HIMSS is already thinking about consolidating the next conference into one building after exhibitors complained about low foot traffic in some of the expo halls.
“Me and my colleagues are quite disappointed,” said one event marketer who spent $60,000 to set up a booth at the healthcare technology conference. “We didn’t meet our goals at all. [Our goals were] at least 300 leads. We scanned something like 50 relevant leads.”
The event marketer, who spoke to Vendelux on the condition of anonymity, works for a company that flew in from across the country. They’re exhibiting at Caesars Forum, a convention center just across the street from the main venue at the Venetian Expo. The two sites are connected via skywalk, though several people confided in Vendelux that they hadn’t made it to the Caesars side by day two.
“It’s quite empty,” the event marketer said.
The Venetian Expo hosts major activations from brands like Samsung, Microsoft and Epic. The Caesars side, on the other hand, features tables from smaller firms, as well as booths from bigger brands catering to specific verticals like cybersecurity and government contracts.
Many were on the main floor last year, according to the frustrated event marketer. That option will be back soon, said Lauren Whittington, head of marketing for HIMSS owner Informa Markets.
Whittington admits that this year’s two-venue setup is not “conducive” to the event’s goals.
“It will be mapped way more strategically,” she said of HIMSS 2026. “Next year, we’ll be all over The Venetian. That way people just have to switch floors instead of changing venues.”
Not a bad idea, as exhibitors on the Venetian side seemed satisfied with their outcomes at the 28,000-person conference.
Aja Penno, senior director of events at Ellkay, is already drafting up plans for next year.
“So far, so good,” she said as she leaned on a table at her massive, centrally located booth in the middle of the Venetian expo hall.
Rachel Wilkes, director of marketing for MEDITECH, couldn’t agree more.
“The conference has been great,” she said, noting that some of her colleagues were working on the Caesars side at a separate booth focusing on interoperability. “We’re really thrilled about our presence in the InterOp showcase as well. We did a couple of panel presentations there, and it was standing room only.”
Some may not even bother to crunch the final numbers at all. After they were disappointed by the Caesars turnout on day one, the anonymously peeved event marketer scrambled to set up a last-minute happy hour on day two.
There, two guests chatted with the team as bartenders poured wine into forgotten glasses.
“We contacted the organizers and booked the happy hour with the thought that it would bring us people and it would be more attractive, and now we have a lot of bottles of wine that are never going to be used,” they said. “So yeah, we spent more money, and it is what it is. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.
“We definitely won’t be back here next year,” they added.
