honored to have Douglas Emslie， CEO of the Tarsus Group with us for our todays interview to share his insights into the current exhibition industry and its future development trend under this very uncommon period.

Customers are Treasure in the Industry

Douglas Emslie tells the reporter that the Group initially had one key event， Labelexpo Europe， which has now grown to become a global brand， Labelexpo Global Series， delivering the labels industrys premier events across multiple countries. From that one event the Group has expanded the business to deliver over 190 events for numerous industries such as aerospace， travel， technology， homewares and healthcare with their events taken place in 19 different countries， a large focus on China and the US in particular. The Group is a growth-focused business and they have achieved growth both organically and via strategic acquisitions in key territories. The Groups success is based on having a customer-first approach， they pride themselves on quality both in terms of event attendees and delivery of the event. The Group focuses on delivering real value to their customers and returning the investment that customers have made in the Group to the customers； in addition， the events organized by the Group has helped its businesses to grow rapidly.

Douglas Emslie states that as a global business with a particularly large footprint in China and the US， theyve been able to see first-hand how the exhibition industry has been recovering post-pandemic. They have seen huge demand for live exhibitions across all of their territories and a notable increase in new audiences to their events， one positive outcome of the pandemic for them and the exhibitions industry is that it highlighted the need for B2B events and the role the event plays as a commercial tool. They are fortunate that all of their divisions have returned to running live events， although their business in China has been more “stop-start” than others given the ongoing restrictions there. In territories where they have been able to reopen their events， which have come back really strongly as theyve been seeing strong numbers， quality attendance and engaging content along with really positive feedback from customers. They have also seen that exhibitions have only been able to resume at scale once wider society has reopened in that country as the support of local government and stakeholders has also been important in helping events reopen.

The In-person is More Eye-catching

“Running exhibitions during and post-COVID has given us valuable insights， primarily around event format and content as well as attendee preferences. The majority of Tarsus Group brands increased their digital activities as a result of the pandemic – such as online events and new digital products. Content-led events （e.g. medical education， conferences and events focused on specific sectors of the supply chain） were most successful in attracting and retaining audiences online. One-to-one models also transitioned well to an online format. However for the majority of our events， those that are product and transaction-led， the live format could not be successfully replicated. “Douglas Emslie. Moreover， networking is one of the most valued aspects of a live event and again， not something that could be successfully replicated online. As mentioned， as the Groups exhibitions have reopened they have seen their established events and leading brands performing well， and people are embracing meeting the in-person again. Douglas Emslie believes therefore that whist digital activities will continue to have a role but as something that complements the live event， not replace it.

“I have been fortunate to travel to China on numerous occasions and look forward to doing so again once international travel restrictions are relaxed. I have witnessed firsthand the demand for exhibitions in China and how the industry there is leading the way in terms of innovation and technological advancements. The Group has offices in five Chinese cities， we have entered into very successful joint ventures with Chinese partners and associations and consider China to be one of the most vibrant and successful exhibition markets in the world –our Chinese businesses are a vital part of our portfolio. China is a vital trading partner within the global economy and many of our events would have had a significant Chinese presence pre-pandemic， we are very much looking forward to seeing Chinese participation gradually increase in the coming months and years as the Covid-19 situation improves.” adds Douglas Emslie.

The Innovated Experience to be Created

Douglas Emslie points out that exhibitions will continue to be a critical marketing and commercial channel； Knowing your audience closely as exhibitions evolve so that you can build an irreplaceable experience around them， which will be more important than ever. Technology and sustainability will continue to grow in importance， however， organizers need to remember that we already hold a significant over other channels as we already hold the audience and we will need to innovate the experience around them. We will need to look beyond numbers as a measure of success and instead make sure the focus is on engagement and delivering real value to customers.

“The past two and a half years have created some of the greatest challenges ever experienced by the industry， we are not yet beyond the pandemic， and other risks remain present too. Fortunately event professionals are adept at being flexible and we respond well to challenges. We know how to react quickly and thanks to the resilient nature of the industry and those working in it I am confident we will continue to not only overcome any future issues， but also continue to grow and be even more successful.” says Douglas Emslie frankly.