This October, the EES team went wheels up and headed to Las Vegas for IMEX America. This year’s show ran October 13–15 at Mandalay Bay, bringing together planners, hotels, destinations, and suppliers for three days of appointments, education, and conversations that shape the year ahead.
Our team spent the week meeting partners, scouting destinations, and comparing notes. On the ground were Angelina Savage, Director of Event Logistics + Execution; Jennifer Brown, Director of Relationships; Brittany Adams and McKenzie Grewett, Senior Relationship Managers; and Sammy Arredondo, Logistics Manager.
Each of them came home with a list of takeaways, and the same themes kept surfacing. Together, they point to where events are headed in 2027. Here’s what our team learned, and how to apply it to your next program.
Attendees don’t want to feel like a name on a registration list. As groups grow, it’s easy for the experience to become generic, and generic experiences don’t stick.
The challenge for 2027 is making every guest feel the meeting or trip was planned just for them, even when they’re part of a larger group. That starts with knowing who’s in the room. It’s a lesson Angelina brought home loud and clear: “We need to know our attendees, not just our headcount.”
Attendees don’t remember slide 47. They remember how a session made them feel.
Long presentations and back-to-back slide decks can leave even an interested audience checked out. Creativity is what makes a meeting stand out. The sessions people remember break the format with fresh ideas that keep them engaged and in the room.
Push past the standard agenda. Some ways to do this include:
The goal is simple: design sessions people want to attend.
Wellness is going mainstream in 2027, and it’s showing up in every type of event. This isn’t only something clients are asking for. It’s where the whole industry is headed.
Wellness also scales to fit the program. For incentive trips and smaller meetings, consider wellness hotels and retreats. For larger events, wellness doesn’t need its own venue. It fits right into the agenda:
The key is intention. Treat wellness as part of the event design from day one, not an add-on.
AI is rapidly changing event workflows and how attendee ROI is tracked. From planning tasks to post-event reporting, it’s helping teams work faster and report with more clarity.
Technology alone doesn’t win business, though. Clients still respond best to human-driven pitches and ideas. AI can build the spreadsheet, but it can’t dream up the idea. Sammy’s take: “Our creativity is what sets us apart!”
The most effective approach uses AI where it saves time and sharpens reporting, and keeps the strategy, the ideas, and the experience human. For more on tracking results, read How to Build an Event Strategy That Supports Your Business Goals.
Economic uncertainty among clients is affecting the events industry as a whole. When budgets tighten, every line item gets a second look, and events have to prove their value.
Creative strategies and real value-adds are the foundation for maintaining and growing business. Clients are looking for partners who understand their business objectives and can create experiences that deliver measurable value.
Jennifer captured the shift perfectly: “It’s no longer simply about producing a great event. It’s about understanding what that event needs to accomplish and how it moves the business forward.”
Start with the outcome, then build the event around it. When every dollar ties back to a goal, events become strategic investments, not just expenses.
Destinations are stepping up. Our team left IMEX with new venues and destinations on the radar for future programs, and the best conversations were with suppliers who want to build something together, not just sell.
Going into a new market doesn’t mean starting from scratch. The local convention and visitors bureau (CVB) can connect planners with trusted local vendors at no cost, so programs start with partners the destination already vouches for.
Collaboration across the industry creates opportunity. From destination partners and hotels to fellow agencies and corporate decision-makers, the right connections often lead to opportunities well beyond the first introduction.
Partner knowledge also shouldn’t stay with whoever was at the booth. At EES, partners join our team calls for short info sessions, so everyone knows who they are, what they offer, and when to call them. When the right RFP comes in, the whole team knows which partner fits. For clients, that means vetted partners wherever the program goes.
Online meetings have their place, but they can’t replace being in the room. In-person conversations generate more excitement than an online pitch or meeting ever could.
IMEX reinforced that face-to-face connections are still one of the most powerful drivers of business. Our team met new people they can’t wait to work with and reconnected with longtime industry friends. Brittany’s verdict? “Our industry is built on this!”
From vendors to hotel contacts to clients, events are a people business. Relationships, both new and old, are what drive success.
Every takeaway from IMEX points back to the attendee. To create experiences that resonate in 2027:
Great events don’t happen because people are in the same room. They happen because every detail was designed with the attendee in mind.
At EES, we take what we learn on the show floor straight into the programs we design. From immersive meetings and luxe incentive trips to global festivals and standout brand activations, we build experiences around your goals and your people.
Through exclusive vendor partnerships and a custom production approach, every detail is tailored to what your company needs. We bring bold ideas to life with precision and sophistication. Let’s make something unforgettable.
We serve clients in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix, nationwide, and globally.
IMEX America is an annual trade show for the global meetings, events, and incentive travel industry, held each October in Las Vegas. The 2026 show ran October 13–15 at Mandalay Bay. It brings together event planners, agencies, corporate buyers, hotels, destinations, and suppliers for scheduled appointments, education sessions, and networking.
Based on what our team heard at IMEX America 2026, the trends to watch are personalized attendee experiences, more creative session formats, wellness built into every type of event, AI in event workflows and ROI tracking, and a stronger focus on events that deliver measurable business value.
Match wellness to the event. For incentive trips and smaller meetings, consider a wellness hotel or retreat. For larger events, build it into the agenda with a morning 5K, sunrise yoga, a meditation space, or short stretch breaks between sessions. Plan it from day one so it feels like part of the experience.
Strategy First: Every decision supports your business objectives—not just the event experience.
Metrics That Matter: We define success upfront and provide the data to prove it.
Long-Term Momentum: We design events to create value well beyond the event itself.
True Partnership: We become an extension of your team — your culture, your goals, your voice.
A Partner Who Comes Prepared: More than planners, we're strategic advisors who bring ideas, guide decisions, and keep stakeholders aligned.
Two ways to work with us.
Singular Events: One high-stakes moment — a product launch, leadership summit, annual gala, or client conference — executed with precision and purpose. We make sure it delivers well after the last guest leaves.
Enterprise-Wide Programs: A full calendar of events, aligned to a single strategic vision. We audit, organize, and optimize your entire events portfolio so every activation compounds on the last.
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