Events – Bigger and better?
In the UK, just under half of venues expected their conference and business levels to recover to pre-pandemic levels this year (UKCAMS Survey 2022). We are starting to see exhibition-related businesses (event suppliers, conference organisers) coming onto the market, and investor interest is growing. The industry appears to be bouncing back, but investors have questions about the speed of recovery and the shape of the industry post-Covid.
One challenge for potential investors is understanding the rapid changes these businesses have experienced over the last three years, in particular the shift to virtual/hybrid events and impact of other factors such as climate concerns and the economy on physical event attendance. Whilst events remain a key pillar of some industries, and engaging with like-minded professionals whether virtually or in-person will always be important, there are several reasons to believe that sub-sectors and the whole industry have undergone profound adjustments.
Key KPIs for the new hybrid model
- Virtual delegate participation and feedback (do they feel valued, will they return next year?)
- Sponsor / exhibitor renewals and feedback (do they feel they get their ROI from the hybrid model?)
- Technology adoption (to what level are delegates, exhibitors, sponsors using the hybrid functionality in practice?)
Our recent article – Events a sector worth revisiting discusses what investors need to look for in an events business.
Please speak to Matt and the team about opportunities in the events sector.
Matt McNally, Director
[email protected]
+44 7894 736 523