Daily News
From Home Furnishing Business
High Point Premarket Cancelled Due to Coronavirus Concerns
March 12,
2020 by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, High Point, Industry, Market 
The Premarket Committee for next week’s Premarket event, originally scheduled for March 16-17, met today and have decided to cancel Premarket in response to the growing Coronavirus (COVID 19) concerns.
All 17 sponsoring companies agree that it was a difficult decision but that it is in the best interest of all parties concerned.
“Because of the uncertainties created by the Coronavirus (COVID-19), committee members unanimously made the decision to cancel the event,” said Doug Bassett, chairman of the Premarket Committee and president of Vaughan-Bassett Furniture. "Based on the developments of the last 24 hours, which have included the cancellation of college basketball games, major league baseball games and hockey games, coupled with the guidelines issued by Governor Cooper, we felt the only decision we could make was to cancel Premarket.”
On March 10, Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency for North Carolina amid Coronavirus concerns, a day after officials announced a total of seven positive COVID-19 cases in the state. An announcement from Raleigh is expected at 4:00 p.m. this afternoon with recommendations to limit gatherings to no more than 100 people, and to stay at least 6 feet away from others during those gatherings. These recommendations would make it very difficult to conduct premarket.
Bassett said, "Premarket is about 500 people coming together across several buildings in 18 showrooms. Given the nature of premarket and the guidance from Raleigh, and nationwide, the proper thing to do for dealers, the reps, and the local community is to cancel Premarket."
There is no plan to reschedule according to Bassett.
Premarket takes place each spring and fall, about 6 weeks in advance of High Point Market. Each sponsoring exhibitor commits to providing a near market-ready amount of product. They also pool resources to bring selected retailers for a preview of goods and the opportunity for final tweaking of product details. The event is organized by a committee of sponsoring showrooms, who then contracts with the High Point Market Authority to provide strategic direction, staffing, and logistical support.