TFWA reaffirms Singapore commitment

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TRW spoke to TFWA ceo Andrew Ford this morning to assess the mood following Sunday's announcement to proceed with TFWA Asia Pacific

TRW: What's been the reaction to the decision to move ahead with the show since Sunday?
Andrew Ford: It's one of overall satisfaction that a decision has been taken, that people can now plan the weeks ahead. This follows several weeks of indecision and people wondering whether or not the show would go ahead. Now that it is going ahead they can plan for the future.

We've been talking to the trade and the reaction has been mixed. Is that the best you could have hoped for?
Unfortunately, we often hear more from the people who are dissatisfied. But we've had a number of exhibitors who have called to say 'well done', we've had one which had cancelled and is now coming back in, some have said they are cancelling but that might change before the end of the month. [Ford declined to name these exhibitors]
On the buying side, many companies were waiting for a decision. As such they hadn't been confirming meetings and were greatly influenced by brands who told them they wouldn't be attending. Now that the buyers know we're going ahead with the show they can take a decision. But I should say that up to the end of March, pre-registration levels were double what they were last year. Then of course SARS broke out, but registrations have continued and hotel bookings have continued to be taken, so there will be people there. I'm expecting a lower attendance rate but I can't say yet how strong or weak that will be.

Can you give an up-to-date picture of where you stand now?
We're working on that right now and we'll release that information later. We're contacting all buyers this week so we should know where we stand early next week. We don't have a figure we can put on it yet. But there does appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel now. There was a good article that came out on Channel News Asia's website that at last brought some positive news about the region, which is timely five weeks before the show.

Do you expect a big fall-off in China and Hong Kong numbers?
I don't know at this stage.

Do you have a picture of who's coming from Japan?
Our representative Hiroshi Yoshino is talking to them all and right now many of them, more than half, are still sitting on the fence. Of the others, about 30% said they'll definitely be there.

Is it a concern that so many are waiting to decide, some because their governments have placed quarantine restrictions on returning travellers from SARS-affected countries? Are you worried that so many are going to decide right at the last minute?
There's nothing we can do about that. Many of these operators want to come, they have every intention of coming, but for some it depends partly on how their governments view the situation.

Can you do anything more to attract buyers?
We have some plans to encourage people to attend that I can't speak about now, but we're doing everything we can to make this show succeed for the industry.

Given your contacts with the Singapore authorities, how confident are you that the worst is over?
I can confidently say that they're controlling the situation. Every new case reported is linked either to family or to medical staff that have come into contact with patients that have the virus, so it's being contained. What isn't coming out in the press, which is unfortunate, are the real figures for Singapore. The number of people diagnosed is 162. Of these, 64 are still hospitalised, 18 are in intensive care and 85 have been treated and discharged, and that's the figure nobody is talking about. Worldwide, there are 3,235 cases, and of these, 1,515 have recovered. There should be more attention on these numbers.

You've extended registration now to May 2, but is there a point at which you can still turn back and cancel now?
The board is reviewing the situation every single day. If it's necessary, then the board will make a decision to do whatever is warranted.

Is it too late already for exhibitors who have shipped product and stands?
Almost three-quarters of the stands have already been shipped and are out there. Most of the merchandise that is being shipped is already on the way or is there already.

If any exhibitors cancel now, will you enforce the cancellation policy in full or do you take into account the extreme circumstances?
No, it's done according to the rules of the exhibition. We are holding this event, we're maintaining the exhibition. We have already introduced measures to be flexible.

What plans have you to reschedule Gate One?
We're still talking to ACI. The airports in the region have got a huge task on their hands to keep business going, and their revenues have dropped dramatically, so we are going to host it later on. ACI has a number of events in the region so that could present an opportunity.