Appointments at IMEX

Book the meetings that matter using our online appointment system. Explore new destinations, hear about the latest products and services, and make powerful connections.

What is an appointment?

An appointment is a 30-minute meeting with an exhibitor booked by you, the buyer. They are your opportunity to meet with exhibiting destinations and suppliers to get business done.

All buyers can make appointments, whether you are a hosted buyer or a buyer attendee.

62,000 appointments were made at IMEX 2022 - they are the lifeblood of our show.

Hosted buyer appointments

As well as individual appointments, hosted buyers can also book booth presentations or may have group appointments allocated (pre-scheduled by us) – these are a great way to explore new destinations and ideas.

When you accept an invitation to be an IMEX hosted buyer, you're making a commitment to make genuine business appointments with our exhibitors.

We recommend at least six to eight appointments per day. These should be mainly one-to-one appointments, but can include some group appointments and booth presentations.

Managing your schedule

Appointments are scheduled for 30 minutes. We recommend allowing at least  five minutes at the end of each appointment to get to your next appointment on time. 

You can change the time of an appointment by selecting it in your schedule and then choosing Reschedule. Don't ghost! If you need to cancel an appointment, send a personal message in advance. 

As well as scheduling appointments with exhibitors, you can also save events, activities and education sessions to your schedule.

Appointment FAQs

What is an appointment?: A 30-minute meeting with an exhibitor booked by you, the buyer. (Only buyers - hosted buyers and buyer attendees - can make appointments.)

We also make appointments for groups of buyers to attend exhibitor presentations - and some exhibitors offer presentations at certain times that you can book in to. See these as your opportunity to explore new ideas and destinations.
How are appointments made and who can make them?: All buyers make appointments, whether you are a hosted buyer or a buyer attendee.

Around four weeks before the show, and once you’ve received your welcome email, you’ll be able to sign in to your IMEX account, search our Exhibitor Directory and make appointments directly.

Buyers are also able to make appointments via the products and services search, attendee list and messages (with exhibitor staff only).

Appointments are only made between buyers and exhibitors. And, can only be initiated by buyers.
How do I send an appointment request?: Once the show platform is available, a few weeks before the show, you'll be able to sign in. You can then search our Exhibitor Directory or product and services list, click the appointment icon that looks like this:

You can choose to make an appointment with the company, or a specific member of staff.

Once you've selected the time and day of the appointment it will be automatically confirmed in your schedule and the exhibitor's schedule.
How many appointments do I commit to as a hosted buyer?: When you come to IMEX as a hosted buyer you commit to making appointments with exhibitors, but you're in charge of your schedule at IMEX. We ask that you come to the show with business in hand.

The easiest way to do business and get value from the show is by making appointments. We recommend at least six to eight a day.
What happens if I don’t make the recommended numbers of appointments as a hosted buyer?: We regularly check and audit the number of appointments being made and conducted at the show. If we find that a hosted buyer is not conducting appointments, we may decide to withdraw their hosted status for future shows. This is why it is particularly important for buyers to use our IMEX systems to manage their time at the show.
What is a group appointment?: Group appointments are for hosted buyers. They may be scheduled by us for the hosted buyer group you are part of, and are part of your hosted buyer commitment. They can be a great way to learn more about a product or destination you may not have otherwise considered.

Group appointments are scheduled between 11:00am and 4:00pm. As a hosted buyer you have to be at the show between 10:00a.m and 5:30p.m on your program days. You should ensure your flight schedule allows you to do this.
What is a booth presentation?: Exhibitors schedule booth presentations to allow them to present an overview of their product or destination to groups of 10 to 15  buyers. We recommend attending a booth presentation if you’re fact-finding. They are open to buyer attendees and hosted buyers.

You can search for and add booth presentations to your schedule. If a booth presentation you want to attend is already full, try again closer to the show in case there are cancelations, or go to the booth when the presentation is scheduled in case there’s space.
Will I get a lot of email/marketing messages from exhibitors?: No, our exhibitors can only contact you through our online appointment system, and can only send messages to one person at a time (i.e. they cannot mass mail buyers). All messages will go into your message notifications – available once you sign in to your IMEX account (not your email inbox, unless you select this option in your notification settings).

Have any questions? Check our FAQs page or contact us:

Call: +44 (0) 1273 227311
Email: hosted@imexevents.com

David Kries

Senior Relationship Executive

Laura Jewell

Relationship Manager, Hosted Buyer Programme