Bringing people together again

EXSA NEWS

The events and exhibitions industry has seen a positive turnaround in the last few months with the reopening of activities, although not at full capacity. It has been good to see business gradually increase.

On 22 June 2022, EXSA welcomed the announcement by the Minister of Health annulling all remaining Covid-19 restrictions, including restrictions on business events and gatherings.

Glad that a significant number of businesses were able to stay afloat during the most challenging time in the history of our sector. Catching up with GL events South Africa, EXSA were left in admiration of the strides they took in ensuring business continuity over the past two years.

Like many others, GL events South Africa had to adapt to the new way of doing business, diversifying their offering to suit the then-market, forming collaborations and partnerships with other businesses within the industry.

The industry can almost be certain that forward-thinking, innovative ideas and constant identifying of opportunities for collaboration is going to be key in reigniting our sector and the broader economy. GL events South Africa also mentioned how they have also started re-engaging some of their team members who were laid off during the pandemic, which speaks to their sustainability commitment ‘think people’ which encourages them to create sustainable employment opportunities, thereby contributing meaningfully towards the local economy.

And, while other parts of the world saw the easing of restrictions before South Africa, GL events South Africa, being part of the international GL events Group, had the opportunity to participate in major international projects that the Group was involved in during the pandemic. This included seconding some of their infrastructure to support the Group’s capacity in successfully delivering solutions around the world.

Ishmael Atanasi, chief executive officer of the Live division in GL events South Africa, said: “GL events South Africa supports the full resumption of activities within the sector and looks forward to creating enough capacity to deliver successful exhibitions and events. The world as we knew it has changed so much in the last two years and so have we. The industry’s resilience during the pandemic has been proof of how agile the events and exhibition space is.”

“The outlook for the last two quarters of the year shows a positive move in activity, and we are eagerly anticipating the full recovery and growth of our sector,” Mr Atanasi added.

He concluded: “This certainly feels like a new beginning for the events and exhibition industry, may we all fully embrace it.”