CHICAGO — GES announced its parent company, Viad Corp, has entered into a definitive agreement with Truelink Capital, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles, through which Truelink will acquire the GES businesses for $535 million. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2024, and marks yet another major acquisition by private equity in the trade show and live events industry.
The acquisition will include GES Exhibitions, a major global exhibitions and logistics services provider; Spiro, a global experiential agency; along with onPeak, SHOWTECH and Visit, which provide event accommodation, power/lighting and registration services.
Current GES President Derek Linde will assume the role of President and CEO following the deal’s closing, with Jeff Quade, President of GES N.A. Exhibitions, Jason Stead, President of GES EMEA Exhibitions, and Jeff Stelmach, President of Spiro, continuing to lead the businesses after the transaction.
“Our leadership team is going to remain intact through this process and we are excited,” Linde said. “We are energized to partner with Truelink to drive growth; they’ve got a track record of success, investing in businesses they acquire and partnering with leadership teams to drive long-term value. This partnership is going to allow us to leverage our differentiated platform across the globe, which will accelerate our growth.”
Earlier this month, GES launched its new division in Qatar, marking the business’ commitment to growth in the Middle East region, following the 2021 opening of its Saudi Arabia office.
Once closed, the deal will make GES a privately-owned, stand-alone company in Truelink’s business portfolio.
Trade Show Executive sat down with Derek Linde and Jeff Quade to discuss how this deal benefits GES and its clients, and what to be excited about in the coming year.
GES Looks to Drive Further Success and Innovation
“We are in a really exciting place right now, and the deal provides us an opportunity to partner with a sophisticated, successful investor who is solely focused on the success of GES,” Linde said. “It gives us the ability to continue the strong momentum that we are seeing within our businesses today, while simultaneously investing to accelerate our innovation pipeline and expanding our service capabilities. We generate substantial cash flow, and we now have a real opportunity to redeploy it back into the business to drive growth.”
What GES Wants Clients to Know
“Truelink’s investment in GES is a vote of confidence in the industry and our team. This deal will support our vision to enhance the products and services that we offer,” Quade said. “I want our clients to know that in the short term, they’re still going to get the same great service team. In the mid to long term, that team is going to be supported with the ability to invest in new products and services that will benefit the organizers and exhibitors.”
Finding the Right PE Partner
Private equity in the trade show and live events industry is increasing, with firms and other investors energized by the opportunity in the space.
“Truelink was the right partner because many of the same things that really excite us about our own business are the same things that got them really excited,” Linde said. “That’s the depth and breadth of the talent that exists within our teams and they can see that through the extraordinary experiences that we create on behalf of our clients around the world. Truelink recognizes that we have an exceptional roster of loyal clients across industry-leading associations, for-profit organizers and well-known global brands.
“Truelink understands the fundamentals that drive our business, our culture and how we operate. They became really strong believers in our ability to deliver industry leadership, innovation and, ultimately, saw a meaningful and accelerated growth runway that exists.
Linde shared he is excited to have an experienced investor that’s invested across a wide variety of tech-enabled service businesses as the team continues to think about what the future of live events is going to be.
“To have our team have the support, growth capital and a fresh perspective of ideas to accelerate growth in our global platform is exciting,” Quade said. “With the appropriate resources, there is a lot of opportunity for our team members to grow and support our clients and strengthen our position in North America, Europe and the Middle East.”
Validating Confidence in the Employees and Purpose of GES
On Monday, GES hosted an internal town hall to talk about the deal with its employee base. More than 1,700 people from around the world joined the call to learn more details.
“We have an industry-leading team that delivers excellent service to our organizers,” Quade said. “We’ll go back to our sense of purpose of connecting people to innovation, experiences and one another. Our teams accomplish that sense of purpose and they help our clients and exhibitors accomplish their goals. Truelink’s investment in GES is a testament that the team does amazing work.
This article was updated on October 24, 2024, from its original version published on October 21.
