EMS 2026: Seven Takeaways for Trade Show Exhibitors and Their Partners

Trade Shows, EMS 2026

Posted on June 16, 2026 by Anna Huddleston

The 24th Experiential Marketing Summit brought more than 1,000 brand marketers and event industry professionals to the MGM Grand Las Vegas, May 18-20, for three days of inspiration, deep dives, and play under the theme “Human Connection in the Digital Age Starts Here.” From fast-paced creative challenges to brain dates with peers—and, of course, candid conversations over a drink—it was a place to finally let your hair down, ask real questions, and walk away with renewed energy and a game plan for next year.

Trade show marketing factored prominently into the summit, with a dedicated “Exhibit Strategies” track on that Monday and several dedicated sessions throughout the event. Top brands shared their expertise on trade show strategy in panel discussions and workshops, while the show floor offered the latest in production and engagement.

Here are the EMS 2026 exhibits and tactics everyone was talking about.

AI as Electricity

“We’re at a place in time where tech is finally catching up to our dreams,” says Ken Madden, global chief technology and innovation officer, George P. Johnson.

Internally, Madden expects AI to be instrumental in transforming business processes for how experiences are designed, delivered, and scaled. Shortening the distance between an idea and a product is just one aspect. For the past year, GPJ has been holding weekly internal meetings where staff members can learn about the latest in AI, ask questions, and showcase their own experiments. The company is also launching an AI Hub, designed to help integrate AI into workflows with access to specialized prompts, data analysis, and evolving tools to tap into its potential.

Externally, AI is already powering trade show experiences from catchy personalized moment activations to layered experiences where AI provides live commentary during competitions and other types of engagement, such as at Google Cloud Next.

Victor Torregroza, experiences program manager at Intel, pointed to the creative use of AI at the brand’s booths at CES and other recent trade shows, where music by a live violinist was transformed in real time using AI and the brand’s hardware into a visually stunning and highly engaging experience.

Nostalgia and Analog, No Directions

On the opposite side of the spectrum, “grandma’s hobbies” and nostalgic throwbacks to slower times continue to dominate trade show and event experiences. “We are seeing a strong hunger for analog, and with Gen Z and the customers of tomorrow, there’s a great interest in that generation and the types of things we used to do,” says Kelsey Boardsen, senior manager of experiential marketing and partnerships at The North Face.

From arcade games and claw machines to Plinko games, the brand is leaning into intuitive experiences that don’t require instructions. “You don’t need to scan a QR code, you’ll immediately know what it is and how to interact with it,” Boardsen says. “Just put your phone down and live in the moment.”

Tactile, Playful, Fun

At EMS, analog experiences ran the gamut from LEGO-centered activations to a rotating sushi table by Sakura to a kinetic sand beach filled with shells by Skyline. Coligrapher Alex Hirsch was personalizing bucket hats with thoughtful messaging. Smash Booth Interactive Photo Studios was making Faux Mini Records, collectible record sleeves inspired by attendees’ unique experience, personality and music style. Instax was snapping and giving away photos bound for desks and cork walls.

Kick play up a notch, wonderMakr showcased its portfolio in a “lab,” where attendees could take a specimen slide, a vial, or a Petri dish and place them into an “analyzer,” triggering a video and a deeper dive. This is how you found out about a custom flute with Skittles buttons that controlled a video game using breath, or about branded chopsticks made for scrolling while eating. And if you didn’t pop the bubbles at Reveal’s exhibit that was literally wrapped in bubble wrap, you missed out.

Sustainable is Efficient

At Brumark’s Sustainability Theater, brands and suppliers shared the tactics on being serious about sustainability. Is it a value for your event? Do a behind-the-scenes tour. Need something to actually happen? Put a metric on it. Got stuff to donate? Research companies, such as Fabrica and Ecoset, that will take care of that. Rareform will make custom bags out of vinyl banners.

Instacart shared that it has been reusing 80 percent of its trade show assets over the past four years. This approach not only minimized waste but also delivered cost efficiencies and allowed for adaptable setups across varying event sizes and markets.

Scent Sense

Hamilton tapped into a Sharpie moment with its Outpost exhibit, sketched out to the last sign and tire. Apparently the team tested out four different Sharpie scents, but none of them was “Sharpie enough,” so it settled for a “white paper” scent, perfectly monochrome and full of possibilities.

Telling Success Story Better

Measurement remains a key topic but the conversation is shifting to not just what and how to measure but also how to share the event’s success with leadership.

“Most stakeholders don’t want to see the results in a spreadsheet,” says Joe Federbush, president of Evolio Marketing, emphasizing the growing role of data visualization and storytelling. From a one-pager that captures the KPIs that matter to testimonials from key stakeholders to inviting leadership on site and letting theme experience the event for themselves, the arsenal of ideas for getting the budget approved continues to evolve. One takeaway is clear—if you don’t tell your success story, no one else will.

Build Backwards

In a moving keynote, Jimmy Knowles, global head of experiential marketing at Canva, shared the brand’s strategy for experiential that has built love from parking lots to stadiums. “Spectacle without purpose is just noise,” Knowles says. “The question I ask at the beginning of every project, before a single dollar is spent, is not what do we build, but what do we want people to feel. This question unlocks everything. Build backwards from there.”