If the health of an industry’s trade shows are a reflection of the strength of the industry itself — and that only makes sense — then incentive travel and offsite meetings are in an enviable position. The fourth edition of IMEX America’s, the largest trade show in the U.S. for incentive travel, meetings and events, was its biggest ever, with growth in all key areas.
IMEX Chairman Ray Bloom confirmed that the number of exhibiting companies taking part in the Oct. 14–16 event at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas increased from 2,694 in 2013 to 2,900 this year. The growth was reflected in a 13 percent increase in the size of the show floor. Bloom also touted the growth of the show’s hosted buyer format. “Numbers climbed from 2,000 at launch to reach 2,700 last year. This year we hit over 2,900,” he said.
For the second straight year, Sales & Marketing Management participated as an IMEX media partner.
Bloom said total participants for IMEX America 2014 were 10,000 and that total downloads of the IMEX App had risen by 22 percent to 5,450 compared to last year. “I am delighted with the reception the upgraded IMEX app has received. It’s a valuable tool and a real asset to everyone who uses it.”
On the last day of the show, Bloom recapped some of the key activities from the event, which included the Executive Meeting Forum, a specially-tailored event for senior corporate executives that took place over two days. The event attracted its biggest group to date, with 50 buyers compared to 30 last year. It included high-level representatives from Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Toyota and Wells Fargo, all of whom also spent time on the show floor meeting exhibitors. “These executives are not typical trade show attendees. It is only because IMEX caters very specifically to their needs, and we run it as a high-value private event, that we are able to attract them to the show,” he said.
Earlier this year, Michele Samoulides, senior manager of worldwide reward and recognition programs at Microsoft, told Sales & Marketing Management, “The IMEX shows are the best resource for someone in my position, who is always looking for the new hot spot or a place we hadn’t thought of. For me, IMEX is a place where I have an opportunity to learn about the tried-and-true places that we love that might have new features or the places that we might not have tried because we didn’t think they were ready for us and now they might be. It’s one-stop shopping with everything I can possibly need.”
IMEX 2015 is set for Oct. 13–15 at the Las Vegas Sands Expo.
