Event Solutions and catersource Form Conference Partnership
Hello to all our event friends,
I’m very pleased to announce that Event Solutions and catersource have entered into a partnership regarding our respective conferences to create a combined show that will be held annually in Las Vegas in February. Initially this combined show will be called by the two shows’ existing respective names, i.e. the Event Solutions Idea Factory and catersource Conference & Trade Show.
Now of course, the first question out of everyone’s mouth is always, “Why are you doing this?” The simplest answer is because it makes perfect sense for everyone involved and for the industry. As many of you may know, Event Solutions and catersource have been working closely together for the last three years. Catersource has been holding its Summer Symposium in conjunction with the Idea Factory since 2005, and Event Solutions has been a sponsor and event partner at the annual catersource Conference & Trade Show during the same period. This was the next logical step.
It’s important for our attendees to know that everything you’ve come to expect from Event Solutions and the Idea Factory will remain intact. The same high-quality education, events and expo will be every bit as much in evidence with the combined shows as you experienced before. The difference is now you get even more.
We feel it makes sense to create a more comprehensive show that will give everyone in the industry more access to networking and sales opportunities; that will provide a broader range of educational opportunities and resources; and that lays the foundation for building the kind of show a community as large and dynamic as the event and catering industries deserves. There are already a number of participating associations and publishing partners involved as well, which further serves to accomplish the combined goals of the show.
A byproduct of creating this combined show is that after this summer’s Idea Factory in Miami Beach, Event Solutions will no longer produce a summer conference. However, the Idea Factory in Miami Beach this August is still scheduled to be every bit as exciting and dynamic as any of the Idea Factory shows of the past, if not more so. And catersource will still be holding its Summer Symposium in Miami Beach as well. So everything remains as scheduled and we’ll expect to see you all there working on your tans.
I am personally very excited about this partnership because it’s a major step toward building something I’ve felt for many years this industry needed to do. There has always been a small mountain of niche shows in the event industry and I’ve always been preaching that some of these shows needed to get together and create something more substantial that serves a broader range of this market.
I can’t help recalling meeting Michael Roman, president and co-founder of catersource, for the first time about 10 years ago at a National Restaurant Association Show not long after I first launched Event Solutions. In the course of our conversation, we both agreed that some of us needed to get together and figure out how to work together, because this event industry was going to just keep getting bigger and more definitive as time went on. Well, I couldn’t be happier that Michael and I were the first to figure out how to take this important first step together, and we’re both convinced that the real winner will be the industry at large.
Hoping all your events are successful,
John Baragona
President
Event Solutions