Preliminary data from the recent PACK EXPO, held in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, show an increase in attendance, number of exhibiting companies and net square footage for the packaging and processing technologies trade show, setting records for 2013. Attendance to the 2013 show, held September 23-25, increased 7.4 percent with 27,759 attendees; the number of exhibiting companies increased by 15.5 percent with 1,788; and net square footage went up 14.7 percent with 722,437 net square feet compared to the 2011 show.
"Our goal at any PACK EXPO show is to give the attendees an experience that feels personalized. We do that with market-specific exhibitor pavilions and lounges for networking, by providing tools, like My PACK EXPO and the PACK EXPO app, that allow them to plan their time on the floor and get down to business as soon as they get to the show," Yuska says. "Customer-centric means focusing on the attendees' goals and needs."
The newest addition to the customer-centric approach was education on the show floor, Yuska said.
"The idea to move educational sessions from conference rooms to the exhibit hall came from a post-show attendee survey we conducted in 2012," he said. "Attendees said they value education, and want to maximize their time on the show floor as well."
Other highlights included an Innovation Stage, Food Safety Summit Resource Center, Center for Trends & Technology and Reusable Packaging Association's Reusables Learning Center.
Additionally, singer Kenny Loggins sang for the inaugural Pack gives Back benefit event. The event raised more than US$62,000 for K9s for Warriors, a nonprofit organization that trains and provides service dogs to servicemen and servicewomen who suffer from post-traumatic stress stemming from military service since 9/11.
