The results are in! The 42nd Annual Graphics of the Americas (GOA) tradeshow held February 16-18, 2017 was an enormous success in its first year in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. According to organizers, attendance, lead generation and content exceeded expectations. This was due in part to GOA’s co-location with the NBM show. Together, the two shows took over the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center for three full days of demonstrations, workshops and exhibits. More than 250 exhibitors, over 1,000 brands, and attendees from over 70 countries participated in this year’s co-located show. GOA’s acclaimed educational seminars, offered in both Spanish and English, were highly attended. In addition to the seminars, GOA brought back its popular Expo Theater.
Gabriel Hernandez, GOA President, said that his goal is to build on the success of GOA and refresh the show for the new century. “We have a unique 42-year history of bringing together North, Central and South America and the Caribbean together to celebrate, learn, network and grow our industry. But we still have room to improve. I joined this fabulous team several months ago and I immediately recognized that we have a highly loyal audience of exhibitors and attendees, and we’ll be the vehicle that carries them into the future of print. That’s why we themed our 2018 show as GOA Next. The industry is evolving and not only will that be showcased in our 2018 show, but it’ll be seen in our organization as well. What we do and how we do it, will be in step with our modernizing industry. GOA will continue to bolster its popular features and showcases, but will also bring a more contemporary presence, and the latest presentations for packaging, digital printing, digital finishing and wide format-inkjet.”
GOA 2017 highlights included Educational Seminars, The INKON Couture Fashion Show featuring printed fashions created by three separate teams, and a busy show floor with special areas such as The Digital Flexo Zone, The 3D Printing Zone, The Textile Zone and The Wide Format Print Shop Live. GOA also honoured this year’s special partner CONLATINGRAF, the Latin American Graphic Industry Confederation, which was was a key part of GOA 2017.
GOA 2018 will return to Fort Lauderdale next year at the Miami Beach Convention Center February 22-24.
Graphics of the Americas a resounding success
