To be held Sept. 12 in New York City at the Waldorf Astoria, the conference will focus on the results of the CEIR Index, which provides an objective measure of the annual performance of the exhibition industry, measuring year-over-year changes and predictions for all 14 industry sectors and the overall exhibition industry through 2015.
“Predict will continue in the collaborative spirit for which it is known, and we have designed a program to address the hard questions, so attendees will leave with a sense of the economic outlook for their own events,” said Bob Priest-Heck, chief operating officer, Freeman and chairman, the Predict 2013 program task force. “The line-up of speakers and moderators is extraordinary this year and will keep attendees engaged and not only at Predict but for the foreseeable future.”
Throughout the program, the key issues to be discussed include:
- Can robust recovery continue? What are the global economic factors to watch?
- What non-economic features of the exhibition industry might help insulate it from challenges – both known and unknown?
- How do different industry sectors impact the performance of others?
- Attendees will interact with presenters and colleagues throughout the day to share best practices, ideas and future strategies, including projected event growth, merger and acquisition strategies and planned launches.
New this year, City Talk is a featured session that will provide discussion among elected officials about the economic impact of exhibitions. Featuring Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, City of Baltimore, Maryland; Mayor Michael S. Rawlings, City of Dallas, Texas; Mayor Annise D. Parker, City of Houston, Texas; and Mayor Teresa Jacobs, Orange County, Florida, this panel will examine what the future may hold for their cities and the long-term impact that tradeshows are having on their facilities, labor unions, local businesses and more.
Another new session, Austin Kim, senior economist at Bain & Company, will provide an outlook on the global and regional macro economies and which indicators are important to watch. He will discuss future projections during the session, Global Economic Outlook and Impact on the Exhibition Industry and provide insight about the current impact of improving consumer confidence and spending in regard to home sales, construction and automobile sales to name a few. Collaboratively with attendees, he will explore the economic forecast for growth and the factors that may affect optimism.
Attendance is limited to C-Level, exhibition organizer executives, merger and acquisition firms, private equity firms, debt providers, investment firms and the financial press to allow for an intimate, high-level idea exchange about the future of the exhibition industry and implications for specific business sectors and their supporting exhibitions.
