September’s ETO Show has been postponed until next year – though the winners of the 2020 ETO Awards Sponsored by Satisfyer will finally be revealed in a special online broadcast on Sunday 20th September at 7.30pm.
The decision to postpone the ETO Show after several months of uncertainty was taken following the publication of the UK Government’s ‘The Next Chapter In Our Plan To Rebuild’, which outlines its ambitions to return to ‘normality’ over the coming months. It clearly states that October is the earliest that conferences and business events will be allowed to take place in the UK, and only then if the downward trend continues and there is no ‘second wave’ of Covid-19 cases. The 2020 ETO Show was scheduled for September 13th and 14th.
The 2020 ETO Show will therefore become the 2021 ETO Show and be staged at The Ricoh Arena in Coventry, as planned, but on Sunday the 13th and Monday the 14th of June 2021.
ETO Show organiser Jonathan Kirk said: “Virtual meetings have been a lifeline for many over the last few months but the industry is desperate to get back to doing face-to-face business and we hope the 2021 ETO Show will play a vital role in putting suppliers in front of buyers again, as it has done since it was first staged back in 2005.”
The 2020 ETO Awards Sponsored by Satisfyer will be broadcast at 7.30pm GMT on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram and it will also be available to view on various streaming platforms afterwards.
ETO publisher Lee Schofield commented: “We had hoped to present the awards in person at the September show but now that has been ruled out we are doing the next best thing: announcing the winners in a broadcast.”
There is a precedent for this: the 2018 ETO Awards was broadcast ‘live’ on social media, and a very lively industry-only party was held at Blackpool Tower for the premiere. Representatives from all sectors of the pleasure products sector gathered at the Tower to toast the winners and socialise.
“People still talk about that event but the current rules on social distancing prevented us doing something similar this time,” said Schofield. “Instead, we hope you’ll all join us virtually on the Sunday evening – when ETO Awards have traditionally been presented – and have a few drinks and chat along with us on social media.”
Full details will follow on ETO’s social media channels over the next few weeks. ETO can be found on Facebook (ETOMagazine), Twitter (@ETOMagazine), Instagram (ETOMagazine), and YouTube.
