by Melissa Donovan
Presented by the International Sign Association (ISA), the ISA International Sign Expo celebrates 75 years this Spring. Held from May 4 to 6, 2022 in Atlanta, GA at the Georgia World Congress Center, the ISA team is thrilled to bring the event back in-person after a two-year hiatus.
Working hard to hone in on what its membership is looking for in terms of leveraging connections and experiencing new products and solutions, Lori Anderson, president/CEO, ISA, says her team adapted quickly to everything that was thrown at it during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond but never strayed from ISA’s main mission.
“We exist to help support and grow the sign and graphics industry. We do this through fighting for reasonable sign codes and regulations, offering relevant education, and encouraging the next generation of workers to explore the career opportunities that exist in this industry,” she shares.
This is achieved in multiple ways, but the annual in-person gathering is a tent-pole attraction. “It is no secret that the primary source of ISA revenue comes from in-person events. While we added more revenue producing programs and services to our portfolio, the trade show continues to grow. All of the valuable work we do only exists because of the investment of the industry’s suppliers in these in-person events,” notes Anderson.
The last few years were considered a time to rebuild and reflect for many and ISA is no exception. “The ISA team re-evaluated how we can improve and enhance the entire ISA International Sign Expo experience. The industry wants to come together, and attendees anticipate an exhibit hall brimming with new technologies to help them deal with today’s challenges, such as how to be leaner and more productive in times of staffing and product shortages,” explains Anderson.
New in 2022
So what’s new for 2022 at the ISA International Sign Expo? Anderson highlights three main points.
“There is a hunger for more education and training, particularly information provided by product manufacturers,” she says. In response, the education at ISA International Sign Expo will be revamped to incorporate more hands-on training, as well as new opportunities to connect with others in the industry who have the same challenges.
The ISA team is also excited to be in a new city—Atlanta—and plans to offer some off-site events, allowing attendees to see the signs in this major metropolitan area. “Atlanta has made massive enhancements in its downtown area around the convention center, and we can’t wait for everyone to explore it,” explains Anderson.
ISA International Sign Expo will be exclusively in-person. “There are outstanding opportunities to connect virtually but trying to simultaneously execute an in-person event with a virtual component would be too high a hurdle for exhibitors and the ISA team. Be on the lookout, however, for follow-up virtual events that include some of the learnings from the in-person show,” shares Anderson.
Heading to GA
We’re looking forward to heading down to Atlanta in May. Hear more from Anderson in our recently recorded webinar by visiting industrialprintmagazine.com/webinars. And our April issue includes vendor previews of what to expect at the expo. IPM
Feb2022, Industrial Print Magazine
