Ipex 2014 hit with second major digital withdrawal

Following last summer's surprise decision by HP - the largest exhibitor at Ipex 2010 - not to attend the 2014 event, Xerox has followed suit in pulling out of the inaugural Excel-based outing of the four-yearly trade show.

According to the Ipex 2014 floorplan published following HP's withdrawal in June last year, Xerox was set to be the third largest digital exhibitor, with a floorspace of 2,187sqm, after Canon (2,584.5sqm) and Ricoh (2,349sqm).

Jeff Jacobson, president of Xerox Global Graphic Communications, announced the decision "not to participate in Ipex 2014" in a blog, published two working days before Christmas, on 21 December.

In it, he wrote: "With the marketing landscape changing as fast as the Graphic Communications industry, we are re-evaluating how best to reach customers and prospects, and have decided not to participate in IPEX 2014.

"As an anchor exhibitor for many years, this decision was not an easy one. But we listened to what our customers were saying around the globe and their direction to us was very clear. They wanted to connect with us in different ways, with regional and personal engagements."

He went on to confirm that the digital manufacturer would continue to attend the Hunkeler Innovation Days in Lucerne, Switzerland next month, due to its focus on continuous feed digital printing, which he described as "an important offering to our customers and the industry".

"We’re dedicating our resources to more global targeted customer facing events," added Jacobson, with the exception being Drupa, which he said Xerox still intended to participate in.

Jacobson highlighted the Xerox Premier Partners Global Network, Real Business! Live, webinars and virtual and on-site trade shows as areas it would be concentrating its marketing spend on.

"While change is inevitable – and that means we’ll be doing things differently – our commitment remains the same," he added. "We’re dedicated to helping graphic communications professionals grow their business and prosper."

Ipex 2014 organiser Informa Exhibitions was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.