Coming off the heels of a record setting Consumer Electronics Show, which drew in a staggering 170,000 people to Southern Nevada, Las Vegas looks to continue that success for the rest of January. Last week saw nearly 250,000 people in Las Vegas for 20 events, with six predicted to have 24,000 people or more.
The largest of the shows was the annual Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show, held at the Sands Expo Center. The four-day show marks the largest firearms event in the world, and is the fifth-largest annual convention for Las Vegas. Although only opened to industry professionals, 1,600 exhibitors were on hand to show guns, ammunition, and a variety of hunting and shooting accessories sprawled over 630,000 square feet. Attendance was estimated at 67,000 people.
Just a few blocks away, at the Las Vegas Convention Center, a collaboration took place between the National Association of Homebuilders and the National Kitchen and Bath Association. This marks the second straight year the NAHB International Builders’ show ran parallel to the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show for Design and Construction Week. Registrants from one convention may attend the other at no additional cost, a tactic used successfully last year which broadened the appeal of both events. The Homebuilders’ show projected attendance of 49,000 people, while the kitchen and bath show anticipated a turnout of 24,000 people.
Joining the two conventions for Design and Construction Week was newcomer the International Surface Event, which is a trade show and educational conference focusing on the flooring, stone, and tile industries. The event projected 25,000 attendees. Over in downtown, Las Vegas Market Winter 2015 went from Sunday through Thursday with attendance near 50,000. The show displayed furniture and various home treatments over 5 million square-feet of space.
While not part of Design and Construction Week, cult favorite Adult Entertainment Expo was at the Hard Rock Hotel from Wednesday through Saturday. Tickets for convention are open to the public, which started at $55, while tickets to the AVN Awards Show, an Academy Awards-style show for the adult film industry ranged from $175 to $2,500.
January is traditionally a big convention month for Southern Nevada as companies and organizations prefer to set the tone for their year early. In 2014, January drew in 631,520 attendees, marking the best month for the year. January, February, and March are typically the biggest convention months throughout the year.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has not released the official numbers yet, but it is estimated 5.2 million people attended conventions last year. The city is still climbing back from the recession, and trying to reach numbers from the record setting 2007 year. That year saw 6.2 million convention visitors, who contributed to a whopping $8.4 billion in non-gaming economic impact.
While the massive conventions are the most talked about, the majority of nearly 21,000 annual conventions and meetings each year in Southern Nevada draw fewer than 1,000 people. Some of the smaller events last week included the Army Navy Military Expo, Balloon Designs, the United Transportation Union’s 2015 reorganization meeting, and Falmouth Institute which offered culturally relevant education seminars for Native Americans. It was estimated 456,161 people attended all conventions for the week.
