Agenda

For those traveling early for the event, join us for the Chairman’s Dinner at the iconic Joe’s Stone Crab. The restaurant has its roots deep in Miami Beach, with its origin being a lunch stand that was started and run by Hungarian-born Joseph “Joe” Weiss in 1913. Now, more than 100 years later, the restaurant is a can’t-miss staple in Miami Beach for seafood. With its superb service and delectable dishes, Joe’s Stone Crab is sure to blow you out of the water. 

Separate Chairman’s Dinner confirmation is required to attend due to limited space. Please meet in the Palm Court of the Loews Miami Beach Hotel at 5:30 for check-in.

All aboard! The Striker, a luxurious 91-foot mega yacht is chartered for a wonderful day of networking. We will take in Miami from the sea in ultimate luxury as we cruise around Biscayne Bay and the famous Star Island as we glimpse into the glamorous estates of the ultra-rich and famous. Following the cruise, the group will enjoy lunch at the Hyatt Regency Miami. 

Buses will depart from the Loews at 8:10 a.m. to arrive at the dock around 9 a.m. to set sail; please meet at the Palm Court of the Loews at 8:00 a.m. for check-in. The Striker will sail rain or shine.

Separate Seas the Day confirmation is required to attend due to limited space. 

The official kickoff of the Fastest 50 Awards & Summit will be held in style at the National Hotel, just steps away from the Loews Miami Beach Hotel. With the hotel’s Art Deco architectural style featuring rich colors, bold geometry and stunning detail work, the Opening Reception will feel like stepping into The Great Gatsby novel. Enjoy cocktails, company, award-winning food around firepits and market lights as we toast to the beginning of one of the industry’s most prestigious events. 

Come together for an educational day program guided by the latest news, hottest trends and cutting-edge innovations in the exhibition industry. Filled with peer-led content, TSE’s ever-popular Educational Summit features topics around growth strategies and includes case studies from top-performing show organizers that give all a deep dive into attaining successful results. 

Dr. Peter Rupert provides scholarly insights on the headwinds and tailwinds impacting the United States and the world, focusing on the trade show and exhibition industry. He will address the outlook for the future regarding topics of inflation, recession, labor and a global overview, and why the future looks bright! 

Peter Rupert is a Professor of Economics at the University of California at Santa Barbara (UCSB), the Director of the Economic Forecast Project and the Associate Director of the Laboratory for Aggregate Economics at the UCSB. Rupert also served as the Department Chair of Economics at the UCSB and his areas of specialization include macroeconomics, monetary economics and labor economics, and he serves on the board of several Elsevier Journals including the European Economic Review and Labour Economics. Read his blog here: https://peterrupert.com/  

Building from Dr. Rupert’s presentation, industry leaders will bring the professor’s ideas and projections to the trade show floor by discussing his findings, and will share with us some of their strategies for navigating a path forward to grow their business as the industry (and the world) repairs and rebounds from pandemic lockdowns and economic turbulence created by the COVID pandemic. 

The world has changed and many people are now more adaptable to technology, perhaps more so than at any other time in history. As a new era unfolds, Marco Giberti will pull from his vast experience to share his overview on how to unleash event-tech to enhance F2F and help create stronger trade show communities.  

A former corporate executive at Apple, Marco pursued his entrepreneurial ambitions and co-founded multiple media pursuits, which led to long-term joint venture with Reed Exhibitions. He is also a co-author of the best-selling books The Face of Digital focused on how digital technologies are changing the live events business industry and Reinventing Live about the “Always-On” future of live events. He is the host and speaker at the Leaderpass and Business of Events Masterclass program. Marco is a Harvard Business School OPM graduate and a member of YPO (Young Presidents Organization), and a frequent speaker at industry conferences.  

Part of TSE Case Studies IRL: These short and engaging presentations focus on topics that attendees ranked high in the pre-event survey. 

The Chicago Auto Show, held Feb. 11-20 at McCormick Place in Chicago, capped off its 115th edition with a 52% increase in attendance over 2022, with 300,000 attendees flocking to the show floor — which spanned more than 1 million square feet — to check out all things automobile. So, how did they do it? 

Learn how the team uses social media monitoring to understand what works for their exhibitors and how they generate content from this “feedback loop” to create successful experiences during the show and captivate their attendees, and grow their audience throughout the year.  

Industry stalwart Lydia Janow, Senior Vice President, Events with Aviation Week Network, an Informa Media company, has learned a thing or two over her 32-year career with AVN. She was instrumental in establishing the largest event series dedicated to the aviation maintenance industry, which began with the launch of the MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) Americas Conference & Exhibition in Dallas in 1996 with 70 exhibitors and 550 attendees. The series has since expanded to include Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Australia, the Baltics/Eastern Europe region, and Latin America. The Aviation Week Network MRO Americas Conference & Exhibition, which this year took place in April at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, has been ranked three times in the TSE Gold 100 and seven times in the TSE Fastest 50.  

Janow will share her thoughts and perspective in this uniquely TSE business profile. 

In 2022, Trifecta Collective, led by Rick McConnel and Jennifer Hoff, acquired NATDA (North American Trailer Dealers Association), which serves light- and medium-duty trailer dealers in North America. NATDA consists of the largest national show in the trailer industry, a membership organization and a leading trade publication. In this deal, all current team members, including Executive Director Andria Gibbon and Director of Sales Karen Anderson were retained. 

Rick and Andria will candidly discuss their unique journey from acquisition to alignment of teams to Fastest 50 success story as they formed a unified and healthy trade show endeavor.  

The 2023 edition of ProMat surpassed 2019 numbers in net square footage, number of exhibitors and attendance. We’ll learn how this team used an integrated attendance-acquisition model to bring awareness to the new activations on the show floor and win new attendees. Their proven approach includes influencer marketing, digital advertising and mass media like The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg.   

Do you feel like you are in an echo chamber lately? TSE turns things upside down and sought to learn how some are using data and research to curate attendee experiences that feel mindful and individualized at large scale events in this Fastest 50 session. Here, we’ll talk to Taylor Silva, former Las Vegas Raiders Director of Strategy and Business Development, about the successful use of heat maps, data driven insights and data layering techniques to move the needle of NFL fandom satisfaction, taking them from dead last to No. 1 on the NFL Voice of the Fan study.

Now, serving on the front lines on creating VIP experiences for top Formula 1 racing brands, Taylor, VP of Promoter Relations in the Americas for F1 Experiences at Quint Events, will share some forward-thinking approaches on putting your team in pole position.

What happens when you run out of space and still have exhibitors who want to buy? What happens when exhibitors are screaming for unique opportunities and engagement? Hear from three TSE Leaders & Legends who have seen it all and how they took creativity to another level for sponsors and exhibitors to create and sell impactful opportunities for attendees.  

The Gala Reception promises an opportunity to walk the red carpet in Grand TSE style. Photo opps abound as honorees take their plaques and mingle with industry colleagues from the nation’s top growing shows before the TSE Awards Gala begins.

The Fastest 50 Awards Gala will celebrate the industry’s recovery and successes, while recognizing the trade shows that experienced the most impressive growth in 2022. The winners of the coveted TSE Grand Awards will be revealed and take to the main stage to collect their glorious crystal trophy in front of their peers. Enjoy fine dining while we reward the hard work and achievements of your teams. 

After the Awards Gala, bask in the wins and industry achievements post gala and enjoy cocktails and the warm Miami night breeze on the veranda at the ultra-modern MBCC just outside the gala.  

Before you go, don’t forget the most important meal of the day! Come together for one last breakfast before your departure—armed with the information to set you apart from the pack and well-nourished for your journey home.