METS Trade 2020 cancelled
Rai Amsterdam, organizer of the METS Trade show, the world's largest event for yachting professionals, have officially announced the cancellation of the 2020 edition. Scheduled for 17 to 19 November, it has been postponed to 16 to 18 November 2021.
Impossible to offer a quality show to the nautical professionals
Rai Amsterdam states in its press release that it is able to welcome visitors and exhibitors, equipment manufacturers in the nautical sector, in good safety conditions, thanks to its work on health protocols. However, the worldwide uncertainty about the evolution of the Covid-19 pandemic is jeopardizing the quality of the show for its customers. Traffic restrictions would have had a major impact on attendance at a highly international show. "We cannot guarantee a high quality show in 2020, with qualitative face-to-face contacts between visitors, as is expected from METS Trade", says the organisers.
A virtual exhibition as an alternative for professionals
Rai Amsterdam, also the organiser of the IBEX show in the USA, is considering organising an online event to offset the cancellation of METS Trade 2020. "Our teams are working together with our partners on different virtual ways to connect the yachting industry in these difficult times," says Niels Klarenbeek, METS Trade Director who arrived in the summer of 2020. He will be able to draw on the experience of the online event to compensate for the cancellation of the physical IBEX show scheduled for 29 September - 2 October 2020 in the US.
