With the recent Covid developments and the impact on the gift fairs, one thing has been consistent and that is the support of the industry for the decisions made by all organisers, whether it was a cancellation or postponement to a later date.
The AGHA Melbourne Gift Fair was a sell-out and there was great excitement by everyone at the prospect of face-to-face meetings once again, AGHA CEO Wayne Castle and president Michelle Lawson said in a joint statement last week, when they made the difficult decision to cancel the fair.
“While there was a possibility that the gift fair could proceed, or potentially be postponed to September or October, the uncertainty of the ongoing spread of Covid-19 together with a strong reluctance by all participants to travel meant this was not viable or supported by the exhibitors and visitors.”
Indeed, while everyone wanted to remain optimistic, as the date drew closer it became painfully clear that the odds weren’t tipping in our favour for the fair to go ahead as planned, says Enjoy Living co-founder Lisa Carrick.
“There were many challenges that we would face as a business, like how do you manage one person per two square meters on a 36sqm stand―once you took into account any agents or head office staff, it didn’t leave much room for buyers,” she says.
“On a personal note, we are a family business and we were very aware that if the borders shut whilst we were both in Melbourne, how would we be able to get back to our 17 year old son, let alone manage any mandatory quarantine that could be imposed. And that was really playing havoc with our mindset.”
Enjoy Living has been a long-time AGHA Gift Fair exhibitor and a very successful one, but Carrick is more concerned about the impact this will have on the team at AGHA.
“Their whole reason for being is to support an industry with trade fairs underpinning all the activity. I’m so glad we continued to spend on advertising so that our six-month marketing plans will keep our product top of mind even if we can’t be face to face with our customers and community.
“We really miss seeing them all and we really miss seeing our agents, so we will channel all our energies into our team to ensure they have the infrastructure and support tools to be able to remain of value until the next time we all meet again under the one roof.”
Many exhibitors such as Annabel Trends have been talking to their customers about the current situation and whilst earlier in the year they were all very keen to attend, the last month their intentions have completely changed and very few wanted to take the risk to go to Melbourne.
“Covid cases are popping up randomly all the time and states impose lockdowns with little warning,” she says. “I was fearful to send staff down under these circumstances because we cannot afford to have staff being in hotel quarantine for two weeks should an outbreak occur.
“We are also glad it has been cancelled and not just postponed. This situation is not going away any time soon and so postponing the event to a month later isn’t really going get a different result,” Dunn believes.
Il Mondo store owner Tracie agrees saying there is a lot of cost involved including staff at the store as well as traveling and accommodation. “I would normally spend a week in Melbourne and there is just no way that’s possible this year.”
She does add that while her store’s focus is kitchenware, the gift fairs give you the opportunity to find a product or range you normally wouldn’t have seen.
“When you are walking the aisles you will see a gift supplier that does a really nice range of mugs, for example. That is something you miss by not having the trade fairs.”
Whilst a trade show is optimal, the past year has made companies work around the fact there were no trade fairs.
“Until the majority of the population is vaccinated, I cannot see things going back to normal. At the moment we have agents running their own mini shows in their home states. This removes the need for interstate travel and ensures that our customers still get to see the latest releases in small intimate setting. With no trade shows we have to rely on our agents to present the new releases to our customers as best as possible,” Dunn adds.
