International
One of the main challenges in
the planning stage was the time
frame. Twelve months is not a
long planning cycle, especially
for a launch show of this size
and it was the first exhibition
the Egyptian Armed Forces
had ever done. As a part of our
working process, we maintained
a personal presence in the
regular intensive planning
meetings (mostly in Arabic),
which meant a huge amount of
travel and effort for the Clarion
team.
What were your
expectations for the event
and were they met?
We were tasked to deliver
10,000 visitors and 300
exhibitors across three
exhibition halls. In addition,
we were asked to develop an
attractive VIP programme that
would bring together global
leaders. The patronage of the
event was awarded by HE
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi
and his confirmed attendance
heightened the need for the
event to be perfectly delivered.
As the event approached,
we were required to extend
the show floor in order to
accommodate demand for
last-minute exhibition stands;
we actually sold over 300sqm
of space in the final two weeks
before the show, mostly to
Egyptian companies. Our final
attendance numbers reached
30,141 people across three event
days. With such numbers, we
surpassed the goals for the
event and reached our objective
to develop an event that would
leave a strong legacy for future
editions. We have already
announced an extended floor
plan for EDEX 2020 and the
exhibition will run over four
days instead of three due to the
demand.
EDEX was the largest launch
in the 72-year history of Clarion
Events. This achievement sets
the event as key moment in
our company’s history. Equally
impressive, the event has
already been confirmed on the
launch edition to be the largest
defence exhibition in all of
Africa and one of the biggest in
the world.
What made the event
special?
We provided a platform
for companies to access the
Egyptian market in a way they
couldn’t before – face-to-face.
The event provided a unique
opportunity to assess the extent
to which specialised Egyptian
defence manufacturers
could compete
in international
markets and allowed
exhibitors to assess
the marketability of
their products.
Aside from the
KPIs we exceeded,
the fantastic
feedback from
exhibitors and the
huge number of
visitors queuing out
the doors; the thing
that made the event
most special for
me was the pride of
the Egyptian people. From the
Minister of Defence right down
to the most junior officer there
was unadulterated joy and pride
in what had been achieved. The
event concluded with a huge
firework display to the sounds
of the impressive Military Band,
leaving a lasting impression for
attendees. The effort put in by
everyone was reflected in the
success of the show, and this
was a very special feeling. EN
May — 15