Grand Rapids Welcomes Airport Trade Show

Grand Rapids and the Gerald R. Ford International Airport were proud to host the 2024 Annual Conference and Exhibition of Airports Council International - North America from Sept. 7-10. The “world’s largest trade show for airports, by airports” drew more than 2,000 airport representatives and aviation industry professionals from across the world to town for education, networking and an exhibition of products and services.

Bringing the event to Grand Rapids was quite a coup, according to Tory Richardson, President and CEO of the Gerald R. Ford International Airport Authority. He says ACI-NA typically holds their conferences in larger cities, and Grand Rapids had to prove it was both capable of managing an event of this scale and attracting attendees who were not familiar with our destination.

Experience Grand Rapids helped convince ACI-NA on both scores years ago. In fact, the conference was first slated to convene here in 2020.

“Some of the first local people I met were from Experience Grand Rapids, when I attended ACI-NA’s 2019 Conference in Tampa Bay during my first week on the job for the Ford International Airport,” remembers Richardson. “EXGR was there to get people excited about coming to Grand Rapids in 2020, and they were doing a great job of it.”

Unfortunately, COVID hit a few months later and the 2020 conference, like most large-scale gatherings that year, was canceled. ACI-NA put Grand Rapids back in the queue for 2024 – giving Richardson and EXGR more time to craft an exceptional experience for the organization and its conference attendees.  

EXGR Brings the Wow

“The EXGR team went above and beyond for us. They were just phenomenal in terms of dealing with hotels, resources and logistics,” says Richardson. “ACI-NA was reassured that all the details were handled and they could relax.”

Marketing the event to potential attendees was also part of EXGR’s strategy.

“EXGR helped us showcase the region and the airport to potential attendees, spreading the word that this is a vibrant, world-class destination.” That effort included taking a trade show booth to ACI-NA’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Long Beach, California.

“The booth was designed to promote Grand Rapids as Beer City USA. They served Founders Brewing Company beer in the booth and EXGR brought in Founders co-founder Dave Engbers to appear. There were lines of people waiting to get in!”

Our Wow-Worthy Airport

The marketing effort was boosted by the recent buzz surrounding our airport. Airports Council International - World honored the Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) in its 2023 AQS Awards, which are based on data from passenger satisfaction surveys. GRR was recognized in several North America categories: Best Airport Serving 2 to 5 Million Passengers Per Year, Airport with the Most Dedicated Staff, Easiest Airport Journey, Most Enjoyable Airport and Cleanest Airport.

In addition, GRR is currently in the midst of a $600 million capital expansion program dubbed ELEVATE, which includes six different projects. Already-completed initiatives include the addition of eight new gates, new concessions, new amenities and more; terminal enhancement and a consolidated rental car facility are in the works. The opportunity to see how GRR is making its already-sterling guest experience even better was extra incentive to attend this year’s ACI-NA conference.

An Impactful Event

“We were excited and proud to show off the airport and the community,” says Richardson, who reports that attendance at this year’s conference was right in line with past host cities. “And we estimate that the event generated about $4 million in local economic impact.”

Do you belong to an organization or association that holds regional or national meetings? Let us know so we can Bring it to Grand Rapids!