Looking to County Fairs as Guideposts for In-Person Events
March 17, 2021 As I write this column, it has been exactly one year since my company closed our offices and told all of its employees to work remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Likewise, most in-person industry events also erred on the side of caution and took their events for 2020 virtual or cancelled them outright.
As 2021 began, there was hope that soon, in-person trade shows and meetings would quickly resume. However, with COVID-19 vaccine rollout initially not moving as rapidly as hoped, some announced in-person events ended up being called off once again. An example of this was the 2021 National Farm Machinery Show, which moved from mid-February to the end of March and then off the calendar completely.
But with a good portion of the U.S. population now receiving vaccinations, there is optimism once again that in-person events will resume by the summer. In fact, I recently received a “hold the date” notice from the organizers of the Southwestern Fertilizer Conference, currently scheduled to take place in San Antonio, TX, in mid-July.
For folks interested in whether or not their favorite summer trade show might happen in 2021, I have been told by many industry insiders to keep an eye on one important segment of the show business – local and state county fairs. Many market watchers have said that if states approve of these outdoor events taking place, chances are ag retail-oriented trade events will also get the green light to take place.
Loading ...And there appears to be some wisdom in this approach. Indeed, in my home state of Ohio, Governor Mike DeWine, in a March 12 press conference, also pointed to county fairs for a preview of how the Buckeye State’s summer might play out. “It’s possible that by the time we get to fair season, we may be off the health orders if things continue to go well,” said DeWine. He added that the first of the state’s county fairs tend to take place in June.
So, if you are wondering about any the possibility of in-person events resuming in your state, keep an eye on the county fair notices/websites. Here’s hoping the news will remain positive, for all of us!
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