IMEX Frankfurt 2026 runs May 19-21. This is what you need to know:
Early reports indicate it will be just as large as previous years despite global uncertainty.
A total of 4,000 buyers are expected from Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
The IMEXrun 5K will be May 20 on the banks of the river Main.
SITE NITE Europe will be on May 18 at Depot 1899.
The talking point is Design Matters.
With IMEX Frankfurt 2026—the original and largest event professional trade show and hosted buyer event of the year in Europe—opening May 19, early reports indicate it will be just as large and purpose-driven as previous years despite global uncertainty. A total of 4,000 buyers are expected from Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
“Despite the global disruption that’s impacting many, global pressures haven’t dented appetite for our community to come together and advance the conversations that matter, using IMEX as a springboard for both short and long-term business and relationship building,” says IMEX CEO Carina Bauer.
We asked Oliver “Oli” Bailey, show experience and senior operations manager for IMEX Group what to expect and how to prepare for the IMEX Frankfurt 2026 three-day gathering.
Plan Ahead
Schedule your calendar a lot earlier than you think you need to, he advised. Meetings fill up quickly. He suggested using the digital map available online and in the app to map out the path because it can take time to get from one end of the building to the other. Clustering meetings and education sessions is a smart strategy.
And there will be lots of choices for education. In addition to specialist tracks for association executives, corporate planners, destination leaders and future leaders, executive coach Elinor Arbel will share tips for designing transformational gatherings using Inner Developmental Goals.
For those looking to address their movement goals beyond the show floor, the IMEXrun will lead a group along a 5 kilometer run on the banks of the river Main.
And for those looking for more connection, SITE NITE Europe at Depot 1899 on May 18 will celebrate building and bridging cultures.
Visit Frankfurt offers locals guides for group, barrier-free travel and LGBTQ community ideas attendees can use to find restaurant recommendations and options for free time. Frankfurt RheinMain has been designated the World Design Capital for 2026 by World Design Organization so setting aside time to explore could be inspiring.
Fresh Design Ideas
The IMEX talking point this year is “design matters”. A recent IMEX report outlines how design shapes behavior, attention and interaction, determining whether events create lasting, real relationships or forgettable transactions.
A subset of the educational content will focus on how intentional event design propels company revenue and marketing goals in ways that other channels cannot.
The message will be delivered around three core themes: designing for human connection and joy; designing for brand power and differentiation; and designing for sustainability and purpose. Presentations will combine original insight with real-world examples, including Freeman’s research into Gen Z professionals’ appetite for live events; Corona’s brand work at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina and the UK Design Council’s push to embed green skills across the design profession by 2030.
A More Welcoming Framework
Hall Nine at Messe Frankfurt will be the central location of booths, education and lunch with the business appointments going down in Hall Eight. Education areas were designed with layouts and even cooler colors that would accommodate focused learning and appeal to some of the younger attendees who have historically attended.
“We went through empathy-mapping exercises modeled people navigating the spaces in the first person and that is where the magic happens,” Bailey said.
Bailey worked with the American Psychological Association and the Australian Psychological Society to make the show friendly for Neurodivergent attendees. Designing for everyone is something that has to be done from the start, he says. “If you want to make blueberry muffins, you can’t just stuff the blueberries in at the end.”
Read More: Relive the insights from IMEX America 2025
IMEX Group employes diversity, equity and inclusion as a business model. Working with Google X, Storycraft Lab and Hello DMC led to incorporating tranquil resilience rooms in IMEX America so people can take a break if they feel overwhelmed, but now they are consulting professional psychologists to create a robust framework event organizers can refer to when designing their events. To overcome the possibility of “diversitywashing” IMEX America applied for an achieved Level II Comprehensive Neurodivergent Accommodation certification last year. “This was a great step forward to raising the minimum standard across the industry,” said Bailey. Look for adjustments in signage, communication and space design at Frankfurt that reflect those updates. “It’s something that we now factor in when we’re designing anything new just as we would with physical accessibility and sustainability,” he added.
For those looking for inspiration to incorporate into their events, IMEX is offering guided tours of the design principles in place.
