The ASGA & FESPA HP National Conference which was scheduled to take place in Sydney on Friday 19 February 2021, has now been cancelled. However, the HP Awards For Excellence will continue to take place and has been rescheduled to 28 September 2021 in Melbourne. As well as being a night of nights to recognise outstanding achievements in the industry, it will also be a great kick-start to Visual Impact / PacPrint21.

“Although disappointing, both the ASGA and FESPA Boards have decided that due to the continuing disruption caused by COVID, we felt it best to cancel the conference’, says Julie Rochester, President of ASGA. “We were also concerned that we may not be able to match exhibitor and visitor expectations of the event if we were to go ahead in February. Delaying the Awards night to coincide with a major industry event makes sense. We believe that by September 2021 there will be minimal event disruptions due to COVID and there will be an eagerness for people to network and celebrate the industry’s successes in person. With an ongoing demand for information and training, online webinars and training courses have proven popular in 2020. For this reason, it didn’t make sense to delay the delivery of the conference material until September. Instead, the ASGA will present a series of webinars in 2021 which we’re really excited about.”

FESPA Australia President Nigel Davies agrees. “Although restrictions are lifting, conditions are still unpredictable and uncertain. Originally scheduled for the 1st of May 2020, we are very grateful for the patience of the sponsors and award entrants. Consultation with sponsors on this latest delay has been positive as too has initial feedback from Award entrants. All 2020 Awards Finalists will receive a digital badge which can be utilized for marketing purposes until the category wins are announced at the Presentation Dinner which we believe will be seen as a win-win for this latest postponement.”

Our industry has shown, more than ever, resilience, creativity, diversity and more importantly patience in adapting to the changes that have been forced upon us. However, we are finding that at last, there is an air of hope and optimism as we look towards 2021.