As the NFL wrapped up its Super Wild Card Weekend, The PPAI Expo 2024 – the promotional products industry’s version of the Super Bowl – began at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center for the 21st consecutive year. At the South end of the Las Vegas Strip, attendees flooded into the massive convention center for The PPAI Expo Conference, a daylong slate of education and networking before the show floor opened on Tuesday, January 16. Over the next three days, promo’s largest and longest-running trade show delivered like only it can — with unmatched energy and opportunities for members to enhance their businesses. “As I contemplate the success of The PPAI Expo 2024, what lingers most profoundly is the caliber of connections forged – the authenticity of conversations and the emergence of promising partnerships,” says Dale Denham, MAS+, PPAI president and CEO. “It transcends mere statistics; it embodies the promise of substantial business expansion arising from these newly established relationships. Attendees and exhibitors arrived at Expo with a perfect blend of purposeful work and enjoyable moments. I’m grateful for the achieved success and eager for the prosperous collaborations that are poised to unfold. I take immense pride in the team at PPAI, along with our exhibitors and attendees, who collectively made this the best Expo ever.” PPAI is still crunching the numbers on The PPAI Expo 2024, but preliminary data points to this year’s distributor attendance registering a marked increase over 2023. By Wednesday afternoon, the show had exceeded 10,000 in verified distributor attendance. More than 16,000 industry professionals made it to The PPAI Expo 2024. Attendees were met with nearly 1,000 exhibiting companies filling more than 250,000 square feet of booth space inside the convention center, complete with pop-up experiences, the Expo Live interview booth and the always popular Promo & Pints for relaxation and networking. “Wow, just wow,” says Andrew Spellman, CAS, current board chair of PPAI and vice president of corporate markets at Therabody. “From the amazing opening session on Monday until the close of the show on Thursday, The PPAI Expo 2024 exceeded all expectations. Memories were made, new products were seen, collisions new and old took place, and Expo continued to fulfill its goal to be the place to be in the promo industry. All signs point towards an amazing 2024.” Here are some highlights and special moments from The PPAI Expo 2024. Here’s a special look back at The PPAI Expo’s 21st year in Las Vegas, a rousing success for the industry’s largest and long-running trade show. by John Corrigan Best of The PPAI Expo 2024 | Must Read Attendees were met with nearly 1,000 exhibiting companies filling more than 250,000 square feet of booth space inside the convention center, complete with popup experiences, the Expo Live interview booth and the always popular Promo & Pints for relaxation and networking. PPAI • MARCH 2024 • 45
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