Geneva salon ends, GIMS Qatar to take lead in future efforts

By Serdar Dincel

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) announced Friday that the Permanent Committee of the International Motor Show has decided "not to organize the next edition of the Geneva Salon, due to an uncertain outlook."

"While the February 2024 relaunch edition intended to reposition and perpetuate the Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) after a four-year absence due to COVID-19, the Board of the Comité permanent du Salon international de l’automobile Foundation notes that there are too many uncertainties linked to the automotive industry and the eroded attractiveness of the major European shows to take the risk of investing further into the future," the GIMS said in a statement.

“This extremely regrettable decision should not detract from the efforts and determination with which we have tried to regain our success. However, it has to be said that the lack of interest shown by manufacturers in the Geneva Salon in a difficult industry context, the competition from the Paris and Munich shows which are favored by their domestic industry, and the investment levels required to maintain such a show, sound the final blow for a future edition,” it cited the President of the Permanent Committee of the International Motor Show, Alexandre de Senarclens.

The statement noted that "The Geneva International Motor Show Qatar is planned to take place in November 2025."

"The Board … as part of its responsibilities, will formally request authorization from the cantonal supervisory authority for foundations (ASFIP) to dissolve the Foundation," it added.

The GIMS was first held in 1905 and became, for decades, one of the most important auto shows in the world. There has been, however, a sharp decline in the number of exhibitors and visitors in recent years.