DALLAS, 27 April 2020 – International Association of Exhibitions and Events®(IAEE) announced its support as a founding partner for Go LIVE Together, a coalition of 80 founding partners – representing over 4,000 companies with U.S. operations – who have joined forces to support legislative actions that will aid the industry’s recovery from COVID-19. The coalition is bound together by the belief that nothing in the world will ever replace the power and need for trade shows and live events.
“The irrefutable value of the face-to-face meetings industry is reflected by its year-over-year growth in the U.S. and global economies,” noted IAEE President & CEO David DuBois, CMP, CAE, FASAE, CTA. “The exhibitions and events industry is suffering a devastating setback from the effects of COVID-19 but is poised to make a comeback once circumstances allow. In the meantime, our industry needs the support of the federal government so that we may mitigate the immediate impact of this crisis.”
Events serve as a massive incubator for innovation and economic growth. Advocating for recovery funding will be essential – not only to the events industry – but to the healing and recovery efforts of the global economy, because:
- Live events contribute nearly $1 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, with events touching every major sector that makes up the U.S. GDP.
- In 2019, the events industry employed 3 million workers directly, with a total impact of close to 7 million jobs.
- The live events industry employs millions of union workers, general laborers, strategists, marketers, concession stand workers, entertainers, riggers, project managers and more.
- Over 80 percent of the companies that serve the live events industry are small, with many being women- and minority-owned businesses.
Please join our efforts in advocating for what we all already know to be true – nothing in the world will ever replace the power and the need for live events.
Let’s Go LIVE Together! #GoLiveTogether
Visit www.golivetogether.com to learn more information.
