Predictable increase in quality

COSSMA: When did you realise that the ban on events also affects your trade fair?

Cathy Laporte: Over the past decades, we have responded to and recovered from isolated challenges such as 9/11 in New York, the SARS outbreak in 2002, the Icelandic volcano eruption and the MERS outbreak in South Korea. Yet, we have experienced no thing of the same disruption level as the Covid-19 global pandemic. It became apparent from early 2020, when the virus reached Europe, that it would affect our events, starting with in-cosmetics Global in March. As a result, we had to move quickly on planning for several possible scenarios.

We remained in constant communication with exhibitors, visitors and all other key stakeholders to ensure that we were as close to the industry as possible.

What were your main concerns at that time?

Initially, our focus was to establish a robust programme of measures to ennosure the health and safety of all colleagues, exhibitors and visitors. We also worked closely with our venues and local governments on the ever-changing country specific requirements. Besides this, it was important that we maintained our continuous commitment to connecting the industry to the latest in cosmetics science and product innovation. Although we postponed our physical events, our connections and industry partnerships meant that we were positioned to create and curate high-quality content from around the globe. We have kept the industry connected through a series of online events such as the in-cosmetics Global Virtual Conference in April, Live Ingredient Demonstrations in May, The Korea Education Week in June and Ingredient Showcase in August. June also saw the launch of our online hub, in-cosmetics Connect. And we hosted in-cosmetics Virtual in October.

How did the communication with the exhibitors affected take place?

As most of our exhibitors have also been affected, there is a shared understanding and in fact, we have intensified our relationships with customers. Open and regular communication was critical in order to build confidence for all stakeholders. This helped establish a level of trust for our partners that we were developing plans to deliver the physical events in the best manner possible, but if necessary, we would make with them the difficult decisions to postpone our events. The reaction to the postponements was so supportive and understanding, with all exhibitors eager to return to face-toface meetings when safety and travel restrictions allow it.

Despite careful planning, what has been difficult?

A large challenge for us was the global nature of our events and therefore taking into account the differentstages at which countries were in the pandemic when drawing up plans and making decisions. In addition, the cosmetics industry relies heavily on touch and smell which can only be realised in person. These sensory attributes matter so much and have a major impact on product perception. At present, it’s impossible to translate this fully digitally on a large scale – one reason why I am so looking forward to welcoming the industry face-to-face again. Trade exhibitions are a far cry from ‘mass gathering events’ and instead, well ordered marketplaces for conducting business and commerce where we are able to affect conditions, settings and situations. Our planning means we have a number of tools and solutions at our disposal including distance between booths

and managing circulation in the aisles with one-way flow. We already introduced contactless smart badging technology in 2018 but expect to increase the number of contactless readers throughout the show floor for all upcoming physical events.

To what extent has the market changed?

In this ‘new normal’, individuals and brands are placing a greater importance on products that enhance and promote mindfulness, mental health and wellbeing. The pandemic has also accelerated the importance of sustainability, with the health of the planet front of mind.

What conclusions do you draw from this situation for your fairs?

From our experience, we believe that hybrid solutions that incorporate both in-person and virtual live streaming elements will become the norm at our events. When ‘normal’ business resumes, virtual and digital solutions will complement the physical events and extend reach both during and between our events. I foresee an increase in the quality of meetings for all our 2021 events as we expect our exhibitors and our attendees will send fewer, but more senior people. The people who have a genuine interest in the industry, with buying power and the authorityto make decisions, will take priority. Like so many others in our industry, we’ve rolled up our sleeves and got down to business. Through the process of taking our events online and generating extra marketing activity, we have been able to gather the latest data on brands and players in the industry. We are confident that our events in 2021 will help foster new connections. My team and I can’t wait to meet you all again next year.