On 10 May the Fiera Milano board of directors, chaired by Carlo Bonomi, approved the consolidated interim management report for the first quarter.
Revenues from sales and services amounted to 1.5 million euros compared to 47.6 million euros in the first quarter of 2020, following the absence of events. Ebitda is in line with forecasts and negative for 9.9 million euros compared to a positive value of 15.0 million euros in the first quarter of 2020 due to the aforementioned revenue trend.
The results for the quarter reflect the suspension of exhibition and congress activities in Italy following the measures to combat the pandemic and prevent the infection from Covid-19 adopted by the government, which prevented the organization of events in attendance.
In view of this, the company has endeavored to reschedule the events scheduled for the period under review by continuing to contain management and personnel costs, including the use of the Salary Integration Fund.
In the second part of February, the Fiera Milano board of directors presented the new 2021-2025 Strategic Plan “Conn.E.C.T. 2025 ”(acronym for Connections, Exhibitions, Community, Transformation).The aim of the plan is to respond effectively to the impact of the pandemic, outlining future scenarios and identifying the key factors for successfully competing in a “New Normal” context, in which technological innovation and digital transformation will play a role prominent.
The previous business model, which was mainly based on physical events, was revised to develop an integrated services platform capable of offering a “phygital” customer experience.
At the same time, the purpose was defined and the mission and corporate values were revised.
The Fiera Milano board of directors in the person of the CEO and general manager of Fiera Milano, Luca Palermo, commented: “The” Reopening “Decree-Law of last April, which sanctioned the green light for the resumption of fairs and congresses in attendance, gives us the opportunity to resume doing business for and with our customers. During the first quarter, we laid the foundations for a quick and solid restart. Conn.E.C.T. 2025 has traced the path that will guide us in the coming years. The second part of the year sees the presence of a very busy schedule: we took advantage of every useful time window to offer companies the opportunity to return to our pavilions and concretely contribute to the relaunch of the country. The trade fair business represents a strategic instrument of industrial policy and guarantees fundamental support for the activity of the production chains and for the promotion of Made in Italy in the world.