Hugh Jones, RX CEO, shares a view across global exhibitions and reads the runes behind SASIE 2025. 

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been on the road visiting our events – from Feicon in Brazil, FIBO in Germany and in the US, the newly relaunched BookCon, NHS Concept to Commerce and ISC West.

Different sectors. Different geographies. But a consistent theme is emerging: the success of exhibitions is no longer defined by volume, but by value. This shift is being driven by a more demanding market: tighter budgets, greater choice, and increased scrutiny on ROI. Participants are no longer attending everything; they are choosing what delivers measurable outcomes.

At Feicon, construction businesses are connecting with the right professionals to drive projects forward faster. At NHS Concept to Commerce brands are accelerating sourcing and manufacturing partnerships. At ISC West, global security leaders aren’t just exchanging ideas, they are shaping the future of digital trust. At BookCon, creators, publishers and fans are coming together to redefine how stories are discovered and experienced. And finally, FIBO is where innovation, investment, and community come together to move the health and fitness industry forward.

Across all of them, the message is clear: well-designed events don’t just bring people together, they drive change and growth.

The UK as a case study

My observation is backed up by the latest SASIE (Size and Scale Index for Exhibitions) data, which offers a useful lens on the UK market.

The industry remains a significant economic force with exhibitions contributing £11.5bn and supporting 120,000 jobs. But more interesting is not scale, but how value is evolving.

Event numbers in the UK are now at their highest level since 2015. However, key indicators such as space sold, exhibitor numbers, and average event size remain below pre-Covid levels. In other words, the market is expanding in breadth rather than depth.

Globally, UFI data show a similar pattern: 47% of event companies reported increased activity in 2025, while most expect profits to remain stable, reinforcing the gap: More events are happening, but that doesn’t automatically translate into more value.

This is the critical shift: growth is returning, but value is becoming more concentrated. After disruption, the number of events tends to recover faster than their commercial impact, with growth initially driven by increased activity, and value creation becoming more concentrated over time.

We’re also seeing increasing fragmentation, with more specialised events targeting narrower audiences. Smaller, more focused events are often delivering higher value because they bring together the right people, not just more people.

From selling space to creating outcomes

So, the commercial model has evolved. Selling space is no longer ‘just’ what we do. Instead, the industry is moving toward an outcome-based model, focusing on value: audience quality, meaningful connections and measurable ROI.

At RX, this shift is shaping how we think about our role in the value chain. We don’t just run events; we design environments where customers can generate leads, build partnerships, and grow their businesses. If value is becoming more concentrated, then our job is to actively design for it, curating the right audiences, enabling better connections, and making outcomes more visible and measurable.

That’s a higher bar but that’s what will define the next phase for our industry – and separate those who are simply creating more events from those creating meaningful growth.