Fan Expo
FAN EXPO is a group of fan conventions operated by FAN EXPO HQ, the world's largest comic con producer,[1] a unit of the Informa Connect division of Informa plc. The majority of its events are run under the FAN EXPO brand, which stems from its namesake, the Toronto-based FAN EXPO Canada.
History
[edit]In 2013, Informa announced its acquisition of Hobby Star Marketing, organizer of FAN EXPO Canada—a Canadian comic and entertainment convention held annually at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.[2] In 2014, Informa acquired the Dallas Comic Con.[3] In 2015, Informa acquired MEGACON in Orlando.[4][5]
In August 2016, Informa acquired Boston Comic Con,[6] which was rebranded as FAN EXPO Boston in 2018.[7] In October 2017, Informa acquired the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo and Edmonton Comic and Entertainment Expo.[8][9] In March 2021, Informa acquired Denver Pop Culture Con, which was rebranded as FAN EXPO Denver.[10]
In August 2021, Informa acquired Wizard Entertainment's conventions; all of its remaining events for 2021 were cancelled, barring Wizard World Chicago (which was held in October 2021 as the final Wizard World-branded event). All six of its conventions in Chicago, Cleveland, New Orleans, St. Louis, Philadelphia, and Portland were rebranded as FAN EXPO beginning in 2022.[11][12][13]
Events
[edit]| Events | Location | Venue | Attendance | Upcoming Dates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FAN EXPO New Orleans | New Orleans, Louisiana | New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center | 30,000+ | January 10-12, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Portland | Portland, Oregon | Oregon Convention Center | 30,000+ | January 24-26, 2025 |
| MEGACON Orlando | Orlando, Florida | Orange County Convention Center | 180,000+ | February 6-9, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Vancouver | Vancouver, British Columbia | Vancouver Convention Centre | 35,000+ | February 21-23, 2025 |
| Toronto Comicon | Toronto, Ontario | Metro Toronto Convention Centre | 35,000+ | March 14-16, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Cleveland | Cleveland, Ohio | Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland | 25,000+ | March 21-23, 2025 |
| CALGARY EXPO | Calgary, Alberta | Stampede Park | 100,000+ | April 24-27, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Philadelphia | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania Convention Center | 50,000+ | May 16-18, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Dallas | Dallas, Texas | Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center | 65,000+ | May 30-June 1, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Denver | Denver, Colorado | Colorado Convention Center | 110,000+ | July 3-6, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Boston | Boston, Massachusetts | Boston Convention & Exhibition Center | 55,000+ | August 8-10, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Chicago | Rosemont, Illinois | Donald E. Stephens Convention Center | 75,000+ | August 15-17, 2025 |
| FAN EXPO Canada | Toronto, Ontario | Metro Toronto Convention Centre | 135,000+ | August 21-24, 2025 |
| EDMONTON EXPO | Edmonton, Alberta | Edmonton Expo Centre | 40,000+ | September 20-22, 2024 |
| Dallas FAN FESTIVAL | Irving, Texas | Irving Convention Center | 15,000+ | October 19-20, 2024 |
| FAN EXPO San Francisco | San Francisco, California | Moscone Center West | 35,000+ | November 29-December 1, 2024 |
Former events
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Salkowitz, Rob. "Fan Expo Acquires 6 Wizard World Events Including Chicago, Building Global Fan Con Juggernaut". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-07-19.
- ^ "Informa Acquires Fan Expo Canada". Archived from the original on 2014-08-07. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ Wilonsky, Robert (February 13, 2014). "British-Swiss company buys Dallas Comic Con on eve of move to Dallas Convention Center". The Dallas Morning News. Archived from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
- ^ "Dallas Comic Con Gets a New Owner and Home". Dallas Observer. 18 February 2014. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
- ^ Dineen, Caitlin (7 April 2015). "Orlando's MegaCon sold to Informa". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
- ^ "Boston Comic Con, Officially Sold To Informa As Part Of FanExpo". Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movie, TV News. 2016-08-14. Retrieved 2017-03-22.
- ^ "BOSTON COMIC CON NOW FAN EXPO BOSTON? |". www.starwarsautographcollection.com. Archived from the original on 2017-08-16. Retrieved 2017-08-15.
- ^ "Big News Super-Fans!". Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo. Informa Canada, Inc. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
- ^ "Calgary, Edmonton Expos less accessible after policy change, say fans with mobility concerns". CBC News. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- ^ "Denver Pop Culture Con Changes its Name to FAN EXPO Denver". 303 Magazine. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ "Fan Expo Takes Over Six Wizard World Conventions". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
- ^ Chris Arrant (2021-08-10). "Wizard World closes its convention business, selling all cons off to Fan Expo". gamesradar. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
- ^ Terror, Jude (2021-08-10). "Wizard World No More? Fan Expo Takes Over Wizard World's Conventions". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
- ^ Melnychuk, Mark (2019-05-02). "How two men saved Saskatchewan's geek conventions". Regina Leader-Post. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
- ^ "Calgary, Edmonton Expos less accessible after policy change, say fans with mobility concerns". CBC News. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
- ^ Arrant, Chris (19 April 2023). "Fan Expo St. Louis quietly canceled after nine-year run". Popverse. Retrieved 19 April 2023.