1:11 pm, March 31, 2020
Organisers have canned this year’s Paris Motor Show because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Due to run from October 1 to 11, with press previews in the two days running up to it, the biennial event drew more than a million visitors in 2018, but last night organisers said that both the uncertainty being caused by Covid-19 and the resulting economic ‘shock wave’ had forced them to scrap it, although ancillary events Movin’On and the Smart City aren’t affected for now.
In a statement, they said: ‘In light of the seriousness of this unprecedented health crisis and its consequent economic shock wave, which has severely struck the automotive sector, we are forced to announce that we will not be able to hold the 2020 Paris Motor Show in its current format at the Porte de Versailles.’
They added:
‘We are thoroughly examining all alternative solutions with our main partners. The deep reinvention of the event that we had already initiated, particularly with the festival dimension around sustainable mobility as well as an important business-to-business section, could offer this opportunity.
‘Nothing will ever be the same, but from this crisis we must learn to become agile, creative and more innovative than ever.
‘As for now, our thoughts go to those directly affected by the pandemic, our healthcare personnel, as well as our clients who have to face, with solid determination, the economic impact of this crisis on their companies.’
It follows similar decisions for Geneva and New York.
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