Events M&A jumped 31%. Here's what buyers want now. Events M&A jumped 31% in the first half of 2026, with 47 transactions and some of the industry's biggest deals in years, with buyers looking increasingly beyond the size of an event to the quality of the audience it brings together. Traditional tradeshows still command the highest multiples, according to the latest Collingwood Market Report. But hosted-buyer programs, one-to-one meetings and confexes are attracting a premium as investors put more value on access to decision-makers, year-round relationships and the data those relationships generate. The first half included the acquisitions of Emerald and Questex, which were combined as Forge, as well as CloserStill Media and Hyve Group, all private equity-backed. Collingwood estimates Emerald traded at roughly 11 times EBITDA, CloserStill at 13.5 times and Hyve at 14.5 times, although the latter two multiples weren't publicly disclosed. Larger, better-capitalized platforms are already putting that money to work: Hyve acquired five businesses through the end of August, and Forge agreed to buy Becker's Healthcare last week. Audience quality. In Collingwood's survey, 83% of respondents said they were looking to acquire or invest in confexes, followed by tradeshows at 65%, conferences at 48% and hosted-buyer or one-to-one events at 35%. Conferences that bring together C-suite executives and other decision-makers are particularly attractive. Content that can keep attendees engaged after the event is over is similarly desirable. "Value within the model is moving from scale to audience quality," according to the report. And buyers are looking closely at whether those people come back. Person-level retention, strong rebooking, community and proprietary data capture are positives; high churn and low rebooking are not. The longer that relationship lasts, the more organizers can learn about their audiences and build proprietary data. The use of AI can also improve matchmaking, content and personalization; attendee behavior can generate intent and market intelligence; and events themselves can become data-collection tools. AI advantage. There's another reason investors like events right now: They're relatively hard for AI to replace. The private equity buyers behind the Emerald/Questex, CloserStill and Hyve deals all cited that resilience as part of their investment thesis, according to Collingwood. One strategic buyer interviewed for the report put it simply: "You can't send a bot to meet your customers." That's increasingly important as AI becomes what Collingwood calls an "investment gate": Before getting to growth, retention or margins, buyers want to know whether AI could disrupt the market or business model. Events businesses that can turn their customer relationships into proprietary information have an additional advantage. InfraXmedia is one example. The digital infrastructure company is roughly 70% events, according to the report, and the vendor data generated through those events was critical to buyer interest when Bowmark Capital invested in the company earlier this year. That's also helping multi-model companies. Events can create relationships and data, media can identify intent, and subscriptions and memberships can turn those relationships into recurring revenue. When the pieces work together, Collingwood says a business can command an "Events-plus" valuation, or even start to look more like an information business.

Alibaba's Accio launches AI 'Exhibition Agent' across leading trade shows in the UK and Europe. 04 Sep, 2026, 08:08 GMT New partnerships with Hyve Group, Business Show Media and Raccoon Media Group will integrate intelligent sourcing and navigation into flagship events including Autumn Fair & Glee, ISPO, White & Private Label Expo and The London Business Show LONDON, Sept. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ - Accio, Alibaba.com's agentic AI platform for businesses, today announced it has been appointed as the Official Agentic AI Partner for three premier exhibition organisers: Hyve Group, Business Show Media and Raccoon Media Group. The collaboration will deploy Accio's 'Exhibition Agent' across six flagship European trade shows spanning retail, home & gift, garden, business services, private label and sporting goods. Accio is Alibaba.com's agentic AI platform for SMEs and solo founders providing a pre-configured agentic business team that manages the entire SME lifecycle end to end, from market analysis, design and sourcing to store optimisation and inventory monitoring. Globally, more than 10+ million SMEs already use Accio to run their businesses. It requires no code or setup and automates complex tasks such as sourcing, supplier research, procurement and marketing that would otherwise consume hours of manual effort. By embedding this capability directly into official exhibitor directories and floor plans, the Exhibition Agent transforms raw supplier lists into actionable visit plans, ranked matches and post-event procurement workflows, all within a single conversation thread. This expansion follows the successful pilot of Accio as the Official Agentic AI Partner of Smart Manufacturing Week in June 2026, where the technology supported over 13,000 visitors and 430+ exhibitors at the NEC Birmingham in the UK. From Navigation to Negotiation Unlike traditional trade show apps that offer static maps, the Exhibition Agent acts as an active sourcing partner. Using natural language, buyers can find booths, compare suppliers against their criteria, then hand off to negotiation or logistics agents to draft RFQs and calculate landed costs. Jackson Szabo, Portfolio Director at Hyve Group said: "Our role as an organiser is to make it as easy as possible for buyers to discover the right products, brands and opportunities, and to make every moment they spend at our shows count. As our events continue to grow in scale and international reach, we need to evolve the way we help visitors navigate that wealth of choice. Partnering with Accio brings a new generation of AI-powered sourcing and planning technology directly into the Autumn Fair, Spring Fair and Glee experience. It will give buyers a more intuitive way to discover relevant exhibitors, plan their time and build smarter routes around the show, while helping our exhibitors become more visible to buyers actively looking for what they offer. We're excited to be bringing this next-generation technology to our community and to see how it transforms the way people experience our shows." "Partnering with Alibaba.com's Accio on the Exhibition Agent marks a genuinely new chapter for ISPO in Amsterdam", said Soraya Gadelrab, Joint MD, ISPO. "Bringing this kind of AI-powered navigation and real-time supplier matching to the show floor is exactly the kind of innovation our exhibitors and buyers need as sourcing gets more complex. We believe this sets a new benchmark for what a modern trade fair experience can look like." The solution addresses the cognitive overload faced by buyers at major events. With thousands of SKUs and hundreds of exhibitors, the Agent compresses weeks of pre-event research into minutes, ensuring every booth visit is pre-validated and relevant. Seamless Integration for Exhibitors and Buyers The partnership leverages Accio's newly launched native mobile app. Designed for on-the-go utility, it allows buyers to invoke the Exhibition Agent via voice or image search directly from the show floor. Key capabilities include: * Exhibitor-First Sourcing: Searches official directories first, returning ranked matches with booth locations and relevance explanations * Intelligent Route Planning: Groups matched exhibitors by zone to optimise walking routes and maximise time on the floor * Visual Sourcing: Allows buyers to upload product photos on the spot to find exact matches among exhibiting suppliers * End-to-End Workflow: Seamlessly hands off from discovery to negotiation, compliance checks and logistics coordination without leaving the app * Master Agenda at a Glance: Lets visitors preview all key forums and events ahead of the show, and lock in must-attend sessions so they never miss a key industry insight or networking opportunity For exhibitors, the integration offers enhanced discoverability, surfacing their profiles to qualified buyers who are actively searching for their specific product categories. The Exhibition Agent is scheduled for full on-site deployment at Hyve Group's Autumn Fair, Spring Fair and Glee in Birmingham, Business Show Media's London Business Show and White & Private Label Expo in London, and Raccoon Media Group's ISPO in Amsterdam. The Accio app is available for free download on the iOS App Store and Google Play. Attendees of partner trade shows can access the Exhibition Agent features immediately upon registration or via on-site QR codes. Notes to Editors The partnership portfolio | Organiser | Event | Dates | Venue | Category | | Hyve Group | Autumn Fair | 6-9 Sep 2026 | NEC Birmingham, UK | Home, Gift & Garden | | Hyve Group | Glee | 8-10 Sep 2026 | NEC Birmingham, UK | Garden, Leisure & Pet | | Raccoon Media Group | ISPO | 3-5 Nov 2026 | RAI Amsterdam, NL | Sporting Goods, Winter & Outdoor | | Business Show Media | London Business Show | 11-12 Nov 2026 | ExCeL London, UK | SME & Entrepreneurship | | Business Show Media | White & Private Label Expo | 11-12 Nov 2026 | ExCeL London, UK | Private Label & Retail | | Hyve Group | Spring Fair | 7-10 Feb 2027 | NEC Birmingham, UK | Home, Gift & Fashion | About Alibaba.com Launched in 1999, Alibaba.com is a leading platform for global business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce that serves buyers and suppliers from over 200 countries and regions around the world. It is engaged in services covering various aspects of commerce, including providing businesses with tools that help them reach a global audience for their products and helping buyers discover products, find suppliers and place orders online fast and efficiently. Alibaba.com is part of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group. About Accio Accio is Alibaba.com's plug-and-play enterprise AI agent designed to support the operational needs of SMEs worldwide. It deploys specialised agents to execute complex tasks - from product design and sourcing to negotiation and CRM - handled in one continuous conversation. About Hyve Group Hyve Group is a leading international owner and operator of B2B events, connecting buyers and suppliers across key industries including retail, food, and manufacturing. About Business Show Media Business Show Media is a global exhibition organiser delivering industry-leading business events across Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. Its portfolio includes The Business Show World Series, White & Private Label Expo, The International Franchise Show and B2B Marketing Expo US. Business Show Media connects entrepreneurs, business leaders and suppliers across multiple sectors, creating platforms for growth, innovation and international trade. About Raccoon Media Group Raccoon Media Group specialises in niche B2B exhibitions and media platforms, serving sectors such as sporting goods, leisure, and specialized retail.

Conference news: what's InStore?; big news at RAISE Summit; speak at CES. More InStore at P2Pi: Path To Purchase Institute has reimagined its flagship event to be a bit more intimate and targeted. P2PLive is now InStore Ignite, happening 10 - 12 November at the Hilton Chicago. The event was redesigned to "help CPG brands elevate their in-store marketing and better understand the impact of digitally influenced sales." Some of the topics they plan to cover this fall, include "how to turn digital influence into in-store action and measurable results, how to improve visibility, discoverability and conversion at the shelf, and how to design in-store environments that function as media, experience and conversion platforms." Now Part of the Hyve: Last week global B2B event organization Hyve Group acquired Chain of Events which includes RAISE Summit, Paris Blockchain Week and MACHINA. Founders Michael Amar, Charlie Meraud, Henri Delahaye and Hadrien de Cournon will remain in place to lead the events. The goal of the partnership is to help expand these gatherings internationally while improving the networking opportunities offered to attendees. During the official announcement, Hyve Group's CEO said "AI is entering a new phase of maturity, where innovation is increasingly shaped by collaboration between founders, enterprises, investors and policymakers." Stay tuned for 2027 information on each event. Submission Opportunity: CES 2027 marks the 60th anniversary of the Consumer Electronics Show. CES has grown "from a U.S.-based trade show into the world's most powerful technology event" and is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas, NV, from 6-9 January 2027. The conference has grown to cover everything from market trends, consumer behavior, and emerging technologies - far beyond just consumer electronics. If you have a speaker idea, the conference team is now seeking suggestions on a slew of cross-industry topics. Be sure to follow their guidelines and submit before the 9 September deadline. Lunchtime Learning: Web Summit returns to Lisbon in November (9 -12), again gathering 70k+ attendees who are interested in the hottest emerging technologies, startup trends, marketing ideas and more. If you have not been previously, you can get an idea of the topic coverage (and speaker quality) by checking out the sessions from 2025. Highlights include Cristóbal Valenzuela CoFounder & CEO of Runway, an interview between Katherine Maher of NPR and A.G. Sulzberger chairman of the New York Times, Tao Zhang Co founder of Manus AI, Tom Hale CEO of Oura and Drew Feustel Veteran NASA Astronaut and current Lead Astronaut at Vast Space (to name a few). Coming Up Next Week: Ai4 Summit kicks off 4 August in Las Vegas, promising attendees "real-world applications, breakthrough advancements, and proven best practices driving AI forward across every industry." Ai4, which began in 2018, has grown to attract 12k attendees from across business and tech who are building the future of responsible human-machine collaboration. CultureCon - which runs 4-6 August and is held in Madison, WI - explores the intersection of employee experience, workplace innovation, and culture transformation. For a quarter of a century, the ORBIE Awards have recognized technology executives for outstanding leadership and the business value created by technology innovation. This group holds its annual Inspire CIO Network Converge Conference from 4-6 August in San Jose. And from 3-5 August, GTIA ChannelCon is held in San Diego, offering an annual gathering for its IT channel community of ITSPs, MSPs, vendors, distributors, and technology consultants.