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IMEX Frankfurt 2025: Reclaiming Purpose, Power, and Progress in the Global Events Industry

Dates: 20–22 May 2025
Location: Messe Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Website: https://imex-frankfurt.com

In a post-pandemic world of geopolitical tension, climate reckoning, and economic recalibration, the global business events industry finds itself facing both challenge and opportunity. At the heart of this moment lies IMEX Frankfurt 2025 — the industry’s most influential trade show and think tank for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE). But this year, IMEX is not merely a marketplace. It is a movement.

Taking place from 20–22 May at Messe Frankfurt, IMEX 2025 will gather more than 3,500 exhibitors, thousands of decision-makers, and a roster of visionary speakers. It is a timely and deliberate call to action: to do more, to do better, and to define what progress means for business events in a rapidly changing world.

A Talking Point with Teeth: IMPACT 2.0 – Activating the Future

The 2025 edition is shaped by the central theme “IMPACT 2.0: Activating the Future” — a strategic response to the most urgent questions facing the events profession.

The theme is built around three pillars:

The Next Generation: How do we attract, retain and empower young talent in an industry often accused of lagging behind in digital transformation, equity, and purpose?
Social Disconnection and Loneliness: What role do face-to-face events play in rebuilding human connection and belonging in an increasingly fragmented, digital-first society?
De-risking the Future: How can we embed climate action, carbon accountability, and future-proofing into the very DNA of our events?

In an industry that has traditionally prized growth and spectacle, these questions are not just rhetorical. They are existential. And IMEX is placing them centre stage.

A Shift in Tone: From Showcase to Strategic Forum

IMEX Frankfurt 2025 is undergoing a tonal shift. While the vibrant exhibition floor remains the event’s beating heart, the 2025 programme places unprecedented emphasis on strategic foresight, purpose-led planning, and community building.

Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX Group, will set the tone in her opening keynote on regenerative event design. Her message is clear: Sustainability is no longer enough. It is time to leave the places and people we touch better off than before.

Joining Bauer on stage and in breakout sessions are some of the sector’s most forward-thinking minds:

Bella Shahsuvaryan (Travel Portland) will discuss the delicate balance between destination marketing and destination protection, advocating for events that respect local communities and ecosystems.
Simone Ziegler (Maritz Global Events) explores how to create emotionally intelligent events that combat loneliness and digital fatigue. Her work centres on neuroinclusive design and experiences that foster connection and meaning.
Ksenia Drozdova (Moscow City Tourism Committee) brings geopolitical perspective, discussing how cities can responsibly market themselves amid cultural tensions and polarised narratives.
James Morgan (Event Tech Lab) makes a case for “tech that touches” — demonstrating how AR, AI and sensory data are pushing the boundaries of event personalisation, equity, and immersion.

These are not add-ons to the programme. They are the programme. And their collective impact signals an industry willing to move beyond best practice into bold practice.

The Show Floor: A Crossroads of Innovation

If the education programme is the brain of IMEX, the exhibition floor is its body — animated, vibrant, and built for momentum. In 2025, that floor will host:

Tech Pioneers: Companies such as Cvent, Bizzabo, and RainFocus will unveil advances in AI-driven personalisation, dynamic scheduling, real-time translation, and accessibility-first platforms.
Destinations with a Difference: From Singapore’s regenerative incentives portfolio to Dubai’s legacy-first bid strategies, destinations are no longer just selling space. They are selling purpose.
Hospitality with Heart: Brands like Hilton, Marriott, and a growing number of independents are showcasing eco-certified meeting spaces, carbon calculators, and neurodiverse-friendly venue solutions.
Experience Builders: DMCs and creative agencies from across Europe, Asia and Africa are presenting modular formats, immersive offsites, and open-air learning journeys focused on co-creation and cultural storytelling.

What unites these exhibitors is their shared response to the central theme: impact is no longer optional; it is expected.

How to Get to IMEX Frankfurt 2025

Messe Frankfurt is strategically located and easily accessible. For international delegates, Frankfurt Airport (FRA) — one of Europe’s busiest hubs — is just a 15-minute drive or a short train journey away. High-speed trains (ICE) connect Frankfurt with major cities across Germany and Europe, making it convenient for both long-haul and regional travellers.

Public transport, including S-Bahn, U-Bahn, trams and buses, links the city seamlessly, and IMEX attendees will benefit from complimentary public transport passes for the duration of the event.

After-Show Life: Networking Beyond Business Hours

The learning and networking do not end when the exhibition doors close. Frankfurt’s after-hours scene will come alive with a series of official and unofficial IMEX after-show events, receptions, and parties. From rooftop networking gatherings to casual riverbank meet-ups and exclusive partner dinners, the evenings offer a more relaxed opportunity to forge new business relationships.

A highlight for 2025 will be the “IMEX Connect” evenings hosted across some of Frankfurt’s trendiest new venues, bringing together exhibitors, hosted buyers, and delegates in settings designed to celebrate connection, culture, and conversation.

Why Attend: Five Strategic Imperatives

To Reclaim Human Connection
In an age of digital saturation, loneliness, and transactional interactions, IMEX makes a case for the transformational power of real gatherings. You do not network at IMEX. You reconnect.
To Future-Proof Your Role
IMEX 2025 does not just help you learn what is trending. It shows you what is coming. From AI to climate accounting, from experience design to DEI in action, the event is a learning lab for what is next.
To Find Your People
Whether through the Association Focus, Exclusively Corporate programme, or one of the curated networking circles, IMEX is engineered for serendipity — and serious collaboration.
To Drive Real Change
From the new Sustainability Village to live workshops on carbon offsetting, inclusive storytelling, and supplier vetting, the tools to turn intention into action are everywhere.
To Be Inspired Again
In a high-burnout, high-velocity industry, IMEX Frankfurt offers a rare thing: space to think, dream, and remember why we do this work in the first place.

Beyond the Booths: Culture, Wellness and the City

Frankfurt, often misunderstood as a purely financial hub, is leaning into its creative and cultural underbelly. The city will host a series of off-site activations: gallery dinners, riverbank runs, late-night salons, and culinary tours that celebrate local artisanship.

Meanwhile, IMEX will feature wellness zones, mindful spaces, and the popular IMEXrun — a 5K through the city that reminds everyone that health and high performance go hand in hand.

Add in complimentary public transport, local attraction passes, and city-wide discounts, and it is clear: Frankfurt is not just hosting IMEX. It is participating in it.

Final Thoughts: From Attendance to Action

If there was ever a time to show up with purpose, it is now. The industry is at a crossroads, and IMEX Frankfurt 2025 is not just asking the right questions — it is assembling the people capable of answering them.

This is not business as usual. It is business as it could be.

Whether you are a supplier or strategist, a first-timer or a frequent flyer, this year’s IMEX offers something rarer than opportunity: relevance.

So the real question is no longer “Should you attend?”
It is “Can you afford not to?”

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