Despite hopes of offering an event later this year, the Airdrie Chamber of Commerce (ACC) has officially announced the cancellation of the 2020 Home & Lifestyle Show.
“We had hoped to possibly postpone it to a later event, or possibly even do something outdoors, but we finally came to the decision that we will simply not be hosting an exhibitor event in 2020,” said ACC Executive Director Marilyne Aalhus.
According to Aalhus, ACC’s board made the decision Aug. 7 and announced the cancellation via press release Aug. 10.
The Home & Lifestyle Show has been an annual fixture in Airdrie for more than 40 years, she said.
“I don’t know for certain, but I would dare to say this is possibly the first time it’s ever been cancelled,” she said.
Cancelling the signature event for the year will no doubt be felt deeply in the community, she added.
“We’re going to miss it dearly,” she said. “It is always something we truly look forward to every year – working with our community and really seeing Airdrie come together. It’s really sad; it’s very disappointing. In a weird way, honestly, the reality hasn’t really hit us yet. We can only look forward, we can only look toward what 2021 can bring."
The Home & Lifestyle Show typically takes place every year in the spring, but this year, was initially postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Aalhus said ACC planned to delay the show until early October and was working with a variety of partners to make that a reality before ultimately deciding to cancel the event outright.
While half of the show’s exhibitors requested a refund when the spring show was initially postponed, Aalhus said the other half remained interested in participating in the fall.
“We still had a positive number of people that were interested,” she said. “It’s very challenging to know what their decision would have been by fall.”
Aalhus said the decision to cancel the event was ultimately based “on safety and well-being and wellness for our community.” The event is typically very busy, and Aalhus anticipated it would have been difficult to adhere to social distancing guidelines.
“It was also a decision based on the fact that members do spend a lot of time and effort to be involved in these types of events and we wanted to make sure that we provided them with the highest quality and best experience that we could,” she said. “When you don’t know what your numbers are going to look like and you don’t know if the community will feel comfortable attending this type of event, you obviously hesitate.”
The decision to cancel the Home & Lifestyle Show will have financial ramifications for ACC, according to Aalhus. While she would not disclose specific numbers, she said the show is the organization’s largest annual event and cancelling it would have a “significant impact.”
She said the Chamber is exploring other revenue sources for 2020 instead.
“We’re still moving forward with events that we feel are safe, such as our golf tournament and our Airdrie Business Awards,” she said.
Looking forward to the rest of the year, Aalhus said ACC is pivoting to promote Airdrie businesses in new ways. A new local shopping campaign – a partnership between the City of Airdrie and ACC – is planned to be unveiled later this year, she said.
Ben Sherick, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @BenSherick
