The start of 2022 has been a busy yet exciting few months for the events industry, resulting in some of the highest show numbers we’ve seen since before the pandemic. We went into this year with an uncertain landscape of the future of our industry but with a growing appetite to return to live event experiences, we had to find a way to grow and progress. So, before we embark on a busy summer period, we wanted to reflect on some of the highlights of our year so far.
No project is too big, or too small, for the team here at Cook + Associates and with 52 projects over 26 shows in 6 months – our event plan is well on its way back to being in full swing after nearly 2 years of physical inactivity.
So far this year we’ve grown our team with 4 new members. The culture and team here at Cook + Associates have and will always be the centre point for our success, we hope our new additions to the team will be key players as we further expand our capabilities into new markets to design many more memorable experiences.
We kicked off the year with a bang as we returned to Singapore Airshow 2022. Singapore Airshow was the last major event we attended before the lockdown of 2020; 2 years later, we were back with 6 clients in toe. From Chalet’s to stands, the event acted as a major turning point for events especially in Asia- showcasing that once again safe events still take place. As we moved through February and March, defence shows seemed to be all the rage as we attended World Defence Show in Saudi Arabia and DSA in Malaysia. Rounding off the month with a trip to Heli Expo.
Our American team were kept busy in April, with 10 projects across the nation. Starting at AAAA in Tennessee and finishing with 5 of our long-term clients attended MRO America, turning out to be a huge success as one of the largest, most well-attended aviation events since pre-pandemic.
Nicknamed manic May, the month held court for our busiest period, – hosting 17 projects at 8 events across 4 continents. The month began in Paris at JEC World. As Official Suppliers for the show in both 2022 and 2023, it was great to finally be at the event in person after 2 years of postponement.
JEC was then quickly followed by the ‘big one’ as we represented Qatar Airways’ return to the Arabian Travel Market for the first time in 5 years. Our design was a uniquely different experiential concept that reflected QA’s 5-star service through a luxurious on stand environment, innovative experiential elements, and VIP networking – you can find out more here.
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Following several new client wins in the financial services and insurance sectors, including Investec, RSA and Davies Group with we were off up north to Manchester for BIBA 2022. Our development into these sectors is part of our strategic expansion into new markets, with more partnerships with other new clients throughout the rest of the year.
To round off the month we were back at EBACE. We have supported clients at this show since its premiere in 2001, so we were thrilled to be back in 2022.  It’s all about the finer details for EBACE, and that’s exactly what we delivered especially for client Qatar Executive. With a challenge of just 4 weeks from sign off to delivery, we made sure their stand was picture-perfect and ready for the show opening.
It’s fantastic to be able to have these good news stories to tell and to see these kinds of project numbers again after just 6 months of 2022. Spring has been one of the most fantastic few months for the team with some amazing projects delivered for some very happy clients. We’re excited to see what’s in store for the rest of the year.