Goodbye car shows. The motor shows that for years were the beating heart of the motor sector are definitively dead. The last nail in the coffin of these events was put by the chicest, most important and historic show: that of Geneva. Yes, because the organizers – confessing that the last edition was a total disappointment, especially in terms of the participation of car manufacturers – have miserably thrown in the towel.
A farewell that weighs because the one in Geneva was the key event, the one on “neutral ground”, where no manufacturer was at home. An “exhibition” situation of parity light years away from the French and German car festivals, aka the Paris or Frankfurt motor shows. Thus all the most important cars in the world were presented at the Swiss event. For years. But enough is enough.
The collapse began in 2020: Swiss authorities canceled the meeting and banned all public and private gatherings attended by more than 1,000 people due to coronavirus fears. The announcement was made just a few days before the motor show was scheduled to open. Tickets had already been sold and the stands were all set up. A very hard economic blow for the organizers who in fact never got up again.
Faced with an uncertain future, it was then decided to cancel other editions and to seek a relaunch with two shows: one in Geneva and one in Doha, Qatar. But it didn’t work. We then returned to the classic. However, the 2024 edition was also a failure: a fifth of the expected visitors and many defections on the part of the car manufacturers. The proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back.
“The disinterest shown by manufacturers at the Geneva Motor Show in a difficult industrial context, the competition from the Paris and Munich motor shows, favored by the national industry, and the level of investments necessary to maintain such a motor show, sound the final blow for the next edition“, explained Alexandre de Senarclens, president of the organizing committee. A declaration of infinite sadness because with the one in Geneva not only the Swiss event dies, but all motor shows. Only those linked to the passion for vintage cars remain standing. When the past beats the future.
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