At the Second China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai last year, a new sparkle was added by the launch of the Extraordinary Italian Jewelry Pavilion that brought 15 iconic jewelry brands from Italy. It was an initiative of the Italian national gold jewelry manufacturers'association and Shanghai-based Chinese jewelry brand Vetiver, who also signed an agreement to introduce more Italian jewelry manufacturers to the Chinese market. This year too, Vetiver is gearing up for the Third CIIE, to be held from November 5 to 10. It will be its third attendance at the fair. However, this time, the urgency is far greater.
"Italian jewelers'traditional and mainstream markets used to be Europe and the U.S. But now, as they grapple with the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), China is their new hope for 2020,"Chen Haiyan, co-founder of Vetiver, told Guangming Daily. Despite COVID-19 becoming a pandemic, the Third CIIE will be held offline as scheduled as the situation in China is under control and preparations are in full swing. When the 100-day countdown to the event started, Sun Chenghai, Deputy Direct or of the CIIE Bureau, said the pandemic has not dampened exhibitors'enthusiasm. In the three exhibition areas for consumer goods, medical equipment and healthcare products, and trade in services, the stalls booked by them have surpassed the originally scheduled space. The automobile area is also close to being fully booked. "It seems the epidemic has had limited impact on exhibitors," Zhou Lingyan, Deputy General Manager of the CIIE Department of the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the venue of CIIE, told Xinhua News Agency in February. In February, CIIE also held its first webinar where companies could sign up online.
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