Milan's Salone del Mobile has revealed plans for a digital version of the fair amid rising concerns over whether the rescheduled September event can go ahead.
Fair organisers last week called on the Italian government to give a series of assurances that will allow the event to take place from 5 to 10 September.
"Everyone wants to go to the Salone for business but also to rediscover that socialisation which has been lacking so much in these very hard and painful months of the pandemic," said Salone del Mobile president Claudio Luti.
"But it is essential that the institutions give us precise answers. We are waiting for certainties from the government."
Go-ahead dependent on government decree
In a press release published last week, Luti urged the government to set out a path that will allow the event to go ahead when it issues its next ministerial decree on the pandemic, or DPCM, on 6 April. He asked the authorities for clarity on the vaccination programme, health passports and the resumption of international flights, as well as the holding of trade fairs, which are currently banned.
"We will only be able to confirm [the fair] if the DPCM on 6 April gives a green light for fairs to take place," Luti said.

"It is essential we get a certain date for the restarting of trade fairs in the next DPCM, but also a definition of the vaccine plan and a realistic timetable to achieve levels of vaccination that will allow Italy to be considered a safe co...