«ParkZoo Digital» – the first virtual international exhibition of pet industry
On September, 28, until October, 2, 2020 Russia hosted the first in the history of domestic pet business online exhibition «ParkZoo Digital». It welcomed 73 exhibitors — manufacturers, distributors, and overseas suppliers who want to launch on the Russian market. They presented a various range of products for pets: food, treats and feed additives, care products and cat litters, veterinary medicines and veterinary equipment, accessories, aquariums and much more.
The online format allowed to follow quarantine restrictions and to avoid risks. At the same time, it gave exhibitors and visitors opportunities to solve relevant business issues at the beginning of the autumn season: establish new contacts, make orders, review conditions, present new products, and find out the latest trends.
Participating companies presented their trade offers, news and new products, videos, as well as broadcasts from stands and webinars. The platform provided them with the opportunity to communicate with visitors via online chat, schedule meetings and meet within video conferences.
Guests from all over the world
Approximately 2,500 people visited the «ParkZoo Digital» exhibition – professionals from Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and other countries: 31 countries in total. Almost one third (29%) of all visitors are newcomers, those who never visited the exhibition before.
Traditionally, ParkZoo's strength is its business program. This year was not an exception: experts from the analytical agencies RNC Pharma and Nielsen shared the latest statistics and talked about current trends in sales of veterinary medicines and pet products in Russia. Yulia Dolzhenkova, an expert from Zooinform made a presentation about the pandemic's impact on the global and domestic pet market and development trends. Visitors were also able to visit a workshop on financial planning from Natalia Rylkova, Financial Director of the Goldfish company. More than 400 people attended the «ParkZoo Digital» seminars.
Course to an omnichannel fair
«ParkZoo Digital» was one of the first digital exhibitions in Russia. Despite the very fact that the organizers and exhibitors had little time to organize and master the new format, they did an excellent job and made the event productive.
The new format of the «ParkZoo» exhibition has absolute advantages. These are new users who, for various reasons, don't visit the event physically, but found the online format attractive. This means more communication opportunities — the exhibition can be visited by people from different time zones, broadcasts can be viewed in recordings at a time when it is convenient for each visitor, and even within the next month. This is an opportunity to talk and meet online with the owners and leaders of companies and their top management at a certain designated time.
"The digital format proved to be quite effective, and most of the participants and visitors were satisfied with the results. It is very important that the restrictions associated with the pandemic did not become an obstacle to one of the most important annual events of the pet business, — commented on the results of the exhibition, its Director Natalia Morgunova. — We live in an era of change, and «ParkZoo» is moving forward with the entire industry, mastering new technologies and new opportunities. Therefore, I believe that in the future the exhibition will be multi-channel, and the online platform will become an integral part of the traditional «ParkZoo»."
In her letter of thanks, Natalia Morgunova called the participants and guests of the exhibition the most progressive and innovative representatives of the Russian pet industry. And invited everyone to the 10th «ParkZoo» international exhibition of pet industry, which is scheduled for 22–24 September 2021, Moscow, Russia.
