The Geneva Motor Show will return next year in a slimmed-down, revamped format that organizers say will put "the car at the center."
The long-running Swiss event hasn't taken place for the past four years, after the 2020 edition was canceled due to the pandemic and "uncertainties in the global economy" prevented a comeback in 2023.
The Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) recently held its first event since 2019, with a new Geneva-branded spin-off show in Qatar. This is intended to be a biennial event, while the plan is for the main Geneva show to run every year.
The 2024 event is scheduled to run from February 25 to March 3, and boss Sandro Mesquita told Autocar that there is "no doubt at all" that it will go ahead. "It is important to say that it is confirmed," he added. "The only question will be the size, because that will depend on the number [of manufacturers]. But we have enough responses to confirm we can move forward."
Mesquita said: “I believe there is a place for the Geneva show in Europe. I was at the Paris show [in 2022] and in Munich, and Geneva remains different. We will continue to be a motor show with the car at the centre. We will not be a mobility show: that is not our DNA or vision. We will put the car at the centre, although we will welcome in the ecosystem around it, such as charging.”
Mesquita did acknowledge that the show will be smaller than in previous years and hinted at the challenges of reviving the event after a five-year break. “It’s the first time after the pandemic, so we need to restart the engine, “ he said. “We’re working to have a good quality of exhibitors. That’s the main objective.”
The main show will remain largely based in the traditional exhibition centre but Mesquita said it will be revamped to decrease costs and offer a better return on investment for exhibitors. Manufacturers can continue to have custom stands but can also buy “plug-and-play booths”.
Source: Autocar