By R.V. Baugus

We came upon a little piece of news that flew under the radar. That is, until our astute friend Rick Haycock, CVE, touched base with me to share the news that he thought IAVM members would take an interest in. As I replied to Rick, you are more than correct about that, sir!

Jody Lake, CVE, IAVM retired member who has meant so much and done so much in support of the Association and the industry, was recently recognized with an induction into the Hall of Fame at Weber State University and Wildcat Athletics, where she served for 40 years with the same passion and love as she held for her volunteer roles in IAVM.

We will just let the press release addressing Jody’s induction take it from here, and will also include a link to the full press release to share the names of other inductees, including Portland Trail Blazer star Damian Lillard (see picture).

As Rick shared and we agree: Jody is a special person and, as modest as she is, she would never put this out on her own. Someone else brought it up on one of our many calls and you could tell she was as proud as she was shy!

The release:

As part of the Hall of Fame ceremony, Jody Lake will receive the Reed K. Swenson Distinguished Service Award, honoring her longtime service to Weber State University and Wildcat Athletics.

Lake worked at Weber State and the Dee Events Center for 40 years from 1980-2019, including more than 20 years as the director of the Dee Events Center. During her career, she helped coordinate the hosting of several thousand events at the Dee Events Center from basketball games, to graduations, to concerts, to religious events, and numerous community events.

During her time at the Dee Events Center, Weber State hosted four NCAA Tournaments and multiple Big Sky Championships, in addition to serving as the home for Wildcat men’s and women’s basketball. The DEC also hosted a dozen Utah Jazz preseason games as well as numerous high school basketball tournaments and was the home for Weber State volleyball for many years.

Under her guidance, the building also had several upgrades and improvements and the Dee Events Center continues to serve as a home for Weber State University and the community. She was also involved in the building of the Weber County Ice Sheet, the Marquardt Field house and the Weber State softball complex.

Lake retired from Weber State in July 2019.

For the full announcement, click here.

Carol Wallace, President/CEO of San Diego Theatres, announced the promotion of Brendan Farley to the position of Vice President of Operations. Farley has been with San Diego Theatres for more than six years and joined the team as Director of Operations. In that role, he oversaw Front of House and Food and Beverage. Later, he assumed responsibility for the Public Safety, Production, and Engineering departments.

Farley’s career in the performing arts industry has progressed from onstage, back of house, front of house to venue management. After earning a degree in Acting from Ithaca College, Farley worked with theaters in Chicago and New York City as both an actor and a technician. He got his start in the venue management industry in the concession stands at the Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford, CT in 1998. Farley and his wife Katherine moved to San Diego in 2007. In San Diego, Farley worked with the Lamb’s Players Theatre in Coronado. With the support of their incredible team of artists and creators, he progressed through the roles of Shop Foreman, Technical Director, and Director of Systems and Production.

Since joining San Diego Theatres, Farley has continued to be a leader in the performing arts and venue management industries. He has represented San Diego Theatres on several industry committees with the IAVM. Currently, he serves as the performing arts representative on the Venue Safety and Security Committee (VSSC), Chair of the Performing Arts Safety and Security Sub-Committee (PASS), and led the Performing Arts Working Group to assist venues to achieve their GBAC Star Certification in Biohazard Mitigation in response to the COVID-19 health crisis.

In his new role, Farley will continue to oversee the Operations Department and work directly with the dynamic San Diego Theatres team to create moments that matter for the stakeholders of the Civic and Balboa Theatres. He will continue to serve as the key contact for the City of San Diego Departments and represent San Diego Theatres on the Board of Directors of Downtown San Diego Partnership’s City Center Business District.

By Mary Tucker

The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) reports that the U.S. business-to-business (B2B) exhibitions industry improved significantly in the second quarter of 2021 from the previous four quarters as cancellation rates of the physical events dropped to 66.5% from 90.4% in the first quarter 2021. About 98% of exhibitions were cancelled during the second half of 2020.

As a result of fewer cancellations, the CEIR Total Index, a measure of exhibition industry performance, improved from a decline of about 94% from 2019 in Q1 2021 to a decline of 79.1% from 2019 in Q2 2021. The performance of the U.S. economy was far better, registering a moderate 2.0% increase in real (inflation-adjusted) GDP from Q2 2019. It increased at an annual rate of 6.6% from the previous quarter, attributable to increases in personal consumption expenditures, nonresidential fixed investment, exports, and state and local government spending that were partly offset by increases in imports and decreases in private inventory investment, residential fixed investment and federal government spending.

Among cancelled events in Q2 2021, 82% of events pivoted to produce digital events, compared to 75% in Q1 2021. All events held in the second quarter of 2020 cancelled, making comparison of Q2 2021 performance results to Q2 2020 results not possible. Thus, completed events in the second quarter of 2021 are compared with those in the second quarter of 2019. Excluding cancelled events, the Total Index for completed events in Q2 2021 dropped by 37.6% from 2019, compared to a decline of 54.5% from 2019 in Q1 2021. All exhibition metrics for completed events in Q2 improved from Q1 even though all metrics still posted sharp declines from 2019. Attendees suffered the largest fall of 48.8%, followed by Real Revenues plunging by 47.3%. Exhibitors decreased 31.6% whereas Net Square Feet (NSF) tumbled 17.9% from the second quarter of 2019.

The U.S. economy has been growing since May 2020. With a sharp rebound in the third quarter of 2020 and a continued recovery through the second quarter of 2021, real GDP in Q2 2021 exceeded its peak in the fourth quarter of 2019 by 0.8%.

Delta infections have dampened economic activities during the third quarter of 2021. However, Johns Hopkins’ COVID-19 data shows that the seven-day moving average of new cases appears to have passed the recent peak. In a sweeping attempt to contain the latest surge of COVID-19, on 9 September, President Joe Biden imposed stringent new vaccine rules on federal workers, health care staff and large employers with 100 or more employees. The new requirements could apply to as many as 100 million Americans, close to two-thirds of the American workforce. Furthermore, many large gathering venues require proof of vaccinations or negative COVID-19 tests.

“Because of those new initiatives, economic activities should continue at a robust pace with real GDP growth at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of over 5% during the second half of the year, and the B2B exhibition cancellation rate should decline further,” said CEIR Economist, Dr. Allen Shaw, Chief Economist for Global Economic Consulting Associates, Inc.

“With more vaccine mandates and safety measures implemented at large gatherings, and with a majority of the population vaccinated, the recovery of B2B exhibitions should begin by the fourth quarter of this year and gain momentum in 2022,” added CEIR CEO Cathy Breden, CMP, CAE, CEM.

The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) has released the 2021 CEIR Index Report, which analyzes the 2020 exhibition industry performance and provides an economic and exhibition industry outlook for the next three years. CEIR collects data directly from exhibition organizers and urges those who do not provide their show data to do so. The annual CEIR Index Report for their shows’ market sector will be provided at no cost. Click here for information on how to purchase the complete 2021 CEIR Index Report as well as individual sector reports.

Mary Tucker is Senior PR/Communications Manager for CEIR.

By Climate Pledge Arena

Climate Pledge Arena announced the use of Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology with Amazon One to make the in-arena shopping experience more efficient and cut wait times so guests can get back to the action faster. The four food and beverage stores equipped with Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One will open when the arena opens in October.

Guests visiting the four Just Walk Out-enabled stores at Climate Pledge Arena can insert their credit card at the location’s entry gates to shop or can hover their palm over an Amazon One device to enter. Once inside, guests can take what they want and then just leave after they’re done shopping. As they shop, Just Walk Out technology determines what they take from or return to the shelves, and the credit card they inserted or linked to their Amazon One ID will be charged for items they took after they leave the store. If a guest is new to using the Amazon One palm recognition service, they can enroll in less than a minute at any of the Amazon One enrollment kiosks located near the Just Walk Out technology-enabled stores on the arena’s main and upper concourses.

“For us, the fan experience inside Climate Pledge Arena is paramount; we want it to be simple, safe and fast for every guest,” said Todd Humphrey, SVP of Digital Fan Experience for the Seattle Kraken. “We are thrilled to work with Amazon to use their groundbreaking technology to make it as easy as hovering your palm, picking an item off a shelf, and leaving to make your purchase.”

The Just Walk Out technology-enabled stores will sell beer, wine, soft drinks, coffee, water, and feature food offerings from The Climate Collective, the arena’s unique food and beverage program. Guests purchasing alcohol will be required to show their ID to a store attendant for age verification.

“We’re excited to work with Climate Pledge Arena to offer guests the ability to shop quickly and effortlessly when they’re enjoying a concert or a game at the new arena in Seattle, using a combination of both Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One,” said Dilip Kumar, Vice President of Physical Retail & Technology at Amazon. “Our physical retail technologies are designed to remove friction for customers as they shop, and we’re thrilled Climate Pledge Arena is offering checkout-free experiences for their guests so they can quickly get what they need and return to their event.”

White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients announced that current inbound entry restrictions into the U.S. would be lifted for fully vaccinated international travelers beginning in early November.

Why it matters: The Biden administration has been under pressure from many stakeholders to remove
travel restrictions on visitors from the United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, China, Brazil, South
Africa, India, and several other countries. The bans were preventing many international exhibitors and
attendees from attending conferences and trade shows in the U.S. just as face-to-face business events
were beginning to return.

The details: Starting in early November (exact date TBD), fully vaccinated travelers from anywhere in
the world will be able to fly into the U.S., subject to new testing and contact tracing procedures.

While many details are still being finalized, ECA currently understands the following:

• Travelers will need to show proof off full vaccination prior to boarding any U.S.-bound flight
• There will be no quarantine requirement upon arrival for fully vaccinated passengers
• As part of the ticketing and check-in processes, airlines will be collecting emails and phone
numbers from all passengers as part of a new enhanced contact-tracing system
• The current requirement that all passengers (including vaccinated U.S. citizens) obtain a
negative test result no more than 3 days before their flight departs will remain in place
• Similarly, all passengers 2 years and older must continue to wear as mask for the duration of any
flight to the U.S.

What’s next? In the coming days, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will
determine the definition of “fully vaccinated” and which vaccines qualify for the policy. At this time, the
CDC only recognizes the Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, and Johnson & Johnson jabs, while the World
Health Organization has also approved the Oxford/AstraZeneca, Serum, Sinopharm, and Sinovac shots.

ECA’s view: ECA board chair Hervé Sedky, President and CEO of Emerald, issued the following statement
in response to the Biden administration’s announcement.

“The members of the Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance applaud today’s announcement by the Biden
administration and appreciate the administration’s support of the economy as small businesses across
the U.S. rely on our industry to recover. International exhibitors and attendees are critical to the success
of the thousands of conferences and trade shows held in the United States each year. Allowing those
who are vaccinated back into the U.S. is an important step in the recovery of our industry and will help
us get our stakeholders safely back to business and back to work nationwide.”

ECA will continue to monitor this important issue and keep the industry apprised of further developments.