In a pre-covid world the events industry in Melbourne and across Australia was a thriving and growing sector. According to an article by Business Events Council of Australia “the events industry contributes $36 billion to the economy each year and employs 230,000 people”. Those working in the industry span across a broad-spectrum including business events, festivals, celebrations and everything in between.
It hasn’t always been recognised or even known as an occupation or industry but rather that this type of work exists. Even looking back to 20 years ago formal education wasn’t available in this field. In recent years there are more avenues offered for training and formal qualifications as well as more demand and opportunities for people to fulfil these roles. It has been gaining more recognition and seen an increase in demand to enter and work in this exciting space but at the same time has some way to go to be better recognised.
That day in March 2020
Approximately 20 months ago, virtually overnight, the events industry took a hard hit and came to a screeching halt. Events were being cancelled like there was no tomorrow. Calendars that only moments earlier were looking busy and booked up for months ahead were now looking anaemic. With the Premier of Victoria delivering daily press conferences on the current state of affairs around the Covid-19 pandemic organisers were left no alternate option but the sad decision to postpone or cancel events which they had spent months prior planning. With a virus that had taken the world by storm, scientists and medical experts trying to understand how it behaves, its characteristics and transmission patterns and the world as we knew it changed at this time.
We had to react quickly and swiftly. Organisers went into full swing contacting venues and suppliers cancelling or postponing events until further notice under the direction from government. Delegates themselves were calling wanting to know whether events were proceeding and if so what precautions and measures were being put in place. This virus which very quickly had escalated to a pandemic and was nothing we ever anticipated at least not in our lifetime. Many venues and suppliers were very accommodating and didn’t enforce cancellation fees especially with such short notice. From my personal experience the suppliers I dealt with were extremely flexible.
We all thought it will be just a short-term hiccup and the delays would only be a matter of just a few short weeks. We would be able to rebook and pick up where we left off. No-one anticipated that this virus would linger for so long and cause such worldwide destruction both economically and medically. So just like that Covid left a trail of damage not only for the events sector but across our entire economy and the globe.
1 step forward, 10 steps back
We consistently found ourselves in limbo with the industry struggling to launch and gain that momentum without interruption. Events are not like an on and off switch unlike other industries. Coming out of lockdown for us requires lead time to rebook venues, suppliers as well as organise all the details and promote the event to generate bookings. Booking venues are sometimes done 18 months to 2 years ahead of the event date. The constant in and out of lockdowns made it difficult for organisers to gain momentum and continuity. It also equally had a negative effect for the client to find the confidence to commit to in person events. The lockdowns were creating doubt around the safety of meeting in person but also the financial impact of monies lost to cancellation fees. The comments I heard were “we simply cannot plan with confidence”. The lockdowns kept adding to a continuous delay in getting the industry back on its feet and back to where we were. Whilst online events worked fine during the peak of it all during 2020/21 people are now fatigued by this and there are certain benefits that in person meetings brings that online simply cannot.
A trail of destruction
This virus caused so much destruction. Ranging from cancelled events, monies lost to cancellation fees, lost revenue for suppliers and venues, businesses closed, staff redundancies, not to mention lives lost. Businesses were running at losses and owners supplementing from their own personal budgets to keep afloat. When venues are running at reduced capacities and less revenue it raises the question whether to open at all when overheads are still constant.
Many venues and suppliers whilst at the start of the pandemic where very accommodating in absorbing losses and dismissing cancellation fees however now 20 months later understandably have revised t’s &c’s to cover unexpected snap lockdowns. They have lost excessive amounts in cancelled events and potential income during the lockdowns. For the clients this now means they run the risk of placing a booking and potentially cancelling as a result of a sudden lockdown so will rethink whether or not to book. Hence bookings were being held off to avoid running this risk, so we were finding ourselves in a vicious cycle.
So the million dollar question was how to get confidence back and start to book events. How do we mitigate penalties that may arise from a sudden lockdown at a moment’s notice? There was no answer to this. It seemed like just waiting it out was the only solution.
Organisations have greatly reduced staffing levels or made redundancies during this period. A great deal of the workforce has had to seek full time work or supplement their hours in other industries to survive. Many have sadly said goodbye knowing they may never return whilst for others this may be a temporary change with the intention to return. These shifts in the labour market because of the pandemic has led to the loss of experienced staff out of the sector.
Many businesses after years of operation have had to shut their doors as a result or even shut state offices and operate from one location servicing on a national level. Many are rebuilding and many possibly working on a different model. So whilst it left damage and created havoc it also presented an opportunity for many to review their structures.
Numerous industries have been affected by this pandemic. The hospitality sector that works on short lead times found high volumes of wastage. The travel sector has also felt the sting as borders were shut particularly international travel. It was difficult as it was so unknown with no end in sight, no end date, no roadmap which added to the frustration for all. We were in limbo wondering when this would come to an end.
The world had to adapt and adapt fast?
Whilst isolation, lockdowns and working from home shifts have had a negative impact on mental wellbeing it has also forced many organisations to rethink how they operate. Not only for the events sector but across so many other businesses. We saw dining tables convert to workstations and garages into distribution centres. Offering flexibility in work schedules to work from home, reduction in office space required translated to savings for a business owner, shift all work to cloud base for easier access have all been areas that have seen change. Most friends and industry peers I spoke with have adjusted and preferred the option as it gives them more personal time saving on travelling to and from the office whilst maintaining productivity.
Whilst the downside has been the isolation and away from work colleagues and human contact many employers ensured they kept in constant contact with staff to guarantee there was interaction and engagement and good mental health. Activities such as virtual Friday drinks was becoming popular. However, with the less office contact, particularly at top level management this has the potential to generate an increase in demand in growth areas of events such as retreats to bring staff together from time-to-time whist the remainder of the time they are working isolated from each other.
Is there light at the end of the tunnel?
Yes there is and now we can see that. We have come out to what I believe is the other end and things look bright and promising. I am an optimist and always believed we would but just needed to wait it out and we would be back on our feet again. Whilst I couldn’t predict when or how long it would take I didn’t anticipate we would be in this position for the amount of time we were and we are still not entirely back to pre covid levels. I guess for some of us we were in a position that we could keep waiting it out but even that eventually would need an end point however many unfortunately had to make the difficult decision to seek alternative work much sooner. Whilst the hybrid and zoom events are here to stay and is servicing its purpose it still cannot replace the human interaction from face-to-face meetings. Maybe hybrid will be a way of the future, maybe things will return to what they were pre covid. Who knows only time will tell what the trends will be.
What we have learnt from this is to be more creative and adaptable to market and economic conditions. Many events that have been on hold will now start to be revived and I personally feel that it will be full steam ahead moving forward with a generous pool of work available in the marketplace for both small operators as well as larger conference organisers.
So, stay positive and support each other. Good mental health and wellbeing to all.
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