This week in trade shows: Oct. 30-Nov. 5, 2022

What were the top trade show news stories from last week? Here’s my take on the top 5:

5. How does your salary compare to others? Find salary ranges for open positions from #tradeshow organizers in NY, as new pay transparency requirements went into effect last week. On Nov. 1, New York began requiring companies with 4 or more employees to post salary ranges with job listings. A law in Colorado took effect last year. California and Washington have also passed similar laws. "The law is expected to affect 4 million private-sector employees: It covers full- & part-time roles, internships & contractors. When the CA law takes effect next year, current employees will also be able to ask for the wage ranges for their existing jobs," according to an article in Bloomberg. A search of open positions at Emerald Expositions Holding, Inc. in NY revealed that the company is seeking: An Account Executive based in New York City to join our International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) team and deliver event and media revenue. Target Compensation: $71,000-$80,000 (Sales Incentive Eligible).

4. Sustainability news: Public trade show companies like RX Global are investing in sustainability and committing to aggressive targets.  RELX signed the Climate Pledge, a commitment to be net zero by 2040, but the company wants to make significant progress by 2030. To reach that goal, @RELXHQ launched the CO2 Hub, a platform that collects, analyses & visualises data about RELX’s emissions. Read more from RELX.

Want to know more about the latest in sustainability? What to watch:

Session Net Zero Carbon Events at #COP27: The Net Zero Carbon Events  initiative will launch its Roadmap at the  United Nations  Climate Change Conference on Nov. 11., starting at 1000 local time in Egypt. Events industry on the global stage at #COP27: Among the industry leaders speaking: JMIC Joint Meetings Industry Council 's James Rees , UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry 's  Kai Hattendorf , HKCEC 's Monica Lee Muller,  Informa Markets ' Charles McCurdy , Freeman Company 's Robert Priest-Heck and  Javits Center Alan Steel . Read the full release. The event is open to everyone & will also be streamed live. Register here. (I am registered.)

Webinar on sustainability: In October, I moderated a webinar for UFI on sustainability.  Helen Sheppard , Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Specialist for RX Global, spoke about the company’s journey to more sustainable shows. Experts from Freeman, Informa and @Fiera Milano also shared their experience. Watch the video on demand.

3. TedTalks , one of the most iconic and innovative conference brands, is expanding and launching new virtual and in-person events. As we emerge from the pandemic, learn more on how TED is going forward with its virtual and in-person strategy in a Q&A with TED Director of Events Monique Ruff-Bell Bell featured in Forbes . Two of the many takeaways worth mentioning: The event organizer is expanding after retrenching during the pandemic. Also, TEDWoman launched as a virtual event in 2022 but will be in-person in 2023 in Atlanta. The event is commited to Atlanta for 3 years. Read the full Q&A. 

2. Five trade show-related public companies released Q3 financials: Cvent , Viad Corp is now Pursuit (NYSE: PRSU) , Caesars Entertainment , MGM Resorts International reported Q3 growth over 2021, Emerald reported a decline due to impact of the temporarily increased number of events that staged in Q3 2021.

Overview of Q3 financials: 

Emerald reported revenues of $62.4 million for the Q3 2022, a decrease of $14.1 million, or 18.4%, from $76.5 million in revenue for Q3 2021, due to more events in Q3 2021 that were postponed from their typical dates earlier in the year due to COVID-19. Hervé Sedky , Emerald’s President and CEO, said: “Exhibitor and attendee counts, as well as space rates are all on the rise across the vast majority of our shows.” 

Heard on Emerald Q3 investor call on Nov. 3: Revenues from #tradeshows are at 70-75% of pre-pandemic levels across all shows, while NSF is at 65-ish% or 2/3rds of pre-pandemic levels. When asked about #tradeshow vs. non-tradeshow revenues: CFO David Doft said #emerald's trade show revenue margins have historically been 35-45% (EBIDTA). Read the full release.

Cvent reported total revenue was $161.3 million for Q3 2022, an increase of 20.3% from the comparable period in 2021. “Momentum in the meetings & events industry continued in Q3 2022, especially for in-person events,” said Cvent CEO & Founder Reggie Aggarwal . Read the full release.

Viad reported Q3 revenue for GES increased $102.9 million (89%) from Q3 2021 & adjusted EBITDA improved by $14.9 million. These improvements are primarily due to increased live event activity as compared to Q3 2021.  Steve Moster said: "Same-show revenues for events produced by our U.S. exhibitions team grew to 91% of 2019 pre-pandemic levels, up from 46% in Q3 2021." Read the full release.

Caesars reported GAAP net revenues of $2.9 billion in Q3 2022 vs. $2.7 billion for the comparable prior-year period. Q3 results "reflect a new quarterly record for consolidated adjusted EBITDA & a new quarterly record for our brick and mortar properties,” said CEO Tom Reeg. Read the full release.

MGM reported net revenues of $3.4 billion compared to $2.7 billion in the prior year quarter, an increase of 26%. The current quarter benefited from the inclusion of the operating results of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas ,  ARIA Resort & Casino  & Vdara Hotel & Spa  that were acquired in the last year. “We're proud to report the best quarter in our Las Vegas Strip history, both on a revenue & Adjusted Property EBITDAR basis, driven by the continued appeal of our entertainment and meetings offerings,” said Bill Hornbuckle , MGM CEO & President. Read the full release.

1. Two global mega-events, Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas and Web Summit in Lisbon, were held last week, and both grew attendance significantly over last year. Web Summit 2022 sold out with 70,000 attendees, compared with 42,751 attendees in 2021 — an increase of 64% over last year. SEMA Show 2022 drew 135,000 attendance, compared with 51,000 in 2021, an increase of 165% over last year.

Highlights from SEMA Show, held Nov. 1-4 at the Las Vegas Convention Center

Key stats in 2022: 135,000 attendees from 140 countries, 1,800+ exhibitors covering 1 million+ square feet at the Las Vegas Convention Center, occupying all four halls, according to an article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. 

Key stats in 2021: 51,000 attendees and 1,300 exhibitors

Key stats in 2019: Pre-pandemic, SEMA attracted 161,000+ individuals from 140 countries outside the United States and 2,400 exhibiting companies in 1.2 million net square feet of exhibit space and an additional 1 million square feet of features and attractions throughout the Las Vegas Convention Center, outside areas and neighboring Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, according to a fact sheet from SEMA.

What was the buzz:

New experiences and engagement: Attendees could get their first experience riding a motorcycle through the Ride with us Moto intro program. There was no cost for SEMA and AAPEX show attendees. It was also free to the public who purchased tickets for the SEMA Ignited Friday experience. Read more.

SEMA will add consumer festival in 2023: The association announced the first-ever SEMA Week to kick off as part of 5-year vision. Following trade event in 2023, SEMA will take over the Las Vegas Festival Grounds Fri-Sat. night with an all-new SEMAFest. SEMA Board Chair James Lawrence said: “By creating SEMA Week & SEMA Fest, we'll be able to maintain the integrity of the tradeshow that makes it a must-attend event for auto professionals while introducing a new platform for enthusiasts & the industry to engage with one another.” Read the full release.

Highlights from Web Summit, held Nov. 1-4 in Lisbon.

Key stats in 2022: 71,000+ attendees, 160+ countries, 1,000+ speakers, 2,300 startups, 1,000+ investors, 2,000+ media and 340+ partners, according to Web Summit.

Key stats in 2021: After canceling its in-person event in 2020 due to Covid, the show drew 42,751 attendees from 128 countries, 748 speakers, 1,519 startups, 872 investors, 1,878 members of the media and 211 partners, according this WebSummit blog. 

Key stats in 2019: Pre-pandemic: The show drew 70,469 attendees from 163 countries, 1,200 speakers, 2,500 media, 200 partners, 2,000 startups and 1,200+ investors, according to this WebSummit press release. 

What was the buzz: 

Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska was a surprise speaker on opening night.

Instead of receptions or dinners at the convention center, Web Summit features the Night Summit, after-hours events held around the city of Lisbon. In 2022, one stop was at the Palacio do Grilo, a stunning 400-year-old stone structure. The event was hosted by Caspar Lee, a South African YouTuber with nearly 7 million subscribers. 

Recommended reading: Follow Web Summit CEO Paddy Cosgrave on Twitter. He is active on the social platform and has 75,600 followers.

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Let’s connect in person: Where I’ll be next in 2022: 

·       TSNN - Trade Show News Network Awards, Nov. 8-9 at Caesars Forum in Las Vegas 

·       Women in Exhibitions Network Meetup, Nov. 9, at Caesars Palace

·       UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry Global Congress, Nov. 14-17, at the Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre in Muscat, Oman

·      ESCA Winter Awards Celebration & Reception, Dec. 12, at the Louisville Palace Theater

·       International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE) Annual Meeting & Expo!Expo!, Dec. 13-15, at the Kentucky International Convention Center