Expo Centre Sharjah launches three-day electronics exhibition

The Expo Centre Sharjah is currently hosting the ‘Expo Electronics Exhibition’, the first event the centre has organised after the gradual return to normal life and the resumption of activities and events in Sharjah.

This is in line with the decision of the Sharjah Executive Council to resume the organisation of exhibitions and conferences under the supervision of the competent government authorities, while taking all the precautionary and preventive measures, according to the instructions of the concerned authorities with combating COVID-19.

The three-day event, which kicked off on Thursday, offers a wide range of exclusive deals and attractive discounts on high-quality products, including the most renowned international electronics brands.

The Expo Centre said, “This event is a perfect opportunity for exhibitors to boost their sales, enhance communication with their existing customers, and attract new customers as well. It is also an ideal destination for families to restyle their kitchen through the latest smart appliances at competitive prices, as well as to learn more about creative ideas and concepts by electronics sector experts.”

This is part of the centre’s commitment to reinforce the presence of the exhibiting companies operating in Sharjah and to cater to the needs of the consumers and visitors.

The centre has called the public to visit the exhibition and make the most of the amazing deals it offers, while assuring that the COVID-19-related precautionary measures have been taken for the safety of visitors and exhibitors.

This includes sterilisation of the building and the halls, temperature checks when entering the centre, installation of AI thermal cameras, and rearrangement of spaces to ensure the implementation of safe distancing rules. This is in addition to hanging COVID-19 posters and protection kits, including face masks, gloves, and disinfectants.

A recent study by the Expo Centre Sharjah on the reality of the global exhibitions sector and the prospects amid the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic has shown that 74 per cent of those participated in the study underlined that virtual shows are seen as important complementary to the physical exhibitions, while 60 per cent said that online exhibitions will substitute physical ones in challenging times. The study was conducted in cooperation with GRS Research & Strategy, Italian strategic research and consulting firm focusing on research, analysis, and strategy for the exhibition and large event industry. GRS is also a partner of “Explori”, and, along with it, holds the biggest data-set of event performances in the world.

Around 60 per cent of the participants believe that virtual exhibitions would replace their physical counterparts, and from the standpoint of 54 per cent of those surveyed, virtual shows will pose a threat to the direct events in the medium and long terms.

As many as 500 participants from 50 countries from around the world took part in the survey, including exhibition organisers, exhibitors, and suppliers, where they highlighted the major challenges they face in the current circumstances.

The decrease in an exhibitor’s budget came first among these challenges by about 41.6 percent, travel restrictions came second by 36.2 per cent, virtual exhibitions 3.3 per cent, and the need to focus on other marketing channels by six percent.

In response to a question about the most important issues faced by exhibition organisers due to the cancellation or postponement of events, travel difficulties came first with 26.9 per cent, lack of liquidity and revenue came second with 19.4 per cent, conflict of dates of the postponed and prescheduled exhibitions with 14.9 percent, and increased costs with 5.2 per cent.

A part of the survey focused on actions taken by the companies operating in the exhibitions sector to counter COVID-19 impacts, where 65.2 per cent of the companies mentioned that they shifted to virtual events such as workshops and webinars, 45.4 percent said they organised online exhibitions alongside digital workshops, 43.6 per cent have created digital solutions to meet their customer’s needs, while 11.3 percent stated that no action has been taken yet.

With predictions ranging from most to more likely about the possibility of organising future events in the Middle East and North Africa, 56 per cent of the participants have shown their optimism for Q4 of 2020 compared with Q3 by 18 per cent. In terms of business recovery after COVID-19, 50 per cent of the participants from the Middle East and North Africa predicted that by 2022 the events will attract a turnout equal to what was witnessed in 2019, and 26 percent of them selected second half of 2021, while the first half of 2021 was chosen by 21 per cent.

WAM