North America’s Largest Marine Industry Trade Event Brought Exhibitors and Visitors Back Together With Attendance Exceeding Expectations
Tampa, FL – The International BoatBuilders’ Exhibition and Conference (IBEX) announced today that its 30th Anniversary Show closed on Thursday, September 30 with early indications that attendance figures exceeded expectations for the three-day event. With the return of an in-person event, IBEX saw more than 560 exhibitors, including 80 new exhibiting companies, and more than 3,200 visitors. The IBEX docks were sold out with 29 boats on display and the expanded outdoor displays included nine demos and exhibits. In all, there were 18 exhibiting international companies, representing 12 nationalities including: Australia, China, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Korea, Netherlands, Slovenia, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. The IBEX Education Conference had more than 300 registrants who participated in over 40 pre-conference sessions and technical seminars. Additionally, hundreds of visitors took advantage of the free workshops hosted in The Tech Talk Theater on the show floor.
“It’s been great to get back here, see all the builders and exhibitors,” said Charlie Ryan, East Penn. “It’s such a special industry and we’re just so happy that we’re able to be back together this year.”
“My favorite thing about IBEX has been the networking and seeing everyone in person after two years of not being able to,” said Allyson Spease, Domestic Customer Service & Marketing, Hawkeye Industries. “We were able to get hands-on experience and see some innovative new products in person.”
“It’s been fantastic to see both our customers and our distribution partners who are here at the show and being able to connect after all this time,” said Shelly Bennion, National Sales Manager, Hawkeye Industries.
“This is our 10th year or so, it’s been quite a while, but IBEX is always a good show,” said Bill McDaniel, Sunbrella. “We’re happy to be here and happy we’re back engaging in person. The first day was very quality-oriented, with a lot of good people. We’re really looking forward to the rest of the Show and seeing how the industry does in the future.”
“IBEX was ADDMAN’s best performing tradeshow all year on just the first day,” said Mike Shaffer, Director of Sales, ADDMAN Engineering. “The IBEX team has done a fantastic job!”
“IBEX 2021 on the first day was better for us than all three days were in 2019 combined,” Jackie Ahrens, Assembly Tools Specialists Inc.
“It’s like the good old days, there were more than 40 people in that seminar,” said education conference presenter Richard Downs Honey of RDH Composites LLC. “There were a lot of great questions, and the engagement was high.”
“To be successful, you have to place yourself on the path of progress and IBEX is where you find it,” said Dean Clemente, RMB Company, LLC. “The action is here, not sitting at your desk. If you’re not at IBEX, you are going to be left behind.”
“I’ve talked with many of our exhibitors and they are saying the same thing, that while attendance may have been impacted by COVID concerns, the quality of boat builders and industry buyers this year was exceptional,” said Anne Dunbar, IBEX Show Director. “We all needed this event to reconnect and experience the new innovations that will move the marine industry forward. We are so pleased to have brought the industry together for another successful IBEX.”
IBEX is scheduled to return to the Tampa Convention Center, with IBEX 2022 show dates set for September 27 – 29, 2022. For more information, visit www.ibexshow.com.
– 30 –
About the International BoatBuilders’ Exhibition & Conference (IBEX):
IBEX, Where Better Boats Begin (www.ibexshow.com), is the marine industry’s largest technical trade event in North America and is powered globally by METSTRADE, a global event for professionals in the leisure marine equipment industry. IBEX is owned and produced by the National Marine Manufacturers Association (www.nmma.org) and RAI Amsterdam (www.rai.nl). The 2022 IBEX is scheduled to take place at the Tampa Convention Center, September 27 – 29, in Tampa, FL USA. For more information, please visit www.ibexshow.com.