Cobo Center has entered into an eight-year contract with the North American International Auto Show that will keep one of the U.S.’s largest and world’s most influential auto shows in downtown Detroit through 2025, according to Claude Molinari, general manager of SMG/Cobo Center.

“With the leadership and work of the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority (DRCFA), along with SMG, Cobo Center is truly a world-class venue,” said Rod Alberts, NAIAS executive director.

Blackstone, through funds managed by Blackstone Real Estate Partners and Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, entered into a definitive agreement to acquire International Market Centers (“IMC”), an owner and operator of showroom space for the furnishings, home decor and gift industries, from Bain Capital Private Equity, LP and funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. 

Fireside Investments also is expected to partner with Blackstone in the acquisition. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

By Elizabeth Johnson

If your event has a blog, you’re engaged in content marketing. A social media channel? Yes, content marketing again. An e-newsletter? You guessed it – content marketing. Whether show planners call it “content marketing” or not, many are using content marketing tactics to promote their events.

Content marketing can build brand awareness, maintain connections and engagements with audiences between events and provide support to help attendees “make the case” to their supervisors for participating in an event.

LIGHTFAIR International boasted its largest show and Philadelphia registration numbers at its most recent event, held May 7-11 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

The world’s largest annual architectural and commercial lighting trade show and conference registered 27,939 attendees from 81 countries spanning 277,600 net square feet of expo space, with registration exceeding its 2016 event and increasing 7.4 percent, compared with its 2013 Philadelphia show.

In the ever-evolving journey to take the trade show industry in a more sustainable direction, certain stakeholders appear to be getting creative by experimenting with fun and unique ways to cut down on the massive amounts of waste most events typically produce, including food waste.

Case in point: the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and its exclusive food and beverage provider, Centerplate, which hosted a “Zero Waste Lunch” on May 10 at WasteExpo 2017, held May 8-11 at the New Orleans-based facility.

Trade Show News Network has selected the five finalists for our 2017 TSNN “Best of Show” awards. We asked show organizers to tell us why they believed their show was “best,” and the shows listed below are ones that we believe exemplify true innovation in the trade show industry.

Now, we need all of YOU to vote for the show that you think deserves to be named the Best of Show. The overall winner will be announced at the TSNN Awards, which honors the top 50 fastest-growing U.S. trade shows and is set for Aug. 21-23 in New Orleans.

In response to customer demand and in pursuit of an ongoing effort to grow its group business throughout Las Vegas, MGM Resorts International has officially broken ground on an approximately $130 million expansion of the MGM Grand Conference Center.

Scheduled to be completed at the end of 2018, the project entails a 250,000 square foot expansion of the facility that will increase its footprint to more than 850,000 sq. ft.

Trade Show News Network (TSNN) has named 20-year trade show industry leader Sandy Voss, vice president of Informa Exhibitions, as the 2017 TSNN Awards Industry Icon Honoree.

Voss will be celebrated at the 2017 TSNN Awards celebration (www.T-awards.com), which is on tap Aug. 21-23 in New Orleans and collocated with Connect Expo.

Two major trade show producers recently have added specialty conventions to their extensive event portfolios.

Reed Exhibitions acquired the Tiny House & Simple Living Jamboree, a consumer event focused on the growing tiny house movement.

The event will collaborate with the National Tiny House Jamboree to host the world’s largest tiny house and simple living consumer convention, set for Oct. 27-29 at the Arlington Convention Center in Arlington, Texas.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s Board of Directors gave final approval for the $1.4 billion expansion and renovation of the Las Vegas Convention Center, paving the way for 600,000 new square feet of meeting space.

“Today marks a monumental occasion for not only the LVCVA, but also the entire destination,” said Rossi Ralenkotter, LVCVA President and CEO.