ORGANISERS of a major cosmetics trade show are relocating their 2022 event from Hong Kong to Singapore as the Chinese city struggles with soaring Omicron cases and quarantine restrictions deter business travel.
Informa Markets and BolognaFiere Group announced last night that Cosmoprof Asia 2022 will be held at Singapore Expo, November 16-18, as a “special edition”.
The last live edition of Cosmoprof Asia was held at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in 2019 with its sister event Cosmopack Asia at AsiaWorld-Expo. The events attracted 246 international buyers with 40,046 visitors from 129 countries and regions, according to Cosmoprof.
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A Cosmoprof spokesman said the decision to relocate the 2022 event to Singapore was made after extensive discussions with business leaders, exhibitors and partners.
”Entry restrictions for travellers to Hong Kong has meant a potential disruption to both exhibitors and visitors for Cosmoprof Asia in November, as inbound travel to Hong Kong is likely subject to quarantine restrictions,” the organisers said in a statement.
Singapore was chosen to provide more convenience for exhibitors and visitors from across Asia and the rest of the world while allowing them to prepare for the event
In other news, Asia’s biggest tech conference, which was wooed back to Hong Kong for its 2022 edition, has been postponed to next year due to continuing uncertainty in the city over quarantine and a fifth wave of Covid infection cases spurred by the Omicron variant.
RISE 2022 was to be held in Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre this month, but organisers Web Summit is delaying the event due to restrictions including 14-day quarantine for overseas arrivals. Dublin-based Web Summit decided to hold its 2021 edition in Kuala Lumpur but the Covid situation in Malaysia saw Hong Kong officials persuading the organisers to return to Hong Kong for 2022. RISE Hong Kong has now been postponed to March 2023.
The 2020 event in Hong Kong had been postponed amid civil disturbances and Web Summit later announced a relocation of that edition to Kuala Lumpur.
Antonio Bruzzone, general manager of BolognaFiere Group and director of Cosmoprof Asia, said: “The APAC region remains a crucial reference for global economics, and Cosmoprof Asia is continuing its growth in the area.
“In 2022, Singapore is the best location to welcome stakeholders and professionals again, offering a not-to-be- missed experience to do business in person,” Bruzzone said.
The Cosmoprof statement pointed to Singapore’s business environment and its “proven record in facilitating quality events” along with flight connections from hundreds of cities which will facilitate business and networking activities.
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David Bondi, senior vice president in Asia for Informa Markets and director of Cosmoprof Asia, said: “This special edition of Cosmoprof Asia in Singapore will figure as the most important gathering of international beauty stakeholders, supplier and buyers since our last edition in 2019.
“Our proactive decision to relocate the fair from Hong Kong to Singapore shows our determination to help the industry to reconnect in 2022. We are confident in Singapore’s strong reputation as a preferred destination for business events, and look forward to welcoming our delegates from around the world in the Lion City this November.”
A virtual event, Cosmoprof Asia Digital Week from June 27 to July 5, has also been scheduled to provide a match-making platform for buyers and sellers.
