Merchandise Mart Buys 49 Events From Two Firms
By Rachelle Crum -- Tradeshow Week, 12/4/2006
Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. has acquired the tradeshow and conference assets of two Canadian firms: York Communications and Media Edge Communications West. Combined, they produce 23 tradeshows and 26 conferences for the design, construction and real estate industries in Canada and the U.S. Pacific Northwest.
The Chicago-based firm's Merchandise Mart Properties Canada division, based in Toronto, will manage the events. York Communications principals Jacqui Elliott and George Przybylowski, and MediaEdge Communications West principal Mark Stephenson will join MMPC's staff as vice presidents of a new division to be called MMPC Expositions.
Westport, Conn.-based Corporate Solutions represented the sellers in the deal.
York Communications, founded in 1988, operates out of Toronto and solely produces events. The 13-year-old MediaEdge Communications West, in Vancouver, British Columbia, is a subsidiary of MediaEdge and also publishes trade magazines, directories and other publications. MediaEdge has two other Canadian offices — one in Toronto and another in Winnipeg, Manitoba — as well as a U.S. office in Gainesville, Fla.
In Canada, the acquired events take place in Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver; in the United States, they are in Portland, Ore., and Seattle.
MMPI wanted a strong presence across Canada," Elliott said. "They now have it."
MMPC already organizes IIDEX — NeoCon, Interior Design Show and the One of a Kind Shows.
Przybylowski noted, "We think the fit with MMPI is really terrific. They have a great corporate culture."
Stephenson, vice president of the western region for MediaEdge Communications West, said the expanded company would "bring new energy, resources, educational and economic opportunity to industry exhibitors and attendees throughout Canada."
MMPC Senior Vice President Steven Levy said his firm was eager to welcome the shows and "three new people who embody... an entrepreneurial spirit." He added, "It's very exciting for me personally."
MMPI expects the purchase to close before the end of the year.
New York-based Vornado Realty Trust owns MMPI, which, along with producing shows, manages several permanent showrooms, including Chicago's Merchandise Mart.
