Hanley Wood LLC, owner of Aquatics International, Waterpark Resorts Today, Pool & Spa News, and the International Pool & Spa Expo, recently purchased the AQUA Show. AQUA Magazine was not part of the purchase and will remain with Athletic Business Publications. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
?We?re buying a well-run, well-oiled show,? said Rick McConnell, Vice President of Hanley Wood Exhibitions. ?It is a glove fit with the other shows that we offer? We feel that this will further enhance the [industry].?
The announcement was made at the 2006 AQUA Show, which took place Nov. 6 to 10 in Las Vegas.
The 100,000-net-square-foot event becomes part of Hanley Wood?s Dallas-based Pool & Spa Group. It will be led by McConnell, with day-to-day operations managed by Director Donna Bellantone. With this purchase, Hanley Wood now owns four pool and aquatics-related events, including the Waterpark Resort Leadership and Development Conference.
Peter Brown, owner of Athletic Business Publications, said the purchase bodes well for the show. ?We?d like to think we played a role in raising the level of professionalism in the industry,? he said.
McConnell said that the new ownership will benefit exhibitors and attendees as well. ?We can now better time the events and coordinate the schedules to ensure that conflicts won?t happen,? he said. ?There are some unique strengths surrounding each show, which we recognize.?
In addition, he says, the acquisition provides possibility for IPSE to build equal amount of training and educational in the commercial and residential markets.
For 2007, the AQUA Show will run as planned, Nov. 14 to 16 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. In the meantime, organizers will gain feedback from exhibitors and attendees to help determine future scheduling.
The WRLD conference and IPSE are scheduled for late November 2007 in Orlando.
Washington, DC-based Hanley Wood, LLC, founded in 1976, is a business-to-business media network serving North America's residential and commercial construction industries. The exhibitions division operates 16 trade shows, including World of Concrete, one of the top 20 trade shows in the United States.
