Nautic 2020's performance too uncertain
The announcement was made official on 24 September 2020, the Nautic de Paris will not take place. Announcements by the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, limiting the public event gauge to 1000 people for at least 15 days, have been the death knell for the 2020 edition of the Paris Boat Show. "It's too bad because we were doing pretty good. We had sent our file to the prefecture on Tuesday after a meeting that went very well at the Ministry last week. But we have seen the Minister's response to Roland Garros and there is no reason for us to have an exemption. There's no reason for it to be fixed in two weeks, and in any case, we'll be in a period of uncertainty." explains Alain Pichavant, General Commissioner of the Nautic.
Without specifying its contours, it indicates thinking about other events, for example virtual ones. "We have a lot of projects that we will have to validate in CA with the Federation of Nautical Industries (FIN). It must meet the needs of visitors."
A duty towards the professionals of the nautical industry
Announced for early October, the final decision was made the day after the ministerial announcements. "Not to do it now was to force the industry to spend money, with a 50% chance that it would be sunk. For the Nautic, an exhibitor spends 1/3 at home and 2/3 on external services, such as transport. The shipyards would call me to stall the trucks and I would tell them to wait. It's our responsibility to cancel early enough." underlines Alain Pichavant.
National fairs in 2020
Alain Pichavant is delighted that the Genoa boat show is likely to be held, but questions its scale, given the restrictions on traffic between European countries. "It's a good thing he's standing, but it's hard for the French to get there. It's likely to be a purely European show, as we knew Paris would be even more so this year." regrets the Commissioner General.
For Düsseldorf, he also wonders. "In Frankfurt, located in another state with different rules, the fairs have just been cancelled until April 30th." worries Alain Pichavant.
Partial unemployment at Nautic Festival
The consequence of the cancellation is also social and financial for FIN and its organizing subsidiary Nautic Festival. "As an event organizer, we have obtained the possibility of short-time working until 31/03/2021. In the short term, we have no worries." reassures Alain Pichavant. All that remains now is for the structure to invent new proposals to satisfy yachtsmen, boat builders, both large and small, and equipment manufacturers.
