In these particularly difficult times for the tourism and events sectors, let's start with some good news. Paris has retained its top spot in the ICCA rankings, with 237 revolving congresses hosted in 2019.
Pablo Nakhle Cerruti - We are obviously very pleased that Paris is at the top of this ranking. There are two important points to note: firstly, the fact that Paris has been in first place three times in the last five years, which clearly demonstrates the city's continuing appeal. Secondly, the fact that, in 2019, we have widened the gap with our nearest rivals, Paris's market share is growing. This is largely thanks to the Viparis sales and international development teams, as well as our operational teams, who ensure that organisers can enjoy their events in the best possible conditions. But it also demonstrates the expertise we have developed with all our partners in managing the destination (Aéroports de Paris, Accor, etc.).
This result is therefore the fruit of a collective effort.
P. N. C. - Put yourself in the shoes of a visitor. You board a plane, you arrive at the airport, you take a taxi or public transport, you go to a hotel or restaurant. You go shopping as well as visiting congress or exhibition venues. If visitors have a bad experience at one point or another, they will take it back with them. If, on the other hand, we all work together to ensure that participants in world events leave having had a good experience, a very Parisian experience, they will be all the more inclined to come back to Paris. The challenge is to make organisers want to come back, to build loyalty. In this context, the partnership dimension is essentialThese include the public-private partnerships we've set up over the last few years with the Paris Convention Bureau and the Regional Tourism Committee, as well as the relationships we've built up with all the players in the destination, including airports, hoteliers and department stores. This enables us to offer a unique response. Because what our international customers are looking for - and what they are looking for on behalf of their visitors - is first and foremost the complete Parisian experience.
Of the 300 events affected, two-thirds were cancelled and the remaining third postponed.
Let's move on to the impact of the health crisis. Before the closure of your sites on 7 March, on the evening of the penultimate day of the Salon de l'Agriculture, was the current year expected to maintain this momentum?
P. N. C. - After a very good 2019, 2020 was shaping up to be just as good. We had a number of major events planned, including, incidentally, the European Society of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID). At the end of March, we recorded a decline in our activity of 29.3% for the first quarter of 2020 compared with 2019. Out of 300 events concerned, the two thirds were cancelled and the remaining third postponed, some to the second half of the year, others to next year. As for the second half of the year, there is still one major uncertainty: the state of air traffic. When will we be able to travel within the Schengen area, and when will long-haul flights resume? For all the international events scheduled for the second half of the year, this is a crucial factor.
As far as conferences and exhibitions are concerned, will the approach differ depending on whether they are aimed at a French or international clientele?
P. N. C. - Clearly. International events have need for visibility on their ability to attract buyers, exhibitors and visitors from beyond the borders of France and Europe. We're betting that we'll be able to welcome them. After that, it's up to the government to decide. in fine of the organiser. We think that these events will be held, but in smaller formats.
Are these smaller formats likely to continue?
P. N. C. - It's a bit early to say what's going to happen next. We are thinking in terms of a gradual recovery in 2021. At this stage, we need to have a clear view of the second half of the year. There are still many unknowns.
Although decontamination is now well under way, your sites are still closed. When will they be able to reopen?
P. N. C. - Our sites are not due to open until the end of the summer. Events for more than 5,000 people are prohibited until 1 September. We are therefore working on the assumption that they will be authorised again from this date. In the meantime, we are discussing with the prefects of Paris and Seine-Saint-Denis the possibility of hosting drive-type events during the summer, obviously for less than 5,000 people, at Porte de Versailles, Villepinte and Le Bourget. For example, music drives or cinema drives in our car parks.
Is the site labelling work that you have undertaken with Bureau Veritas key to ensuring that the takeover takes place under the best possible conditions?
P. N. C. - This is important on three levels. Firstly, for our internal organisation. We operate 9 sites and I want to make sure that health procedures and protocols are consistent across all of them. Secondly a strong reinsurance dimension to our customers, exhibitors and visitors, but also to our service providers and those of the organisers and exhibitors. We need to send out the message that our sites, as soon as they open, will be perfectly safe from a health point of view, with procedures for cleaning, counting, logistics and reacting in the event of a suspected case of Covid. And thirdly, as far as the public authorities are concerned, we want to be involved in our own recovery. This means being able to show that all the necessary measures have been put in place to host events without any health risks. The idea, with this Safe Vis also to establish a common base for the sector. For example, it served as the basis for the charter of health commitments published by UNIMEV (Union Française des Métiers de l'Événement). In addition, we have pooled all our guidelines and commitments in order to define a charter shared by all those involved in Paris as a destination.
Could the way in which business picks up vary according to your different sites? For example, will a smaller site that caters primarily to domestic customers, such as the Palais des Congrès in Issy-les-Moulineaux, find it easier to restart?
P. N. C. - Every situation is different. We can also see that, on a large site, we can distance ourselves in a more radical way. They also offer more open-air space. The health label will give us a common base from which we will be able to respond appropriately to different types of event.
The very essence of the conferences and other events you host is to encourage exchanges and encounters. How can we ensure that meetings and social distancing are not mutually exclusive in the future?
P. N. C. - This is the question that all the organisers I'm currently discussing with are asking themselves. And it's still difficult to give a firm answer. During the confinement, we saw all the advantages of the screen and digital platforms, but we also saw their limitations. At this stage, we're all aware that we're going to have to do a bit of both. I have little doubt that the famous "phygitalwhich the trade has been familiar with for some time, will be invading our subjects. Basically, an event is a community coming together. The question is: how do we manage it from one event to the next?
Sites that offer great flexibility and, above all, perfect connectivity.
How do you see digital and virtual technology being integrated into events in the years to come?
P. N. C. - Here too, it's a little early to say. Especially as this is primarily a matter for event organisers. For our part, we need to offer them the means to deploy their scenography, whatever it may be, as freely as possible, without our tool becoming a constraint for them. That's what makes Paris Convention Centre. Not only is it a conference centre, it's also the most suitable venue for hosting... the world's most important events. Whether it's a major conference, a telephone launch or a software presentation, this is the place to bring people together, whether seated or standing, in large or small configurations, or to organise exhibitions. This flexibility is key and will be even more so in the future. There will undoubtedly always be a need for venues, but they will have to offer greater flexibility - because events will take on different formats from those we have seen up to now - and above all perfect connectivity, because events will need a strong digital dimension.
What are you going to do about it?
P. N. C. - We must ensure that 5G will be available here before the othersWe also need to ensure that the Wi-Fi connection is beyond reproach, that we can go down to Bluetooth level to have a finer degree of exchange and to LoRa level to transport packets of information intended for the Internet of Things. We have already started this work and we are going to speed it up even further.
