“La Féerie des Marionnettes”. This is the theme of the 2020 edition of the Montluçon Fair which is to take place from Saturday October 3 to Sunday October 11. This is the event of the year for officials of Monev, the organizer, who expect a lot from this event representing almost 80% of annual turnover. Especially since since the start of confinement, all the events organized at the Parc des expositions had to be canceled. What about the Fair? We take stock with Alain Zyla, general manager of Monev.
The marketing of the Fair must have suffered from the coronavirus crisis. In what proportions?
Alain Zyla: “She suffered at the start of confinement, people not having the head to engage in mainstream events. Twenty-five weeks before opening, sales dropped by 46.54%. At the beginning of last week, we resumed commercial contacts to show that we are alongside companies that trust us, in particular by offering them payment facilities. Also, the request for a deposit until May 23 has been reduced from 30 to 10% and the payment of the balance, set for August 28, has been postponed to September 26. Twenty-five companies signed up in a fortnight and the drop in turnover is now less than 30%. “
Information / Registration
Pending the reopening of the offices to the public, Monday, May 11, you can contact 04.70.05.25.25, for all information and registration. Note that in the event of cancellation due to force majeure, companies will be fully reimbursed for the amounts advanced.
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In 2019, the Montluçon Fair had registered more than 21,000 admissions over two days, a figure up on 2018 [07/10/2019]
Are you rather optimistic?
A. Z.: “I am reasonably optimistic. We are in the same boat as the companies and we feel that the latter have confidence in the Montluçon Fair for which it brings a plus. They stand in solidarity with the event and we can feel it in more ways than one. For example, through messages of sympathy. “
Since the cancellation of the International Dog Show on March 14 and 15, how many demonstrations have failed to take place. And which ones?
A. Z.: “The agricultural competition of March 18 and 19, first of all. Regarding the Fair of Saint-Amand, scheduled from May 8 to 10, we are working on a possibility of postponement in late August. Without forgetting several outings from the Gendarmerie School, lotteries … “
“From the beginning of March to the end of June, the loss of turnover amounts to 160,000 euros, or around 15% of the annual turnover. “
Alain Zyla (Managing Director of Monev)
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Any particular concerns for the future?
A. Z.: “No, because at the level of the Monev company, the fundamentals are good, even if, as we have seen, we will be strongly impacted. There are no threats to the sustainability of the business, although we had to make arrangements. And the measures taken by the state have enabled us to cope better, especially with regard to partial unemployment. We can therefore hope to create the right conditions for a successful Fair 2020. ”
Work at the Exhibition Center
At the end of last year, Monev’s board of directors voted a budget of € 800,000 to completely renovate hall C. And the works were due to start in April and finish in late June. “A decision must be taken soon concerning their realization between the end of October and the end of December or their postponement”, specifies Alain Zyla. While hoping for help from the Department and the Region, “because, there too, it would be a plus for the seven companies selected for the site, five from Montluçon, one from Doyet and the last from Saint-Amand-Montrond”.
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Our most beautiful photos from the 2019 edition of the Montluçon Fair
Philippe Werth
Florian Salesse archive photos
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