I logged onto my “Rainforest Ultimate” streaming app looking for something to delay the Sunday Scaries of another busy week. A promo credit popped up on the screen — $6 off a rental? What a deal! I was shocked as I scrolled — not at the endless library, but at the cost. $18. $20. $25. I like to think I almost understand economics, that I can justify the prices based on my time working in The Biz. And yet I found myself sounding like Paw-Paw, “Back in my day we could rent five movies for $20 and get a bag of popcorn to go with ‘em! A gumball was a nickel!” I exaggerate, but I get it. Inflation and rising costs across the board in every industry. But I had just returned from the Experiential Marketing Summit (EMS) 2026, where ideas and creativity were free and abundant, so $20 post-coupon to watch Ryan Gosling talk to a rock felt crazy. They’ve got everything on those streaming services, except a button reading “RETURN TO EMS.”
Put creative people in a room together, and we will create — we can’t help it. When we gather for shows like EMS, there’s an electricity in the air, charging attendees even more than the endless caffeine we’re consuming. We take pictures to “steal” ideas, then walk up to the designer with 1000 questions, requesting permission to use the idea and offering an opportunity to collaborate. We design exhibits on the fly — stirrers in place of walls, coffee cups for seating areas on the countertop-turned-floorplan. “Have you tried a…” “What about doing…” “Would the lawyers let you…” We ask each other questions that start conversations branching like lightning across topics, sparks in our eyes as the idea comes together with a flash and an “Oh!” We can’t help but create when we are face-to-face.
What I saw so often in conversations was the desire to collaborate, not dominate. We play to each other’s strengths and fill the gaps where something is missing. We look for partnerships, give referrals, and build relationships because if not today, someday soon. We aren’t shy about it either. We’ll stick our heads into each other’s cabinets to see how you wired your tech and invite you into our booth structure to see how we design custom exhibits to be modular and sustainable. We build on each other’s ideas — improving our own offerings and raising the quality of our industry together.
It’s because we are a community; we support each other, the medium, and the future. More universities are recognizing the value and future of our industry. Groups of bright young faces from Cal Poly were walking the floor, some with job offers already in hand. Friends made over successive years are returning to the exhibit to share news, poems, and smiles. There was the annual rowdy gathering of EDPA’s Future Leaders, successful classes now overflowing the reserved seating area with bodies and big ideas. People with people — no gimmicks, no bots, just real connections that are thriving. We are building a community that will weather the storms of the future and continue to flourish and provide.
Everything costs more now from the gas pump to the grocery store to the exhibit floor, but honest and earnest conversation is always free. A smile, a laugh, a recommendation for the next ear worm or the words of encouragement to students about to enter this crazy world — that is how we build our businesses for the future. We collaborate and build something more than the sum of the parts. Face-to-Face, person-to-person, we make a difference to each other by reminding each other why we work in this industry: it’s the people. That is how we build a community and an industry that persists. I can’t wait to see all y’all next year.