It takes a British event organizer to bring the real fun and the most serious MICE business to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas for IMEX America 2024.
IMEX, based in Hove, England, has been organizing the two most successful Meeting and Incentive Trade Shows in the World: IMEX Frankfurt and IMEX America in Las Vegas.
15,500 did lots of business and had fun during IMEX America 2024 last week.
During the three days from October 8-10 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, 5,500 buyers participated in 86,000 pre-scheduled meetings. Not even the $8 coffee charged by the convention center took the fun away from attending delegates- and there was plenty of free champagne, even a Duesseldorf Killepitch, and much more when exploring the floors.
The 13th edition of the show reflected a buoyant meetings and events sector, with strong business pipelines evident in the meetings, connections, and conversations across the busy show floor and at hundreds of fringe events.
The incentive travel industry was among the sectors reporting growth; Virgin Atlantic shared a renewed focus on incentive travel and created a new role to meet demand in that sector. Elsewhere, SITE (Society for Incentive Travel Excellence) launched the latest edition of its Incentive Travel Index, revealing the industry is expected to grow even further over the next two years: by 2026, 45 percent of buyers expect incentive travel activity to be above or significantly above 2024 levels.
The strong appetite for personal and professional development was clear from the record attendance at the education program: over 1,600 people attended learning sessions held at the show floor’s Inspiration Hub. Trailblazing event specialist Holly Ransom shared her pragmatic take on leadership, moderating a series of sessions as part of a new Emergent Leadership Day. In the Ideas theater next door, the #Eventprofs Unplugged format continued to impress with standing room only at several informal, chat show-style panels.
The boutique Brand Experience Summit held at Allegiant Stadium was a highly talked-about new addition to the show. Created in partnership with InVision, LVCVA, and Allegiant Stadium Private Events, the Summit brought together senior-level marketers to understand how they can better use events as a key marketing channel to drive brand loyalty, trust, engagement, and business outcomes.
Trust was very much the watchword of the show, with many citing it as the bedrock of their face-to-face connections: Gina Henrickson from Hyatt Hotels, whose wellness activations were designed to help booth attendees be more intentional about their health, explained, “Our approach is to bring people together with a deeper sense of trust, connection, and well-being.”
Cheryl Lacriarde from Virgin Atlantic added: “Having a face-to-face conversation is always better for me than a virtual one because I can pick up on a vibe if they’re not serious about doing business.”
Carina Bauer, IMEX CEO, concluded: “We’re delighted that the global business events community has reconvened in such substantial numbers here this week, bringing with them a desire to meet with purpose and forge connections for mutual long-term gain. The show’s broader catalytic effect has shone through in the many fringe events, activities, and celebrations on and off the show floor—it’s exciting to see how people have used the show’s platform to elevate their impact and experience.
“The sheer number of attendees and meetings at IMEX America this week is further evidence of how our sector continues to prosper and power ahead,” said Carina.
Speaking at the show’s traditional closing press conference alongside IMEX Chairman Ray Bloom and CEO Carina Bauer were Rebecca DeLuca, Vice President of Destination Sales at the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; Stephanie Glanzer, Chief Sales Officer & Senior Vice President at MGM Resorts International and Drew Holmgreen, Chief Experience Officer at Meeting Professionals International.
eTurboNews was a proud media partner of IMEX America and exhibited at the event.
