CEIR: Positive Growth in Q3 2007

A recent report from the Center for Exhibition Industry Research showed positive signs for tradeshow revenue and other metrics during the third quarter of 2007.

CEIR President Doug Ducate said it was positive for the industry, because the third quarter tends to be its slowest with the fewest shows scheduled. “It is more susceptible to change than the other quarters,” he added.

According to CEIR, year-to-date revenue rose 9.7 percent, compared with the same period in 2006. In the third quarter, tradeshow attendance grew 11.8 percent, net square footage 1.4 percent and number of exhibitors 0.3 percent.

Ducate said anecdotal information suggested the positive trend for shows that CEIR tracked during the first nine months of 2007 also would continue through the fourth quarter.

Tradeshow Week also tracks quarterly statistics for the industry and had different findings for the third quarter: Net square footage decreased 0.2 percent, while exhibiting firms and attendance increased 1.6 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.

Ducate said the exhibition industry would continue to see positive growth in 2008, mostly because the year will have some large events that don't take place every year, such as the triennial CONEXPO-CON/AGG, which regularly tops the TSW 200.

Show producers run a number of building and construction shows during the first quarter, Ducate added, and it will be interesting to see if those shows reflect the fallout from the subprime mortgage collapse and concerns in the real estate market.

“We may have a mix of performance in the first quarter,” he added.