One Manager for Largest Show
AEM to own and operate CONEXPO-CON/AGG, ex-partner to be sponsor
By Heidi Genoist -- Tradeshow Week, 11/22/2004
The well-known team of Dennis Slater and Peter Vlahos, co-organizers of America's largest tradeshow, will be no more, following an agreement made by their respective associations to place control of CONEXPO-CON/AGG under one roof.
Starting after the March 15–19, 2005, show at the Las Vegas Convention Center, CONEXPO-CON/AGG will, for all practical purposes, belong to the Assn. of Equipment Manufacturers. Its former co-owner and -operator, the Intl. Concrete and Aggregates Group — which includes the Natl. Ready Mixed Concrete Assn. and the Natl. Stone, Sand and Gravel Assn. — assuming the role of sponsor.
AEM will pay NRMCA and NSSGA a licensing fee for use of the CON/AGG name, which the latter associations brought to the joint venture in 1994. AEM will assume full management of CONEXPO-CON/AGG and receive all revenue from the show.
NRMCA and NSSGA will hold their annual conventions at the show and retain positions on the show advisory committee. They have agreed not to launch competing events that could detract from CONEXPO-CON/AGG for the duration of the agreement, which expires in 2020.
The last show in 2002 covered 1.8 million net square feet with 2,112 exhibitors and drew 80,054 professional attendees, putting it at the top of that year's Tradeshow Week 200. It will continue to be held triennially in Las Vegas.
Along with the Natl. Fluid Power Assn. and the Natl. Asphalt Pavement Assn., NRMCA and NSSGA are co-owners of two other shows, IFPE (Intl. Exposition for Power Transmission) and World of Asphalt. The ownership structure of these shows will not change, but the Milwaukee, Wis.-based AEM will assume full management of them in addition to CONEXPO-CON/AGG.
NRMCA and NSSGA created ICAG essentially to act as their show operations entity. With the bulk of this responsibility passing to AEM, ICAG will take on a reduced role.
NRMCA President Robert Garbini said the Silver Spring, Md., office of ICAG will remain open and its staff of eight people will continue to provide services for other NRMCA and NSSGA meetings, such as their environmental safety and business administration forums.
However, departing ICAG will be COO Margo van Black and Peter Vlahos, co-managing director of CONEXPO-CON/AGG. Vlahos said he will pursue new opportunities.
Although AEM's Ken Snover became Vlahos' co-manager of CONEXPO/CON-AGG in 2003, Vlahos was well known as the ICAG half of the partnership he shared for 10 years with AEM President Dennis Slater.
"It's tough to see him go," said Slater of Vlahos. "We've become buddies. That's part of the reason why AEM and ICAG kept us out of the final negotiations."
The associations in 1999 signed a joint venture agreement that extends through 2020, but the financial arrangement went only through 2008. According to the deal, the groups had to come up with a new financial arrangement for the period after '08 by the time of the '05 show.
The new cooperative agreement replaces the original joint venture agreement. AEM, the NRMCA and NSSGA all said the new deal makes more sense since it will allow for more effective management of the shows, their most important assets.
"It's a great opportunity to continue the CONEXPO-CON/AGG show," said NRMCA's Garbini. "We're streamlining the management, and we and NSSGA will continue to vigorously support the show as its main sponsors."
Another beneficiary of the deal will be AEM's Intl. Construction & Utility Equipment Exposition, the biennial show that was No. 2 on this year's TSW 200 with 1.1 million net sq. ft. of exhibit space, 795 exhibitors and 7,413 professional attendees.
Slater explained that a non-compete clause in the old joint venture agreement forced AEM to keep ICUEE's management staff separate from that which worked on ICAG shows, and ICUEE's growth was restricted.
"This opens up the possibility of further growth for ICUEE and makes the management team much more efficient, since everyone can work together on all the shows," Slater said.
He added that AEM is getting more involved in the agriculture side of the business, with the opportunity to launch an agricultural equipment show being presented by the new agreement.
