Fu Bingbing

As we all know that Informas leading brands connect people with knowledge， helping businesses and professionals in dozens of specialist markets to learn more， know more and do more. Informa works in two main markets： in Academic Markets， where they serve and support researchers and institutions worldwide， and in Businessto-Business Markets， where they champion businesses and professionals working in a number of different sectors. Informa delivers a broad range of products and services based on knowledge， connections and market access， including smart events， live and on-demand experiences， specialist content and media， audience development solutions， digital lead and demand generation services， peer-reviewed knowledge， open research and partnering platforms. Were honored to specially have Liliane Bortoluci， the show director of Informa， Brazil with us on this edition for our todays interview on the current exhibition industry development and its future trends in Brazil to share her own insights and opinions under this uncommon period.

Protections are Premises for Events

“We were preparing for the 2020 fairs when the pandemic came， and we had to suspend all events. Other countries， in which Informa operated stopped earlier， and Brazil followed. In March of that year， without knowing how the situation would unfold， we intuitively started to strengthen the digital events， which we were already doing. The objective was to keep the audience connected with the fairs exhibitor database. We make the connection between exhibitors and the interested public， we produce content， but we do not promote business between them， because we do not have a marketplace. As some fairs took a while to happen again， these online events maintain the relationship with interested parties for a longer period. Even with the end of the pandemic， this online schedule has already entered the sales package of our fairs.” Liliane Bortoluci shares with the reporter.

“In Brazil， we followed the local government that suspended all in-person events， resuming only now in early 2022， as long as they followed protection protocols. Informa globally adopted a safety and health program called All Secure， releasing a document with requirements that should be strictly followed， such as distancing， wearing masks， distributing alcohol gel， avoiding food containers for collective use， checking the vaccination card of visitors， among others. Since March， we have returned to our calendar of in-person fairs， and we believe that the All Secure protocol is here to stay. Another alternative is to think about the smarter distribution of stands and common areas， such as food， so that safe distance between people is preserved. In a post-COVID-19 environment， all Informa events will continue to prioritise the health and safety of Colleagues and Customers and， in the first instance， will be run in accordance with official government and local authority guidance， as well as any venue or locationspecific regulations. Informa All Secure adds a further layer of best practice standards and guidelines. This comprehensive set of enhanced measures has been designed to provide Colleagues and Customers with confidence that at any Informa event around the world， from an international exhibition to a local conference， we are striving to provide the highest standards of safety， hygiene， cleanliness and quality.” adds Liliane Bortoluci.

Physical Events are Indispensable

Liliane Bortoluci tells the reporter that this years events were considered a great success： Agrishow for example， the agribusiness trade fair， was attended by 193，000 visitors and 800 exhibiting brands， who negotiated more than BRL 11 billion in products and services. In Feimec， their manufacturing industry， they had 55，000 attendees and 900 exhibiting brands. Plus， they also promoted events for other industries like wood/furniture and sign/ graphic and both brought massive numbers of attendees and exhibitors. They detected through their events all over the world how people missed trade fairs and how the exhibitors in general consider it vital to the business development， once in every place where Informa operates around the globe they receive news bringing a similar positive scenario they found here in Brazil now. While referred to if know anything about China or its exhibition， Liliane Bortoluci states that she has never been to China， but she know better that the fairs are huge and that its the country for those looking for new releases and good prices. Informa is well positioned in China holding 44 events a year. The country is a great business partner. In general， it has been taking products and solutions to China and looking for a representative to market locally.“With the issue of the pandemic， there was a retraction in the participation of Chinese customers in our fairs， because there was a requirement to quarantine in hotels and this made their participation very expensive， but they always actively participated in Informa fairs. We hope these customers will return soon.” sighs Liliane Bortoluci.

Digital Events are Complementary

Liliane Bortoluci comments that there is a trend for event companies to create marketplaces， but this is a bit far from the core of the business. It is still difficult to measure how much event companies want and can do to expand the activity to another branch， which would be commercial mediation between exhibitors and the public via the Internet. In a way， they did a part of this with the digital events in which they promoted the continuity of the relationship between the interested parties， but without entering the commercial relationship.

“Nowadays， we are dedicating efforts in order to create relevant and engageable content， which bring quality audiences to our digital platform and put these people in contact with our exhibitors and their solutions. We believe we can create solid and valuable business communities around these initiatives， engaging buyers and sellers in a constant relationship trough our solutions， raising business opportunities between them 365 days in a year， not only during the physical events， Liliane Bortoluci says， “In August， for example， we launched 3 digital marketing activities for our agribusiness audience. The "Agrishow Pra Elas" which is aimed at the female audience， the “Agrishow Experience” - a series of four monthly digital events with lectures， webinars and debates and， finally， the weekly “Agrishow Conecta” seeks to bring the rural producer closer to specialists from various areas.”

In any case， the pandemic has shown that this is a future alternative to strengthen the organization of fairs， so that less is depended on in person， but always remembering that nothing replaces participation in fairs to enjoy and be in close contact with products and producers.