PLMA cancels January trade show
The Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA) has announced that the upcoming Private Label Trade Show in Chicago has been canceled.
Originally scheduled for Nov. 14, the show was moved to Jan. 30- Feb.1, 2022, due to COVID-19 safety concerns but the pandemic is still cause for concern. The event will no longer be held due to COVID-19-related travel restrictions. The announcement comes a month after the PLMA said its World of Private Label show in Amsterdam would be moved from Dec. 14-15 to next summer out of COVID-19 safety concerns.
“This action was taken for a number of reasons, all related to the impact of COVID-19 on the safe movement of exhibitors and visitors who annually attend our Chicago show,” said PLMA president Peggy Davies.
The PLMA has plans for three major trade shows for retailers and store brand manufacturers during 2022: PLMA Global, a new online event set for March 28-31; the annual World of Private Label show in Amsterdam, May 31-June 1; and the traditional fall Chicago show, November 13-15.
Due to the current COVID-19 situation, the in-person Chicago show is not possible for Jan. 30-Feb.1, Davies explained, adding that the outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has led to tougher restrictions on international travel.
“Because of the surge in cases nationwide, we are seeing an extension into 2022 of corporate travel limitations, if not new outright bans,” she said. “With the onset of colder weather and more indoor gatherings, an uptick in cases in the U.S. was predicted by most experts, but its extent has been greater than anticipated.”
In February, PLMA presented a virtual trade show called Private Label Week, a week-long virtual event that ushered in a proprietary online platform that managed more than 2,000 live video calls between manufacturers and retailers during the week and garnered 500,000 page views.
In November, PLMA also launched a new feature for its members in partnership with IRI. Members gain access to the Unify platform and the program's rolling, customized sales data.
The Unify tool aims to reduce a user’s time to insights using the platform’s interactive dashboards and data visualization tools, giving partner companies more time to analyze and identify business opportunities and issues. It also includes a bookmarking feature, help desk and other user-friendly tools.
Founded in 1979, the group represents 4,500 private label member companies in more than 75 countries.