2012 Gold Rush - Trade Show Executive

TSE DASHBOARD
SPONSORED BY
September Shows Dive, but Outliers Thrive
BY DARLENE GUDEA, president; CAROL ANDREWS, editor-at-large, and HIL ANDERSON, senior editor
Oceanside, CA – Trade shows in September
reflected a collective split personality. In
general, annual expositions suffered overall
declines while the larger, non-annual
shows reported across-the-board gains,
according to the Trade Show Executive (TSE)
Monthly Dashboard of Trade Show Metrics.
Big names such as the quadrennial
MINExpo International, the biennial International
Manufacturing Technology Show
Q3 Ends Quietly
If these were still the days of “Flat is
the new up,” then the Third Quarter
of 2012 would have been a good one.
While the trade show industry expected
some upward momentum this
year, Q3 numbers were disappointing,
refl ecting little change from the Third
Quarter of 2011. With all metrics
declining in September and dragging
down previous gains, exhibit space
ended up with a 0.4% sliver of growth
in Q3. Exhibitor count crept up 0.8%
but attendance took a baby step
backwards with a (0.3)% decline.
The Second Quarter had been more
encouraging. Attendance in Q2 increased
4.6%, although exhibit space and
exhibitor count were up only slightly.
At the very least, trade shows in the
Third Quarter of 2012 outshined the
Third Quarter of 2011. Trade show
performance in July, August and September
of 2011 was on the fl at side
with little or no growth in any of the
three metrics. September was a tough
month not only this year but in 2011
as well; exhibit space dropped even
more at that time — a painful (4.3)%.
The current year is still projected to
end on the upside, according to Trade
Show Executive’s Exposition Forecasting
Board. The latest growth forecast
calls for 2.4% growth in exhibit
space; 2.8% in number of exhibitors;
and 2.7% in total attendance to close
out the year on a decent note.
24 November 2012 | Trade Show Executive
(IMTS), and the biennial Labelexpo Americas
were included in the listings but not
tabulated in the overall statistical analysis
due to their non-annual schedule.
At the end of the day, all three
metrics for September shows were in the
red. Exhibit space dipped (2.2)% from
last year; exhibitors fell a modest (0.8)%
and attendance was the worst performer,
dropping (2.4)%.
Among the annual events, it was the
smaller ones that appeared to be losing
the most traction when compared to their
2011 editions. An unusually large number
of shows — 12 out of 21 — lost ground in
at least one of the three metrics. In addition,
4 of the 21 shows were down in all
three metrics. Because of their small size,
seemingly modest declines were magnified
into double-digit percentage drops;
some shows were in the red by (25)%.
The larger annual events did well.
Seven of the 21 shows surveyed for
the Dashboard in September were large
enough to be part of the TSE Gold 100
roster of largest U.S. trade shows, and
by and large reported gains in all three
metrics. Their large numerical gains
propped up the overall averages.
The adjusted totals for September
(excluding outliers and non-annual
shows) came to 2,062,763 net square
feet (nsf) of exhibit space; 7,909
exhibitors; and 153,268 attendees.
That averaged out to 128,923 nsf, 494
exhibitors and 9,579 attendees per show.
Outstanding Outliers
The outliers in the September Dashboard
were a formidable group and reflected
a more positive growth picture than the
analyzed shows. The IMTS, MINExpo and
Labelexpo were all excluded because of
their non-annual nature. The Imprinted
Sportswear Shows in Atlanta and Fort
Worth were left out because they did not
provide a two-year attendance comparison.
Surf Expo was sidelined this year
because the methodology used to determine
qualified attendance between 2011
and 2012 had changed, precluding an
apples-to-apples comparison.
These six shows totaled nearly 2.3 million
nsf of exhibit space, more than the
entire adjusted total in the Dashboard
of 2.06 million nsf.
Among the annual events,
it was the smaller ones that
appeared to be losing the
most traction. An unusually
large number of shows —
12 out of 21 — lost ground
in at least one of the three
metrics. Because of their
small size, seemingly
modest declines were
magnified into double-digit
percentage drops.
A Well-Oiled Machine
The king of the September shows was
IMTS. The 29th edition of the biennial
Chicago machinery show reported
1,240,863 nsf of exhibit space, a 9.1%
increase over 2010. Attendance grew an
impressive 21.6% and topped the 100,000
mark, the largest show-to-show increase
in the history of the event.
“The energy level among exhibitors and
attendees was at an all-time high,” said
Peter Eelman, IMTS vice president of exhibitions
and communications. “The overall
activity indicates we are entering a period
of sustained manufacturing growth that
will fuel economic prosperity.”
Eelman reported brisk business on the
show floor with an encouraging number
of orders written on site. One company
— MAG — bagged a $36 million order,
Continued on page 26