GES announced that its parent company, Viad Corp, and Truelink Capital have entered into an agreement for Truelink to acquire the GES business. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of 2024, subject to applicable and customary closing conditions.
“This is an exciting time for GES. The business has tremendous momentum, and our team is driving strong revenue growth, margin expansion, and client service. The publicly traded Viad conglomerate has been a great home to GES for decades and we are excited to start a new chapter as a private company with Truelink, who believes in our ability to continue delivering industry leadership, innovation and growth,” said Derek Linde, GES president.
With more than 2,600 employees and thousands of active union partners across the globe, GES and its companies have a decades-long history supporting the world’s leading brands and events in robust business verticals, including healthcare, aerospace and defense, financial services, manufacturing, technology, and retail, in a variety of event marketing capacities.
“GES is a trusted brand with a proven track record of delivering best-in-class services to the global exhibitions and experiential marketing verticals. We look forward to collaborating with this talented team to help the company realize its full potential,” said Truelink’s co-founder and managing partner Luke Myers.
Included in the acquisition are GES Exhibitions, a major provider of global exhibitions and logistics services; Spiro, a leading global experiential agency; and onPeak, SHOWTECH, and Visit, which provide event accommodation, power/lighting and registration services. Upon closing, GES will become a privately-owned, stand-alone company within Truelink’s business portfolio and continue to deliver a range of best-in-class and value enhancing experiential solutions to clients.
Linde will assume the role of president and CEO following the closing. He will be joined by Jeff Quade, GES NA Exhibitions president; Jason Stead, GES EMEA Exhibitions president; and Jeff Stelmach, Spiro president, who will continue leading the operating businesses post transaction.
“We remain dedicated to delivering extraordinary experiences to our clients across the globe. This partnership with Truelink will enable us to intensify our focus on innovation and enhance our capabilities across our differentiated global platform,” said Linde.
