MUNICH – The next edition of the Performance Days trade fair, scheduled for May, will take place online only following ongoing concerns about coronavirus-related travel restrictions.

Organisers say the ongoing pandemic makes it “difficult or even impossible for many manufacturers and trade fair visitors to participate”. It will subsequently be replaced by a digital event to be held across the week starting May 17th.

Marco Weichert, founder and general manager of Performance Days, says the elongated digital showcase will “provide the industry with even more updates on the season’s fabric innovations, along with important additional information and the provision of intensive networking opportunities”.

Set to be hosted on the event’s Loop platform, which was launched just last month, organisers say the digital fair will retain the features of its typical physical events, held every May in Munich.

This includes a programme of informative talks as well as a marketplace for visitors to browse a curated collection of the latest functional fabrics. To this end, Performance Days has integrated 3D imaging tools and video animations to optimise the experience for viewers, who can get a realistic rendering of the products they cast their eyes over.

What’s more, Performance Days promises “comprehensive networking opportunities” amongst attendees, with an interactive Q&A feature to be installed amidst scheduled discussions.

Looking ahead, organisers are confident that order will be resumed come December, when the fair returns once more to Bavaria. Before then, its Functional Fabric Fair spin-off will land in both Portland and – for the first time – Shanghai.