The Trade Show Executive (TSE) Dashboard of Monthly Trade Show Metrics for November showed exhibit space jumped 1.4%, exhibitors rose 0.3%, and attendance was up 0.2%. While the numbers weren’t as robust as October’s, they still mark an uptick in a slow-starting quarter. November 2018 had 22 shows – 8 larger than 100,000 nsf, six from the TSE Gold 100 and another four in the TSE Fastest 50. Seven shows saw across-the-board increases while four shows saw their results decline in all metrics.
Read the full report here: https://tinyurl.com/Jan-DASH
Some encouraging and noteworthy things about November’s shows:
- Futuristic topics fueled the successful FABTECH show in Atlanta. Although not included in the report metrics because it was considered an outlier because of its regular rotation between Chicago and an outlier city. The Chicago show is always held in odd numbered years, and is always larger than the other shows. Still, the metrics were impressive compared to its 2016 Las Vegas show – a 12.4.% jump in exhibit space (650,300 nsf), a 14.6% increase in exhibitors (1,650), and 8.5% higher attendance (33,755).
- EDSpaces definitely took up more space in Tampa, with a 10.8% gain in exhibit space, plus several returning exhibitors who had larger booths. Higher international visitors helped boost attendance 4.8% to 2,310.
- Strong growth in attendance (up 27.6%, to 19,858) helped make the American Association of Pediatricians (AAP) National Conference & Exhibition in Orlando a success. It offered 350 different sessions in 70 topic areas.
- Attendance also soared at the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Expo in Orlando. A show-record crowd of 42,000 attendees (a 7.7% increase over last year) and roughly two-thirds of them were classified as qualified buyers. One of the two temporary structures built for the show outside the Orange County Convention Center was called Exploration Station, which housed 140 exhibitors and focused on technology trends in the industry. This year was the IAAPA’s 100th birthday, and they celebrated with a birthday bash reception at Universal Studios Florida for more than 36,000 attendees.
The top trade show cities in November were Atlanta, Orlando and Chicago, respectively.
Looking ahead, it’ll be interesting to see whether a slowdown in residential construction impacts the February 2019 shows during Design and Construction Week, which includes a few large shows.
The biggest is the NAHB International Builders Show – a major event with 605,000 nsf of exhibit space (including new features like the Job Safety Zone and the Hardwood Floor Pavilion), plus 1,500 exhibitors and 65,000 attendees. Four actual houses will be built during set-up, so attendees can walk through them.
Also on tap is the Emerald Expositions’ Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) in Las Vegas, the International Roofing Expo in Nashville, the ARA (American Rental Association) Show, formerly known as The Rental Show, in Anaheim.
Las Vegas will also host MAGIC, the UBM fashion flagship show, which will again hover near the 1 million nsf mark.
