More than 17,800 participants gathered at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, including over 6,000 buyers, 4,800 of whom were hosted.
Five years of meetings in three days
The biggest-ever edition of IMEX America saw 96,000 scheduled meetings—or 48,000 hours—equivalent to buyers and exhibitors spending over five years doing business together. These included 82,000 one-to-one meetings and 14,000 group and booth presentations, showing strong business appetite and the tangible ROI of participating.
Many of this week’s conversations resulted in business that extends well beyond the short-term sales cycle. Marie Catherine Lacoste from Tourisme Montréal reported receiving two association RFPs: one for a medical congress for 1,500 attendees in July 2030, and another for a credit management congress and expo for up to 1,700 attendees in May 2030.
For Discover Puerto Rico, IMEX America helped turn an initial connection into significant long-term business. Joann Carlos Díaz from Discover Puerto Rico explains: “We first met Vibee, a music-led destination experience company, at IMEX America 2024 to discuss hotel room blocks for a major artist. The result was Bad Bunny’s 2025 residency: 31 concerts generating a total of 48,255 room nights.”
Designing the industry’s future
The industry’s focus on nurturing the next generation also took shape this week. The Brian D. Stevens Hospitality Education Fund launched on Sunday to support student scholarships and industry research. Meanwhile, IMEX and MPI redeveloped the Future Leaders Lab to broaden the industry’s global talent pool by attracting students from fields including economics and finance, as well as events, hospitality, and tourism, and by expanding the program globally.
For Bailie Utley, from Utah Valley University, the current Future Leaders Forum offers a practical step toward a future career: “My class is about to graduate, and this opportunity helps us take that next step. Before studying events, I’d walk into a conference and think, ‘Wow, this is cool.’ Now I ask: ‘How do we make people excited to be here? How do we create an experience that makes them want to come back?’”
Carina Bauer, CEO of IMEX, says: “A flourishing sector needs strong commercial opportunities, fresh thinking and a pipeline of talent ready to shape and design what comes next. All three have been evident at IMEX America this week.”
“Despite some uncertainty in the wider world, there’s been a spirit of optimism across the show floor. Time and again, clients have told us that what makes this show work for them is that it feels personal. Buyers turn up well-organised, exhibitors are informed and well prepared. They also understand that a walk-up meeting here can be a highly valuable prospect thanks to the quality and seniority of people we attract.”
Carina was speaking at the show’s closing press conference alongside IMEX Chairman Ray Bloom; Steve Hill, Chief Executive Officer and President of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA); Stephanie Glanzer, Chief Sales Officer & Senior Vice President at MGM Resorts International; and Rachel Benedick, Chief Revenue Officer, Meeting Professionals International (MPI).
IMEX America 2027 takes place September 28 – 30 at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas. Learn more about the event here.
