LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Equip Exposition marked another record-breaking year in 2024, with more than 28,500 registrants and 1,000 exhibits across more than 1.2 million NSF of exhibit space, including the 30-acre Outdoor Demo Yard. It was the best-attended and largest show in its history.
The show, which is owned and produced by the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI), has been enjoying year after year of growth since the pandemic and OPEI taking full ownership.
This year was the third straight year of a sold-out show floor, and registrants from all 50 states and 50 countries convened in Louisville, Ky., for education, networking experiences, and to see and demo the newest equipment and products in the industry.
High Demand on a Sold-Out Show Floor
This year also marked another sold-out show floor, this time selling out two months earlier than in 2023.
“Now that we’ve reached capacity, we have year-round registration; we immediately initiate contracts and sponsorship renewals,” OPEI President and CEO Kris Kiser said. “They’ve learned that they have to act. If you don’t act, you’re not getting in; and they’ve learned you have to be on the list, whether that’s to move halls or exhibit as a first-time exhibitor. It used to be that people could wait until the last minute and likely could be accommodated, but the past three years since OPEI took ownership of the show, that has changed — and that has sunk in.”
There’s a waitlist to participate in the show, and another for those who want to move or expand their booths.
“Now the Kentucky Exposition Center is undergoing a very significant expansion and renovation, so that will be good in the end, but in the short-term it is challenging,” Kiser said. “We have our anchors [exhibitors], and there is some dynamic movement on the show floor, and there certainly will be more when the new exhibition hall is open.”
Despite spanning the entirety of the Kentucky Exposition Center, Equip Exposition is committed to Louisville, with no plans to move.
“One of the big things that makes us unique is we have 30 acres outdoors where the machines can operate in dirt, on grass, and we dig to 16 feet; it’s a real-world experience,” Kiser said. “It’s very unique to Louisville to give you that kind of space right outside the back door, and we’re going to stay here because of that.”
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Enhancing Experiences and Being Responsive to Feedback
OPEI wanted the show to incorporate more experiential elements when it brought the show back in-house.
“I call it a family reunion because it feels very much like that. We have a 50% returning audience every year, and one of the things they talk to us about are the peer events because that’s where they really learn. They enjoy talking and socializing,” Kiser said. “We have classrooms and The Morning Show and Energize, but what they really like are the peer-to-peer things where they can get together and talk to one another.”
The experiences are another investment OPEI has made, and the result has been some well-received signature events.
“We were at Churchill Downs, which is an iconic institution in Louisville, and there’s a beautiful new addition to the track,” Kiser said. “And for the arena concert, we rent one of the premier arenas in the country and we put on a concert where people go, they hang out and they have a good time. The people who sponsor it can rent suites, all the concessions are open, we really make it a worthwhile experience.”
This upcoming year, Equip Exposition will have its very own bourbon distilled for the show — in true Louisville-style.
“What we’ve done to engage our attendees is asking them to help us name it, and we’ll also work with the city of Louisville on that and announce a winner who’s helped us with the name,” Kiser said. “We also do some give backs of significant pricing, and we’ll do more in 2025. We give away Bobcats, skid steers and zero-turn mowers, and attendees love being in the running for this, so we’ll be doing more of that too.”
Meeting Attendees Where They’re At
Kiser shared that Equip Exposition is seeing growing numbers of younger participants at the show, crediting more targeted messaging and a greater focus on how the brand is communicating with its audience.
“We made some investments in how we communicate, in different software,” Kiser said. “We got on TikTok, we’re on YouTube and we produce a lot of videos and snippets, so we’re definitely doing well in drawing a younger audience and engaging younger folks as they learn the business.”
OPEI also has made investments in its software and personnel, including in videography, photography and communicating across multiple generations.
“From a communications perspective, we’ve looked at platform messaging and techniques across a wide range of products,” Kiser said. “We heavily engage with our influencers and podcasters, and we incentivize and partner with them. We also survey their audiences, and we listen, because if the attendees are having a better event and experience, that’s a better return on investment for the exhibitors.”
Giving Back to the Community
Through their education arm, the TurfMutt Foundation, OPEI and Equip Exposition also have a charitable aspect, with a big focus on animal rescue and rehabilitation.
“We have a national dog adoption event at our show, and we got 12 dogs adopted in three hours this year,” Kiser said. “We had hurricane dogs this year and I’m so proud of our people because they really do pack them up and take them home. When they drive those dogs into the building and open the door, they’re howling and the energy around that event is just extraordinary.”
Future Dates
The 2025 edition of the show will take place Oct. 21-24 in Louisville.
