For years, the business events industry has talked about the legacy events leave behind. Whether driving innovation, strengthening communities or influencing policy, the value of events has often been demonstrated through stories rather than evidence.
Now, after three years of research, Destination Canada believes it has begun to answer a fundamental question: what creates lasting impact?
Launched at IMEX Frankfurt 2026, the final phase of Destination Canada's Business Events Legacy & Impact Study provides one of the most comprehensive examinations to date of how business events influence destinations, industries and communities long after delegates have returned home.
Rather than focusing solely on economic value, the research explores how business events can accelerate sector growth, influence public policy, strengthen research collaboration and leave lasting social, cultural and environmental legacies. Examining 15 business events across Canada, across sectors including advanced manufacturing, life sciences, agribusiness and digital industries, the study set out to understand not only whether impact happens, but how it can be intentionally created.
"For decades, the business events industry has shared powerful stories about legacy," said Virginie De Visscher, Executive Director, Business Events, Destination Canada. "Now we have the data, and a clear blueprint for delivering extraordinary event impact."
The findings challenge the idea that legacy simply emerges over time. Instead, they suggest that meaningful impact is the result of deliberate planning, collaboration and long-term stewardship.
Natasha Richards, Director of Impact & Industry Relations, IMEX Group, reflects on this idea: “That thinking aligns closely with a broader shift taking place across the business events industry, and one that has increasingly shaped conversations at IMEX. Beyond facilitating business, the show brings people together to explore not only how events are delivered, but the lasting value they create for destinations, sectors and communities. From sustainability and social impact to knowledge exchange and policy influence, the industry's definition of success continues to evolve.”
Across Destination Canada’s three-year program, the research identified a series of common characteristics shared by the most successful events. Early stakeholder engagement, collaboration between organizers, destinations, government and industry, clear legacy objectives and intentional planning all contributed to outcomes that extended far beyond the event itself.
The final phase of the study also introduces 18 strategic accelerators that can help destinations and organizers strengthen impact across eight interconnected domains, demonstrating that business events have the potential to influence everything from scientific collaboration and policy development to workforce skills, community engagement and environmental progress.
While the case studies are rooted in Canadian events, the framework offers practical insights for destinations and organizers around the world looking to better understand, measure and intentionally design for long-term impact. It reflects a broader shift across the business events industry, where success is increasingly measured not only by attendance, visitor spend or hotel nights, but by the lasting difference an event creates for its destination and sector.
IMEX Frankfurt provided the platform for those conversations to reach a global audience. Bringing together destinations, organizers, associations, venues and suppliers from across the world, the show offered an opportunity not only to present the findings, but to discuss what they mean for the future of business events and how they might influence event design, destination strategies and investment decisions.
While the report doesn’t claim to have all the answers, it provides a practical foundation for a conversation that’s becoming increasingly important across the industry: how to move beyond measuring attendance and economic contribution toward understanding the wider value business events create.
In that sense, the launch at IMEX Frankfurt represented more than the release of a research report. It marked another step in the industry's evolving understanding of impact—moving the conversation beyond compelling stories toward evidence, practical frameworks and a clearer roadmap for creating meaningful, measurable legacy.
Read the findings from the study here.
