The foundation which holds the rights to the Geneva Motor Show estimates the value of the event at 15 million francs.
It is on this basis that negotiations will soon be launched with Palexpo, designated as the natural buyer of the Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS).
“We think that this is an honest proposal. This will give Palexpo the opportunity to become the owner of GIMS. (…) I would remind you that the Salon brings Palexpo 30 to 35 million francs a year, a third of its figure “said François Launaz, president of Auto-Suisse, the apex of Swiss car importers, on Tuesday during a press conference.
The organizers of the GIMS gathered the press Tuesday to comment on the decision communicated the day before to abandon the 2021 edition and the show and to sell it to the company Palexpo, majority owned by the State of Geneva. The current owners of the demonstration refused the loan of 16.8 million francs released by the Geneva Grand Council in early June.
“It is time to speed things up. We have been waiting for a solution since March.”
Launaz said that Palexpo officials have agreed to start negotiations. “If we wait until September or October, it would be bad. It would be better to reach an agreement by the end of August,” added Maurice Turrettini, president of the Salon International de l’Automobile Foundation.
The objective would be to maintain sufficient room for maneuver to prepare for the 2022 edition of the GIMS. Holding a salon next year is not entirely out of the question, but the decision will rest with the new owner, said Turrettini.
In the eyes of car importers, Palexpo appears to be the ideal buyer, although initially they were opposed to a takeover by the company. For Maurice Turrettini, things have changed. Sale to Palexpo is now the priority.
If the negotiations were to collapse, the foundation would start looking for a new investor. An interested “person” has already appeared.
The foundation will be liquidated in the long term and its fortune distributed to an association or a foundation working in favor of the automobile, according to François Launaz.
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