The 2015 exposition is over now. As it has for more than a quarter of a century, the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) drew an international audience to the host city. Most attendees come from the United States, which makes sense given the SCAA is based there.
For the second year in a row, the show returned to the city in which it first broke attendance records. Preliminary numbers on attendance for 2015 indicate that it now attracts nearly seven times what it did when the third annual exposition and conference were held in Seattle 25 years ago. (Then, there were more than 1,800 in attendance; according to an official spokesperson, this year there were more than 12,000.)
The official SCAA attendee statistics track how long registrants have been in the coffee business, if they indicate they make or recommend purchasing decisions, and the reason why they came. Data from the 2014 show, also held in Seattle, suggest that businesses would be spending about 3% more in 2015 than they did in 2014, though did not indicate in what types of investments or purchases.
That the SCAA has maintained growth in attendance of its annual conference landed it, once again, on the list of Fastest 50 as ranked by Trade Show Executive magazine.
“SCAA is extremely pleased to have our 2014 Annual Exposition included in TSE’s Fastest 50 a second year in a row. We, along with a large group of our members and volunteers, put a huge amount of effort behind keeping the show fresh and relevant each year, so it’s very gratifying to be recognized by the industry,” said Cindy Cohn, SCAA’s show director.
Could the number of attendees from this year land it on this list for a third year? It’s a possibility, but that announcement is several months away.
Learn more: www.tradeshowexecutive.com/events/fastest50/media.htm and www.scaa.org/