Sunshine after the rain

Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell discusses FIT Show’s extra four-month delay.

The FIT Show has moved its dates once again, this time until September.
I think even the most optimistic will find it difficult to imagine life being back to normal by May. And even if it was, you’ve got to take in to account all the work that needs to go into preparing for an exhibition – a difficult task when so much of your daily life has been disrupted.

Making that decision was a wise move: it allows companies to plan and prepare with confidence, and it gives the FIT Show some control over the choice of dates. I imagine many exhibition organisers are scrambling to bag decent post-summer slots after their own shows earlier in the year still look compromised.

Even so, it looks like the organisers couldn’t get exactly the dates they were looking for because they’ve ended up with a Sunday opening. Any other year and I would have sucked my teeth and viewed that dimly. However, this is no ordinary year, and looking at exhibition dates just after the summer, with installers probably eager to work through their (hopefully) bulging order books, and suppliers keen to keep as many people on operations as possible, then opening on a Sunday doesn’t seem such a bad idea.

FIT Show told Glass Times that the move has been warmly received by stakeholders, and it is something that has been requested by some companies for a number of years. Therefore, this year seems as good a year as any to give it a go. Traveling to the NEC on a Sunday morning should certainly be a breeze.

And if we allow ourselves a modicum of optimism, then FIT Show 2021 could end up being quite a party.