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tracks are design-related: Design matters; Regenerative design; Designing for human needs and Experiential event design.
We’ re welcoming speakers from the world of design – the Design Council, for instance – and from across other business sectors. To name a few: David de Bruijn from WINK, the agency behind Corona beer’ s experiential activations at the Winter Olympics; Christoffer Sapienza from Norway’ s largest bank, DNB, which launched the‘ girlsinvest’ event series; and Dr Frauke Fischer, a biodiversity expert who’ ll take centre stage at the German Impact Zone asking: " Can AI save nature?”
How has the exhibitor kaleidoscope changed for 2026. Any new destinations and trends emerging with venues and supplier participation? We have a global range of exhibitors confirmed from over 100 countries and are seeing growth in several geographical markets. Africa will have one of its largest-ever representations at the show, with new exhibitors Mozambique and Angola; Egypt doubling its footprint; and Tunisia and Uganda both returning.
Japan’ s also set for one of its largestever participations, with Kyoto
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IMEX chairman Ray Bloom
Attentive audience in the Ocean Room
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Left: Exhibitors will attend from over 100 countries this year
Left: The ceiling is always high for discussion and networking at IMEX Frankfurt
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doubling the size of its booth. Malaysia is expanding its presence, and both China and Hong Kong are returning to the show floor.
Has the war in Iran affected planning and logistics for any of the exhibitor community? Have you been able to help / advise on that? Exhibitors from the Middle East remain very committed to attending the show, with confirmed participation from destinations including Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Oman, Qatar, Ras Al- Khaimah and Ajman.
As with any evolving situation, the impact on logistics varies by exhibitor so it’ s difficult to generalise. While travel arrangements can be more complex, flights are operating and exhibitors are actively planning to be onsite. Those transiting via the Middle East are exploring alternative travel routes where necessary, and we’ re staying in close contact to support and advise as needed.
What other show features can you flag and what are the key takeaways you envisage for your visitors? Attendees should keep a lookout for a revamped Hall 9, home to the IMEX hosted buyer lounge, education theatres, German Impact Academy and various experiential activations. Our team have given it a complete remodel for 2026, going back to foundational design principles and combining them with UX best practice to elevate the space.
As always, there’ s an exciting‘ fringe’ programme of events taking place outside the show and across the city. The IMEXrun, SITE NITE and Gala Dinner are all returning, and Messe Frankfurt’ s tour of immersive show Frankfurt: City of WOW! are among the exhibitor events on offer.
IMEX Frankfurt takes place 19-21 May n
n https:// frankfurt. imexevents. com /
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