SingEx maintains physical events in China; tweaks strategies at home

Guangzhou International Epidemic-Prevention Material and Equipment Fair

Singapore-based PCO SingEx Exhibitions will be organising its second large-scale physical in Shanghai on July 15-16, while concurrently developing new virtual- and F&B- related strategies locally.

The Shanghai International Epidemic-Prevention Material and Equipment Fair will feature content with high relevance in the battle against Covid-19. Hygiene and safety measures – such as temperature screening and social distancing measures – will be integrated into the two-day event, which is hosted under Worldex-SingEx Exhibitions.

A visitor checking in at the Guangzhou International Epidemic-Prevention Material and Equipment Fair. Photo: SingEx Facebook

It is a follow-up to the same exhibition in June in Guangzhou, which received 55,000 attendees and more than 500 exhibitors. With a highly controlled environment and concrete safety measures, it was the province’s first offline fair.

“The (Guangzhou) event served as a prelude to how organising and running a large-scale event would look like from now on, with strict and heightened hygiene and safety measures in place so that participants can learn, connect and collaborate confidently in,” shared James Boey, executive director, SingEx Exhibitions.

Back on home ground, SingEx has been developing new hybrid strategies for its tentpole events, starting with healthcare event CAREhab 2020. Set to take place on July 17-18, the virtual affair will be hosted on CAREhab GO, an AI-powered platform that will provide healthcare professionals access to customised learning, video-on-demand sessions, a community portal enabling collaboration and cross-sharing, as well as networking engagements with exhibitors and suppliers through a digital exhibitor showcase.

Boey described: “With so many virtual events in the market today, we’ve learnt that a simple digital twinning of a physical event is not enough to stand out against the competition. The environment in which we work, play, learn and shop has changed drastically. Our customers’ business needs have also changed as they too are adapting to the new operating environment while finding fresh growth opportunities.”

He explained that clients now demonstrate “an increased desire for business transformation resources and a peer environment to share, learn, network and collaborate”.

Boey: strategies for events have to be tweaked depending on type of event – physical, hybrid or virtual

This has translated into the need to rework the approach to organising its signature events in Singapore, such as Industrial Transformation ASIA-PACIFIC in October, and Singapore FinTech Festival x Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SFF x SWITCH) in November.

This comes just months after SingEx rebranded and launched a suite of new event offerings in January, which included an emphasis on culinary experimentation and communal experiences. The company will now redesign its F&B strategy, taking into consideration the stringent hygiene standards of the new normal.

“Where communal eating is meant to be a comforting and connecting experience, we will need to think about how we can still deliver an engaging experience with safe distancing and other measures in place. Food safety and sustainable packaging remain key considerations. The culinary team at SingEx is currently expanding our playbook on how to deliver culinary delight amid this new operational environment,” shared Boey.

He added that with the rise of new physical-virtual formats, the “engagement cycle with our communities goes beyond the ‘event’ in a 24/7/365 journey”.

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