International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM)

𝐔𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐈𝐀𝐕𝐌’𝐬 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 & 𝐂𝐄𝐎, 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐫 𝐌𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥, 𝐌𝐁𝐀, 𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐀𝐄, 𝐂𝐀𝐄, 𝐂𝐃𝐏:

May was a busy month for IAVM and the venue management community! Here's what's happening:

🏟️ 𝗙𝗜𝗙𝗔 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗖𝘂𝗽 – Members across North America are deep in preparations, delivering exceptional fan experiences and operational excellence.

📍 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝟰 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 – Professionals gathered in Spokane to connect, learn, and share best practices.

🏛️ 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘆 – 226 registrants from 30 states held nearly 150 meetings with congressional offices to advocate for our industry.

🎓 𝗩𝗠𝗦 & 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗲 – Over 400 students invested in their growth through two of IAVM's most impactful professional development programs.

📅 𝗩𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 – Mark your calendars for Indy, Aug. 9-12! Registration is open now at venueconnect.iavm.org.

📝 𝗕𝘆𝗹𝗮𝘄𝘀 𝗨𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲 – Proposed amendments are open for member review ahead of the August vote. Learn more at buff.ly/eRQHmN1.

Thank you to everyone advancing our industry — from major international events to community gatherings. Let's keep empowering professionals and shaping tomorrow, together. 💪

John Fredric Bolin, former General Manager of the University of South Carolina’s Carolina Coliseum, passed away Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at the age of 81.

Read more at blog.iavm.org

The venue industry is constantly evolving. The professionals shaping that future will be in 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘀, 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝟵-𝟭𝟮, 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗩𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲.

This isn't just another conference — this is where venue managers, industry partners, and emerging leaders come together to exchange ideas, tackle challenges, discover new solutions, and build the relationships that move careers and venues forward.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁:
🧐 thought-provoking education sessions
🗣️ inspiring keynote speakers
🤝 powerful networking opportunities
✋ hands-on learning

VenueConnect delivers the insights and connections you need to stay ahead in a rapidly changing industry.

🔗 𝙅𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙪𝙨 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: venueconnect.iavm.org

The future of venue management is waiting. 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦?

🌿 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩𝐬 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 📊

Join us on 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟮𝟯 𝗮𝘁 𝟮 𝗣𝗠 𝗘𝗧 for a FREE webinar with the founding partners of 𝗩𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 — the event industry's new sustainability benchmarking program from IAVM, TSNN, and Honeycomb Strategies.

Moderated by Danica Tormohlen of Trade Show News Network (TSNN), the panel will feature Tim Trefzer and Daniel Foster of Honeycomb Strategies and IAVM President & CEO Trevor Mitchell. They’ll cover:

✅ Key findings from the first-ever Venue Sustainalytics report
✅ How to navigate the free public dashboard
✅ Ways venues, planners, vendors & destinations can use the data
✅ What to prepare for the 2025 survey submission

🔗 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿, 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲: https://buff.ly/VZeHgWH

IAVM is excited to announce the 𝟯𝟬|𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗥|𝟯𝟬 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲, recognizing thirty exceptional young professionals who are helping shape the future of the venue management industry.

Find the names of the 30|UNDER|30 Class of 2026 at blog.iavm.org.

The Class of 2026 will be formally recognized during VenueConnect 2026 in Indianapolis. 𝑷𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏 𝒖𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎!

🦩🎤💃 Flamingo Club was in full swing last night, and let's just say the flamingos were proud. 🦩🎤💃

There were feathers. There was karaoke. There were dance moves that absolutely no one practiced beforehand. For one glorious evening, VMS 2026 participants put aside venue operations, budgets, and strategic planning to focus on the truly important things: singing songs they only partially knew, encouraging coworkers to make increasingly bold karaoke choices, and ensuring the conga line maintained proper crowd flow throughout the venue.

The fashion choices ranged from "vacation chic" to "I lost a bet," and the karaoke performances ranged from "future superstar" to "thank goodness we're all friends here."

Flamingo Club delivered exactly what it promised: great memories, great connections, and just enough photographic evidence to keep everyone humble.

🦩 Stay pink.
🎤 Sing loudly.
💃 Follow the conga line.
❓ Don't ask too many questions.

What do you get when you combine a packed house, questionable confidence in random facts, fierce competition, and one missing letter?

VMS trivia night!

The room was full, the energy was high, and teams battled it out for trivia glory. After an evening of wild guesses, brilliant answers, and a few “I swear I knew that!” moments, Table 48 emerged victorious!
Coincidence? We think not.


And while Table 48 took home the title, the real MVP of the night may have been “Tomas Jefferson,” who somehow made an appearance in American history. We don’t know where the “h” went, but if anyone finds it, please return it to the 3rd President of the United States.

Thanks to everyone who joined us and made it one of our biggest and most entertaining Trivia Nights yet!

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀.

Today, we're celebrating the connections that start with a shared event — and last a lifetime.

Some of the greatest friendships aren't planned — they happen in the moments between the action. In the lobby before a show. At a conference table in a session. Cheering side by side in the stands.

For decades, IAVM events have brought professionals together from across the industry — and in doing so, have quietly been the backdrop to countless friendships that go far beyond the venue.

On this Best Friends Day, we want to hear from you: Who did you meet at VenueConnect, Venue Management School, or another IAVM event that became a true friend? Drop their name in the comments and let them know you're thinking of them. 👇

🎓 It's go time! IAVM's Venue Management School and Leadership Institute kicks off TODAY at the Westin Rancho Mirage in Palm Springs! 🌴

VMS has been shaping the future of venue management since 1987 — and this week, the next generation of industry leaders digs into an immersive curriculum covering everything from financial management and safety & security to customer service, venue operations, and more.

To every student arriving this weekend: welcome, good luck, and enjoy the experience. The connections you make this week will last a career. 🙌