NewsParcs is an online trade publication dedicated to theme park industry professionals worldwide.
Since 1998, we work in direct contact with manufacturers, suppliers, consultants, owners and operators to publish only reliable and relevant information.
NewsParcs will do a full coverage of the IAAPA Attractions Expo 2013 in Orlando to have a look at the latest trends and developments of the global theme park industry.
Follow us on Twitter (@NewsParcs) from November 19 to 22 with the hashtag #IAAPA
Success in all areas for IAAPA Attractions
Expo 2012
Update : 08/12/12 - 20h20Published by François Mayné the 7 December 2012, Event.
The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) has made a positive assessment of the IAAPA Attractions Expo 2012, the world’s largest conference and trade show for the attractions industry, that was held November 12-16 in Orlando, USA.
The event indeed drew nearly 26,500 participants coming from a hundred countries including 15,800 qualified buyers, ie representatives of amusement parks, water parks, family entertainment centers (FEC's), zoos, aquariums, museums, edutainment parks, science centers, resorts and roadside attractions. During four days, they found, tested, discussed, purchased and even tasted the products and services of 1,167 exhibitors spread over a show floor space of nearly 495,000 square feet (approx 46,000 sqm), the largest in four years.
“IAAPA Attractions Expo 2012 is the one time of year when the amusement park and attractions family gathers to conduct the business of fun and this year was a homerun for the industry,” said IAAPA President and CEO Chip Cleary. “The dynamic show floor was filled with innovative products, comprehensive education sessions were filled to capacity, and countless business connections were established throughout the week.”
The conference program and special events (more than 120 throughout the week including seminars, visits to local attractions, symposiums and roundtables) has also had great success with more than 9100 participants, a figure up 14 % compared to 2011. Furthermore, IAAPA stated that 1,800 industry professionals attended the opening ceremony, 1,200 the Welcome Reception, 450 the Leadership Breakfast (featuring this year the President and CEO of Six Flags, Jim Reid-Anderson) and 350 the young professionals reception while nearly 1,800 participants gathered to Universal Studios Florida for the traditionnal "IAAPA Celebrates" main event.
Feedback from the show floor
NewsParcs was in Orlando to meet with numerous exhibitors (see our photo album) and discuss their new products and projects. We took this opportunity to gather some feedback about this 2012 edition.
“This particular IAAPA Attractions Expo was absolutely outstanding!” commented Rick Hunter, CEO of ProSlide Technology. “We feel an all resurgence of the world market! There’s such a positive energy for the all industry especially the water activities market, which is really important for us! We are very proud that our HydroMAGNETIC MAMMOTH won two awards including the prestigious Impact Award. It was a perfect statement and testament to the people who really understand the level of water rides. We couldn’t be more happier about the show and all our customers feel the same way!”
“For us, it is always very important to be present at the IAAPA Attractions Expo. We appreciate all the work that IAAPA is doing for the manufacturers,” explained Water Bolliger, President of Bolliger & Mabillard Consulting Engineers.
“We had a great show in Orlando this year. We spoke with many American and European amusement park owners who were interested in our park versions of the Speed, Fire Ball and High Swing (Stratosphere). We sold four rides including a ‘new’ concept to be delivered to Australia in spring 2015. We can really say the IAAPA Expo 2012 was a success for KMG. Our production and delivery is now booked till mid-2014!” said Peter Theuniz, Sales Manager of KMG.
Benoit Cornet, the CEO of Alterface whose the booth originally planned was stuck at US customs due to administrative delays, is nevertheless satisfied with the week spent in Orlando: "Despite the troubles encountered with the customs, we have largely offset the absence of our interactive display demonstration with the help of our partners - including ETF, Preston & Barbieri, Art Projects and 3dBA - with which we exchanged a lot of ideas and contacts. The concept of the interactive theater is still very attractive on the market but today, it is the interactive dark ride that grew in strength. Alterface offers an excellent solution in this area and we had a lot of interest from participants all along the week."
“This IAAPA Expo was probably the busiest trade show we ever had. I think it really reaffirms that this industry is recession resistant,” said Jim Seay, President and CEO of Premier Rides.
“The show was very good for us,” stated Marco Mazzuchi, Marketing Manager of Zamperla. “Our booth was always full because we have a lot of customers! Our Air Race ride in display catched the attention of many visitors and we sold three models of it, so we are very happy!"
“This year’s show proved the resilience of IAAPA’s base. We had successful Asian and European shows, and yet the buyers still came, and the enthusiasm on the floor has been contagious by both buyers and sellers. IAAPA took it over the top this year,” added John Wood, CEO of Sally Corporation.
“No need to say that IAAPA Expo was again successful to Polin in so many ways,” concluded Sohret Pakis, Marketing Manager of Polin. “We are so glad the attendees that stopped by our booth were all targeted. That made the show a great opportunity to conduct focused meetings to meet our clients' needs!”
Awards and Hall of Fame inductees
Throughout the week, numerous awards such as the Applause Award or the Thea Awards were attributed by different organizations representing the attractions industry (see our previous articles in the section "Related articles" below).
As the host of the event, IAAPA has not missed the opportunity to reward the industry players with its own Service Awards and Brass Ring Awards in various categories such as marketing (advertising, public relations, digital marketing, etc.), live entertainment (street show performance, edutainment show, etc.), food and beverage, human resources or retail.
Among the European recipients, we note Gröna Lund (Best Television Commercial), Liseberg (Best Overall Production: Budget of $100,001 – $200,000), Disneyland Paris (Best Overall Production: Budget of $1,000,001 or More for Disney Dreams!), Europa-Park (Best Overall Production: Budget of $200,001 – $400,000, Best Overall Production of $700,001- $1,000,000 and Best Innovation in Food and Beverage), Efteling (Best Innovation in Food and Beverage for Polles Keuken), Movie Park Germany (Retail: Hard Good – Over 1 million attendance) or Compagnie des Alpes for the Walibi parks (Retail: Hard Good – Under 1 million attendance).
Brass Ring Awards have also been attributed to exhibitors in order to acknowledge the innovations and new products presented on the show floor as well as the most original booths. The most prestigious of them, the Impact Award, was given for example to ProSlide Technology for the electromagnetic water slide Mammoth opened earlier this year at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari. Of the other companies rewarded, we could quote Premier Rides with Superman Ultimate Flight at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom (in the category of new major theme park ride), WhiteWater Wes with AquaCourse (category of new products) and Lo-Q for its system of virtual queue Q-band (category of incomes and admissions).
Finally, two personalities - the Americans Bob Masterson (Ripley's) and PT Barnum (Barnum Circus) - were inducted into the IAAPA's Hall of Fame, a list that honors the legends and pioneers who contributed to the development and growth of the attractions industry.
Created in 1990 the Hall of Fame now includes the names of 89 personalities among whom Walt Disney (The Walt Disney Company), Anton Schwarzkopf (Schwarzkopf), Peter and Jack Herschend (Herschend Family Entertainment), Antonio Zamperla (Zamperla), Franz Mack (MACK Rides, Europa-Park), Werner Stengel (Ing. Buro Stengel), Eddy Meeus (Walibi Group) Willbert Morey (Morey's Piers) and Anton F. Pieck (Efteling).
In 2013, the IAAPA Attractions Expo will again be held at the Orange County Convention Centre of Orlando, this time from November 18 to 22. Nearly 150 companies have already booked their booth. For more details, please visit www.iaapa.org and register to our newsletter for further updates.
These past three years have been intense for NewsParcs. Our magazine, which has been dedicated to the global theme parks industry since 1998, underwent major changes to become one of the most appreciated magazines among many...
CORPORATE | NewsParcs - Published on January 28, 2014
Our Theme Park Supplier's News of the Week is a round-up of the latest news relative to companies supplying the theme park industry around the world. This weekly report covers topics such as corporate announcements, financial ...
The NewsParcs' Theme Park Supplier's News of the Week is a round-up of the latest news relative to companies supplying the theme park industry around the world. This weekly report covers topics such as corporate announcements, ...
Our Industry Roundup is a summary of the latest major news related to the theme park industry worldwide. We report news specifically on operators, owners, trade associations and related organizations, including trends, attendance...
NewsParcs will do a full coverage of the IAAPA Attractions Expo 2013 in Orlando to have a look at the latest trends and developments of the global theme park industry.
The event indeed drew nearly 26,500 participants coming from a hundred countries including 15,800 qualified buyers, ie representatives of amusement parks, water parks, family entertainment centers (FEC's), zoos, aquariums, museums, edutainment parks, science centers, resorts and roadside attractions. During four days, they found, tested, discussed, purchased and even tasted the products and services of 1,167 exhibitors spread over a show floor space of nearly 495,000 square feet (approx 46,000 sqm), the largest in four years.
