Speakers
Public Anim at the Dauphine Pavilion in Paris to host a company convention on the mic
Launching an event-planning start-up requires a network. Clients do not come on their own. Neither do partners. Trade shows remain one of the best ways to get known, meet decision-makers, and understand where the market is heading.
The problem is choice. Between generalist entrepreneur trade shows, specialized MICE exhibitions, and major international events, a young agency can easily lose focus. At Public Anim, we have been following these events for several years. Here is our selection of the trade shows you need to know, highlighting what each one truly brings to an event-planning start-up.
An event agency lives on recommendations and direct contacts. Trade shows bring together buyers, venues, DMCs, and complementary agencies in one place. Three days at a trade show can replace several months of cold calling.
The event industry is moving fast. Hybrid formats, immersive technologies, CSR requirements: trade shows serve as a barometer. Attending conferences allows you to spot the expectations of key accounts before they become the norm.
Being visible at a recognized industry trade show reassures a potential client. This shows that the young agency is part of a structured professional ecosystem, and not just present on social media.
In Paris, the young start-up events industry will naturally head towards the Porte de Versailles, the meeting point for the major trade shows held in the Paris capital. It is a route worth exploring, but not one to be taken lightly, as it could mean losing a lot of time.
Heavent Paris is the largest European trade show dedicated to event innovation. It is held annually at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles and brings together more than 20,000 participants and 490 exhibitors around new technologies, scenography, audiovisuals, and creative solutions for the events of tomorrow.
For a start-up, Heavent Paris is an excellent gateway. You meet event agencies, corporate advertisers, local authorities, and technical service providers there. It is also the place to spot rising entertainment concepts, which is useful for refining your own offering.
IFTM (formerly IFTM Top Resa) is held every September at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. It is the only French B2B trade show covering the entire tourism chain: leisure, business travel, MICE, and groups. It brings together more than 30,000 trade visitors and over 1,500 brands, featuring a pre-scheduled business appointment platform.
The exhibition is suitable for start-ups involved in corporate seminars, incentives, or destinations, as it brings together tourist boards, hotel groups, and MICE buyers in one place. Admission is a paid for professionals, a point to budget for before attending.
A more intimate yet highly targeted trade show: SolutionsCSE Paris, held twice a year at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. It brings together members of works councils (CSE) looking for service providers for social and cultural activities: leisure, group travel, ticketing, and events.
For an animation or team-building start-up, this is a niche not to be overlooked. Works Council representatives directly purchase leisure and entertainment services for their employees, often with a dedicated and recurring budget from one year to the next. This is a different type of buyer profile than the HR or communications directors usually met at Heavent Paris.
For an agency targeting an international clientele or foreign brands organizing events in France, IMEX Frankfurt is the global benchmark in the MICE sector. The trade show is held annually in Germany and brings together more than 13,000 participants from around the world, including thousands of qualified professional buyers.
It is a heavier investment, in terms of both time and budget, than a trade show in Paris. It is primarily justified if the start-up is looking for partnerships abroad or international clients organizing seminars in the Île-de-France region.
GO Entrepreneurs (formerly the Salon des Entrepreneurs) is the premier French event for business creation and development. Held in Paris every spring, it brings together tens of thousands of visitors, hundreds of partners, banks, support networks, and financing experts.
This trade show is not specific to the events industry, but it remains valuable for a young company. It offers advice on financing, accounting, and legal status, as well as the opportunity to meet other entrepreneurs who may become clients or business partners.
If the start-up develops a digital tool for events (management platform, event app, immersive solution), VivaTech worth the detour. Held in Paris every summer, it is Europe's largest tech and startup event. Investors, major corporations, and media all cross paths there—a rare mix for a young company looking for visibility.
An agency specializing in team building and corporate entertainment does not have the same needs as a start-up that sells a ticketing solution. The first instinct is to ask who buys our services, and then look for where these buyers can be found.
| Objective | Recommended salons |
| Team building and corporate entertainment | Heavent Paris, SolutionsCSE Paris |
| Seminars and business trips | IFTM, IMEX |
| Technology solutions for events | VivaTech |
| Company structuring, financing, local network | GO Entrepreneurs |
Participating in a trade show requires preparation time, a booth or a minimum presence, and often registration fees. For a start-up, it is better to carefully prepare for one or two appointments than to spread oneself thin across five trade shows without a sufficient budget for each.
A trade show is useless without preparation. Before going:
At Public Anim, our development is also built on strong local roots. We are based in Cergy, in the Val d'Oise region, and we have joined La Turbine, the Cergy-Pontoise business incubator, which plays a role for us similar to that of a networking lounge: meeting other entrepreneurs, discussing our practices, and building local partnerships.
This dual approach, local networking and large national events, seems to us the most effective for a young event organization. The events open doors on a large scale, the local network transforms them into lasting relationships. Our teams also regularly work on micro-events for companies and communities, an expertise that we have been able to refine thanks to these two complementary levers. We are able to provide you with help in the creation, management and production of your event. Team Building in Paris. We also organize company conventions in high-end reception venues in Paris. Discover our professional microphone hosting offer.
Choosing trade shows requires knowing your target audience and avoiding spreading yourself too thin. Heavent Paris and IFTM cover the essentials of the event and business tourism sector in France. SolutionsCSE Paris opens a direct sales channel to works councils, a niche often underutilized by young agencies. GO Entrepreneurs and VivaTech are useful additions for business structuring or a technological component. IMEX Frankfurt is aimed at agencies targeting the international market.
The local network, like business incubators, remains a good complement to these major events. Are you preparing your presence at a trade show or looking for a partner for your activities? Contact Public Anim.
Heavent Paris remains the benchmark for an event agency in France. It covers the entire sector, from technologies to entertainment service providers, and attracts a broad audience of decision-makers.
No. A young start-up can visit a trade show without a booth, solely to prospect and meet contacts. The booth becomes relevant once the agency has a stable offering and a dedicated marketing budget.
The cost varies greatly depending on the chosen option: visitor, exhibitor with a basic space, or custom booth. Visiting as a professional remains affordable, whereas a booth represents a more significant investment that needs to be budgeted for in advance.
That depends on the objectives. If the target clientele is international or if the agency wants to forge partnerships abroad, IMEX Frankfurt makes sense. For a primarily French and regional clientele, Parisian trade shows are often sufficient the first year.
Yes. CSE elected representatives manage a budget dedicated to social and cultural activities and regularly purchase leisure and entertainment services for their employees. It is a direct sales channel, less crowded than major general trade shows.
Two to three well-prepared trade shows a year generally bring in better results than five shows approached without a strategy. It is better to focus your energy and budget on the events that are most closely aligned with your target customer.
