FESPA Wins AEO Organiser Team Award
08 July 2026: FESPA has been named Organiser Team of the Year at the AEO Excellence Awards 2026, strengthening its position as one of the global print industry’s most recognised exhibition organisers.
The Association of Event Organisers announced the winners after welcoming more than 900 event professionals to Grosvenor House, Park Lane, London, on 12 June 2026. FESPA won the Organiser Team of the Year category, with AEO judges describing its entry as an “exceptional submission” that showed global scale, purpose-led delivery and measurable social impact.
Why the win matters
The award recognises FESPA’s work across its international exhibition portfolio and its ability to maintain a unified global team across multiple regions. In its submission, FESPA highlighted growth in visitor numbers, strong exhibitor satisfaction and high engagement across its events.
FESPA’s exhibitions continue to attract decision-makers from the print, signage, visual communications and related industries. For exhibitors, that matters because a strong visitor profile directly affects commercial returns, lead quality and industry visibility.
Purpose-led event model
FESPA’s wider model also played a key role in the recognition. Through its reinvestment programme, FESPA uses revenue and profits from its events to support the global speciality print community through its network of 37 international Associations.
Its FESPA Foundation, launched in 2025 under the “Print for Good” banner, turns printed material and donations from exhibitions into educational support for schools and communities. The Foundation says it has now supported more than 1,400 students internationally and is actively supporting five schools, with work already carried out in South Africa and an expansion into Brazil.
Sustainability and community focus
FESPA has also moved to reduce the environmental impact of its own events. In May 2026, it reported ISO 20121:2024 certification for sustainable event management and said it had achieved measurable year-on-year COe reductions between its 2024 and 2025 events.
Neil Felton, CEO of FESPA, said the award reflected the passion and resilience of the global team. He added that FESPA’s mission is rooted in connecting, inspiring and supporting the print community, while creating long-term impact through initiatives such as the FESPA Foundation.
The AEO recognition gives FESPA a strong industry endorsement at a time when event organisers are being judged not only on commercial performance, but also on sustainability, community value and measurable social contribution.
www.fespa.com
