The Northeast Pool and Spa Association has decided to pivot its main event from in-person to a combination of livestreaming activities and on-demand content.

The industry had been keeping its eye on The Pool & Spa Show Powered by NESPA to see if the ban on in-person events would carry into 2021. With NESPA's decision and a similar announcement from the National Plasterers Council earlier in the month, the answer is yes.

"We really thought we had a window [to remain in-person], and Atlantic City thought we had a window," said NESPA Executive Director Dominick Mondi. "But we’re at the point [to pivot]. The COVID-19 numbers in the Northeast are breaking the wrong way. And while things haven’t gotten particularly worse as far as a lockdown, they’re not getting any better."

Named The Pool and Spa Show Experience and scheduled for the original dates -- January 26 – 28, 2021 -- the event will come in a combination of livestreamed events and presentations, as well as on-demand content. "We’re still going to do a lot of the features people love about the show ... but it’s all going to be livestreamed, it’s all going to come through a variety of different media," Mondi said.

NESPA's event, which hosts approximately 11,000 industry professionals, is known for its feeling of community as much as the educational and commerce aspects. To help this translate well online, NESPA has chosen to contract with an event production company called PSAV rather than a virtual-event creator.

For instance, the group expects high-quality video recordings and live presentations of classes and presentations. Content will be broadcast live from Atlantic City and around the region. "We’re going to work with our presenters, to get them out of the Zoom box on their laptop and in front of a real camera to produce content that’s a little more engaging and higher quality," Mondi said. "We’re looking to deliver industry versions of things like the Emmys."

Some live events also will be made available on social media platforms.

Attendees and vendors can expect virtual versions of The Wall -- the popular exhibit showing how the pool circulation system works and how other portions are constructed. Raffles, giveaways, parties and vendor engagement events also will be converted, Mondi said.

The organization is in its early stages of planning, so more information will become available as to how that will look.

Registration details also must be figured out. Mondi expects it to open up in early December.