Milwaukee Welcomes Connect Marketplace 2024

MILWAUKEE (August 26, 2024) – From August 27-29, Milwaukee will welcome over 1,000 meeting planners and 2,000 exhibitor attendees to Baird Center for Connect Marketplace 2024, an event that offers networking, education, one-on-one meetings and the full trade show experience, making this a premier gathering for meeting planners across the country. This event represents some of the best exposure Baird Center will have to planners, whose business includes planning events for association groups, religious groups, sports events, and more. It could not be better timed given the high interest in the Baird Center expansion and modernization completed earlier this spring.

Visit Milwaukee, which markets and sells the Baird Center to meeting planners year-round, has been working with its partners at the Wisconsin Center District and Connect’s own planners for three years to prepare for the event, which is in the top three trade shows for U.S. meeting planners. While this event alone is expected to generate over $5.3 million in economic impact for Milwaukee, the destination marketing organization expects the event to create additional interest in the area for future conventions and events.

“We are thrilled to welcome this distinguished group of meeting professionals to Milwaukee, where we are more prepared than ever to host their next convention, meeting or sports event,” said Peggy Williams-Smith, president and CEO at Visit Milwaukee. “Milwaukee and Baird Center are ready to shine, and we could not be prouder of our team and partners who have been working for years to showcase our destination at this level. When we say ‘Milwaukee has arrived,’ this is what we mean. Planners are taking note of all Milwaukee has to offer and they want to see it firsthand. This ultimately means more meetings business that benefits our community for years to come.”

During Connect Marketplace, guests will experience an opening night reception at the Harley-Davidson Museum, featuring music by Bella Cain, tattoo experiences, a drone show, and more. On the closing night of the conference, guests will be treated to a block party in Deer District, followed by a performance by Lil Jon in Baird Center.

Each day of the conference will feature a trade show, at which Visit Milwaukee will be debuting its new, two-story trade show booth, designed to entice planners to learn more about hosting their next meeting in Milwaukee. Staffed by Visit Milwaukee’s sales team and representatives from some partner businesses, the trade show booth will include activations like brandy old fashioneds, Miller High Life beer, cheese curds, stars from “Lego Masters” creating a Baird Center in Legos, and the Milwaukee Brewers‘ famous Racing Sausages.

Visit Milwaukee’s Event Experience team has been busy coordinating experience-enhancing activations across the city, including an extensive welcome activation at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, welcome tables at each of the conference’s 10 hotels, swag showcasing partner businesses, welcome signage, and more.

“Pulling off events like Connect Marketplace takes a village, and we are so grateful to the dozens of partners who are helping us ensure that these planners have the best Milwaukee experience possible. From public safety officials to our business improvement districts, hotels, tour operators, food and beverage vendors, and, of course, our partners like Marty Brooks and the Wisconsin Center District team, we have assembled a group of experience-obsessed hospitality professionals and are tremendously grateful to all who are contributing to the best Connect Marketplace yet,” said William-Smith.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.