Brisbane expo postponed again, new dates for Sydney event

It’s all tospy-turvy on the franchising expo calendar as the Brisbane expo has once again been postponed due to uncertainty over Covid-19 restrictions in Australia’s eastern states.

Re-scheduled earlier this year from its June spot to 8 and 9 October 2021, the Brisbane Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo will now take place five months later and kick off the expo trail in 2022.

The new dates for the show are Friday 4 and Saturday 5 March, 2022 which means the Sydney expo scheduled for just three weeks later has moved to 27 and 28 May 2022.

Organisers Specialised Events have been plagued by lockdowns, with the Sydney 2021 expo the firm’s only franchise event to take place in the last 18 months.

Melbourne’s expo is now the next in the diary with a pre-Christmas schedule of 26 and 27 November 2021.

Exhibition manager Fiona Stacey said “When we rescheduled the Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo in Brisbane to October we were confident that conditions would allow the show to run successfully. Unfortunately there have since been major breakouts in Melbourne and Sydney. Queensland is currently in good shape but only one case away from lockdown.”

Specialised Events surveyed exhibitors for their feedback on the show dates before making a decision to reschedule.

“There were major concerns around the event proceeding on the original dates,” Stacey revealed.

“More than half indicated they would not be able to send staff to Brisbane and others raised concerns around bringing people together at this time. The worst possible outcome would be getting close to the show and having a snap lockdown.”

Rescheduling the show to March next year will give the Brisbane expo a strong base to do business, Stacey said.

“By this time almost everyone will be vaccinated, borders will be open and people will be keen to meet and talk about a new brighter future working for themselves,” she said.

Revised dates for Franchising & Business Opportunities Expos: