ISPO Munich will take place February 1-5, 2021, completely online. In consideration for the current developments of the coronavirus, Messe München has decided to conduct the event completely digitally, allowing all potential participants to attend, regardless of international travel restrictions.
The event format will build upon the positive results of the virtual ISPO Re.Start Days in June 2020, said show organizers. It will offer opportunities for brand and product presentation, for discussion and networking as well as maintenance of international business relationships.
According Klaus Dittrich, the chairman and CEO of Messe München, the move to a completely digital event was a logical step: “Both the customers as well as we as host have high expectations for the internationality and quality of ISPO Munich. Under the current conditions, we cannot fulfill these expectations. With ISPO Munich Online, we are enabling all customers around the world to participate in the event. At the same time, we can create formats that integrate new target groups. I am sure that in February we will experience an event, which will offer digital industry discussions of the highest caliber.”
At the center of the five-day digital event, the online conference program will offer numerous opportunities for discussion and interaction. In particular, the importance of sports and outdoor activities, and their connection to health, has been on the rise since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. “In turn, this has increased the need for a platform where the core brands, key players and top athletes can connect and garner inspiration,” said show organizers.
Jeanette Friedrich, Global ISPO Group Director, is optimistic about the digital format: “In the past ten years, ISPO has built vast digital competency and reach. We will now use this to offer an online event to the benefit of all participants. We are pleased that our plans for the digital event have been so positively received in the branch.”
For the first time, end-consumers will have an opportunity to experience something that was formerly reserved for industry members: the chance to participate digitally and conduct a direct dialogue with the industry. In brand rooms for product presentations, workshops and master classes, brands and companies will have the opportunity to present themselves and engage with sport and outdoor fans throughout the world. ISPO Open Innovation has already shown this integration works: The approximately 80,000 end-consumers from around 70 countries bring their know-how to the crowdsourcing and market research campaigns – delivering valuable insights and inspiration for new products and ideas to companies all year.
