52nd Southampton Boat Show 'postponed'

Show organiser, British Marine has 'postponed' the event due to Covid-19

Following the Covid-19 guidelines regarding large scale gatherings, the marine trade association and boat show organiser, British Marine, has 'postponed' the 52nd edition of the Southampton International Boat Show until September 2021.

The annual 10-day show was due to take place at Southampton’s waterfront Mayflower Park from the 11th of September. Last year saw over 600 marine brands showcased both on the water, on a purpose-built marina, and onshore. Widely thought to be the biggest in the UK and a popular ‘boating extravaganza’ for many, the annual event sees British Marine working closely with Southampton City Council in staging the event with many months of planning and building.

Lesley Robinson, CEO of British Marine said, “The world is in an unprecedented situation with the Covid-19 pandemic and public health is everyone’s priority. Annually, Southampton International Boat Show attracts an attendance of over 100,000, with over 430 exhibitors. An event of this size and format is simply not possible this year and as such, we have made the decision to postpone it until September 2021.” 

Councillor Satvir Kaur, Cabinet Member for Homes and Culture, Southampton City Council, commented “Southampton is known for its jam-packed events calendar and the boat show is one of our biggest and most popular features, attracting tens of thousands of people into our city and putting Southampton on the map. We are keen to revive Southampton’s thriving events offer while working within public health advice and government guidelines. We look forward to welcoming back the boat show and celebrating everything our great city has to offer, when it is safe to do so.”  

British Marine has added, with the government announcement July 3rd, that it will be continuing to explore the options to run an alternative, smaller scale outdoor event and a timetable for events will be revealed next week. Lesley Robinson continues; “As government guidance on Covid-19 evolves, British Marine will continue to work with both exhibitors and key event stakeholders to explore all other opportunities, including an alternative, smaller-scale outdoor event to support the leisure marine industry and its members. British Marine are encouraged by today’s government announcement that they will be setting out a timetable for getting events as Covid-19 secure as possible next week.” 

Lesley said, “we’re naturally very disappointed that we cannot run the event this year in its usual magnitude and format, but the Southampton International Boat Show is a key international event, which will be back stronger than ever in 2021.  We will ensure that we make the 52nd edition one to remember.” 

British Marine is a trade association for the UK leisure, superyacht and small commercial marine industry. It has 1,500 members drawn from both seagoing and inland sectors and represents an industry which employs more than 38,700 people in the UK. The Southampton International Boat Show will be held 10-19 September 2021. 

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