Because health is everyone’s priority, and the pandemic in Europe is still critical, MODTISSIMO’s organization decided not to hold the next edition in a face-to-face format. “As much as it saddens us, we won’t be able to hug at the Alfândega do Porto Building, on March 10th and 11th”, says Manuel Serrão, CEO of Associação Selectiva Moda. The organization is working on a digital alternative to maintain its proximity to the sector, and is already planning the reunion for the next semester.
MODTISSIMO’s 57th edition was scheduled for March 10th and 11th, at the Alfândega do Porto building, but the current sanitary crisis forces the biggest and most relevant Portuguese textile event to change plans, in order to guarantee safety and the health of all stakeholders: exhibitors, Portuguese and international visitors, and employees. This Spring-Summer edition will be moved, as far as possible, to digital platforms, while the organization is already planning to meet again face-to-face on the next semester.
“As much as it saddens us, we won’t be able to hug at the Alfândega do Porto Building, on March 10th and 11th. For the first time in 29 years, we will not be able to hold Modtissimo in person, as it has always been. May it be for the good of everyone’s health”, stated Manual Serrão, CEO of Associação Selectiva Moda, responsible for the event’s organization.
After in September having proved that it is possible to hold an event safely during a pandemic, with the Alfândega do Porto halls – a building with Covid Safe certification – guaranteeing the necessary conditions for a safe MODtissimo, the organization kept hope until the last moment. “We kept our hope and postponed the decision for as long as we could. Now, less than a month before MODtissimo 57 should open its doors, we are forced to admit that there are no legal conditions to keep the next edition in the same standards as the previous ones”, explains the CEO of Associação Selectiva Moda.
At the moment, the MODTISSIMO organization is working on a digital platform, which will meet the needs of exhibitors and visitors, making it possible to maintain contacts and present product. The event’s online platform had already been improved in the last edition, and Associação Selectiva Moda is preparing to present novelties in the coming days.
The return to the face-to-face format is postponed until the next semester, with the expectation that conditions for the meeting between professionals in the Portuguese textile industry with national and international buyers will happen once again. “Times change, wills change. What does not change is our willingness to continue to support the promotion of our textile and clothing industry. In a time of uncertainty, this is something they can be certain of”, promises Manuel Serrão.
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